Dana Mills writes:
“Education is the point at which we decide whether we love the world enough to assume responsibility for it and by the same token to save it from that ruin, which, except for renewal, except for the coming of the new and the young, would be inevitable”.
Hannah Arendt, Teaching as Leading
Teaching is one of the hardest, and most underestimated, jobs in the world. It involves an ever present conflict, apparent in this quote from Arendt, between the new and different, the original, and the world as we know it as teachers. It always varies from the need to conserve a tradition and leaving some space for innovation.
Dance teaching, similar to any other form of teaching, draws on this conflict, and many others…It would be interesting to read: who were the dance teachers who inspired you? How did you feel that experience impacted you as a dancer and as a person? Let’s share our experiences!
My most memorable dance teacher had the ability to enable us as students to enjoy the process, rehearsals, trials and tribulations; she was completely honest and open about her questions regarding the way dance should be approached, and helped us get involved in this learning process in the most profound way. She had a great respect for tradition, and at the same time, left space for each student’s personality, strengths and individual features; and helped us as ballet students appreciate and love the tradition but at the same time try to find ourselves in it. She empowered me as a person and as a dancer. For me, she is, and always will be, a teacher par excellence, and moreover- a mentor.
Oxford Dance Writers 
June 13, 2010 at 7:18 pm
Have just been reading a most enjoyable biography of a famous dancer – but once again I am struck by how little often seems to be written about what actually happened in the dance studio – where dancers spend so much of their lives. Always really fascinated to get glimpses into the practice of great teachers of the past. With increased call for dance teachers today to undergo formal teacher training and get recognised qualifications, all the more important to understand what good dance teaching might consist of. Would the methods of some legendary teachers of the past be acceptable today? Or are we in danger of losing touch with some ancient wisdom?
I was lucky to have two inspiring local teachers in Oxford who between them enabled me to get to the Royal Ballet School at 16. They were very different in style and personality, although both rigourous and exacting. The first one really scared me – I remember feeling sick with nerves one day mounting the steps to the hall for class. But I stuck with it. I wonder if one senses that perhaps such demanding and passionate teachers are indirectly paying the student a compliment with their uncompromising expectations?
I will always be grateful to the second teacher who encouraged me to experience classes and teaching beyond what she herself offered, taking me with her to occasional Cechetti Society classes, and inviting a Royal Ballet School teacher as a regular guest. This emboldened me to go to Pineapple to open classes – without this exposure to the wider dance world, different approaches and styles, and other students of my age aspiring to go to Royal Ballet School, I think I would have foundered in audition and my life been completely different…
June 16, 2010 at 9:04 pm
I am hugely grateful to my first ballet teacher: she is the person who gave me such a good foundation that although I am still dancing forty years on, I have never experienced a dance injury.
Strict but fair, she required us to be punctual, properly dressed, with hair done correctly … and she was never late and was always fully prepared for class. She asked no more of us than she gave to us. She permitted no short cuts or cheating. The focus was not on the height of your leg or the number of your pirouettes, but placing, line and good taste were essential.
I remember her telling me off for performing the Russian sidestep flirtatiously (it was supposed to be shy), and the Grade 3 Tarentella too wildly and dramatically. I was being vulgar, and she was right that less is sometimes more. She insisted on a clean classical style, and I am sure she would agree with another teacher whom I heard say years later, “The positions are perfect. They require no further adornment”.