Greetings from a former student - now training at Codarts.

Photo by Kim Tonning

Dear Morten and Lotte

It has now been a month since I moved to Rotterdam and this week is the second normal week with a normal schedule – we have had a week’s intro and weeks of training before that.

I love it! Everything is better than I ever could have expected. Our teachers are super dedicated, experienced and special in each their way. I enjoy everything from ballet, Laban, Graham, ballet history, anatomy and many other subjects. The school is incredible and with 10 studios there is room for a little of everything! The whole system seems really good and solid to me. We have a whole program with information and help with problems from injuries and psychological problems to financial problems – they take good care of us and really want healthy, strong and smart students.

The level is really high. In our class it is clear to see that they have chosen students with a very good classical technique. Most from my class come from ballet high schools or similar to that like The National Conservatory Dance School in Portugal, so I am really challenged in ballet.

30 students have been chosen from 600 candidates – normally they take in 60 students but they have chanced the system and want to make the dance department smaller – or so I understood it. From 30 students approximately 5 are from The Netherlands and the rest are from all over Europe. I see it as a really big privilege that I got in and can’t completely understand that I am a part of Codarts! The only thing about the shool that is a shame is that the building does not open until 08.25 in the morning. We have our first class at 9 o’clock that means only half an hour for warm up! I am trying to change that.

Besides our regular schedule there is so much more going on. I participate for example in salsa classes every week taught by to students from second year. Every Saturday there are usually different workshop (the last three weeks in floor work) and on top of that I have become friends with students from the circus department and have started to learn to joggle with diablo and cones and train hand stands. I hope to be able to combine that with my dancing and thereby grow as a dancer.

So to sume up: I have a big smile on my face and enjoy every day here. I love Rotterdam and have settled in well – good apartment and nice people around me! And being Danish I get educational support into my bank account each month!

I cannot thank you enough for everything you have taught me – it is clearly an advantage with all the experience I gained last year! THANK YOU! If you would like to, you can read the blog I am writing about my experiences in Rotterdam:

daneindance.blogspot.com

Many many many happy greetings from Astrid! (: