my bumpy ride in ballet
Hi, this is my first time writing in this forum! I'm currently 15 years old, but I started ballet when I was 12. I always had to quit for one reason or another. I've always had a knack for dance since I was little, and even the place I study now recognized that. In my first year, I came in second place on the final exam. The following year, I came in first on the mid-year exam. You can't imagine how thrilled I was. However, around that time, some of my classmates said they were putting a lot of pressure on me, but I didn't see it that way. Near the end of that year, I had to quit because the teacher was being very hard on me. I remember once, I had to support a classmate, and she told me, "If he falls, it'll be your fault!" Then I came back the following year (to be honest, it wasn't too difficult to keep up, even though that year I was entering a more professional level, so to speak). There were many more students. In my midterm exam, I got a relatively low grade for me (13.5 out of 15) and I was terribly upset. Besides that, my mom couldn't take me because she had to work, so I went back this year.
At the beginning of the year, we met with the teacher who taught me initially, so I tried really hard to get her approval, although I remember her saying once, "You know how to do it, you're just lazy," while giving me a light tap on the stomach (?). I think I have a more mature mindset now, so if I get a low grade this time, I won't give up.
Currently, I'm practicing at home to improve my technique. I didn't do that before; I don't know how I managed to get high grades. The midterm exam is coming up soon, wish me luck! I don't know what you all think about my experience, give me your opinion! :>
P.S.: I think that compared to the treatment students receive at Vaganova, they didn't do anything to me. But it hurt my 13-year-old self.