Q and A - need to know something? just ask!

Unless notified otherwise, all rehearsals will be done in class time, until...

Saturday 21st March - Morning - Stage Rehearsals at Middleton Hall (not for the youngest dancers, who will be led on stage by Miss Louise and the Seniors) - 

Approximately 2.30pm - Dress rehearsal - all performers. Further details to follow.

The following classes will NOT be needed at the Saturday Morning stage rehearsals as they are very young, led all the time on stage

NOT NEEDED - 

Friday 4.30pm (Hessle Minis)

Saturdays 9.30am and 10.30am

ALL PERFORMERS MUST BE BROUGHT TO THE STAGE DOOR AND SIGNED IN. SENIOR STUDENTS WILL THEN TAKE THEM TO THE LARGE DRESSING ROOM. 

NO PARENTS WILL BE ALLOWED IN, UNLESS BY PRIOR ARRANGEMENT WITH ME.

Please come in your usual class uniform, bringing your correct dance shoes. If you do multiple classes, choose a comfortable and warm uniform - you will be working hard, but will also have periods of waiting...

You will be given arrival times according to age. 

Sunday 22nd March

There will be 2 shows - one at approximately 1pm and another at approximately 6pm, with a break between long enough for Primary school age children to be taken out for a break. 

Our very youngest students will only be in the first half of each show. They will be allowed to join whoever is watching them for for the second half - It`s a treat for them to watch the bigger dancers, or they can be taken home for a rest.

YOUR DANCER IS EXPECTED TO PERFORM IN BOTH SHOWS IF YOU SIGN THEM UP!

Dress Rehearsal - Saturday March 21st

Middleton Hall

ALL PERFORMERS WILL BE LOOKED AFTER BY CHAPERONES - THESE ARE PARENTS OF THE DANCERS WHO HAVE VOLUNTEERED TO HELP, ALL MUST HAVE VALID DBS CHECKS AND WILL BE OPERATING UNDER THE RULES SET OUT BY THE THEATRE IN ORDER TO KEEP YOUR DANCER SAFE. Many of our volunteer chaperones are teachers or medical professionals, guiders or scout leaders, or work with children in other fields. We simply cannot run without them - if you are interested in joining our volunteer chaperones, please let Miss Louise know!

Please do not arrive in costume - your dancer must change inside the theatre. 

All performers must sign in at the stage door. All chaperones  must also sign in. Anyone not on our 'expected' list will need to be OK'd by Miss Louise

Once signed in, all performers must go directly to their dressing rooms. Please take all your costumes with you and make sure the Chaperone in charge of the dressing room signs you in. 

Running orders will be on the walls so the performers / chaperones can see immediately which costume is needed when.

A 'runner' will call your performer to the stage at the correct time. The performers need to be escorted to the stage door by no more than 2 chaperones (or student teachers, in the case of the youngest performers) Only one chaperone is allowed past the stage door. This due to the limited space backstage. There is a chaperone in the green room ( backstage waiting area). Dancers will be escorted back to the stage door afterwards, where the chaperones can collect them

Our youngest performers ( Friday 4,30pm, Saturday 9.30am  ) will finish after the interval  and must be collected from the stage door. All other performers must be collected from the stage door at the end of the show or rehearsal

During the rehearsals and shows - drinks are permitted in the dressing rooms - NO FIZZY POP OR MILKY DRINKS. Just squash or water please. 

Snacks are permitted - NO CHOCOLATE OR STICKY SWEETS, as these can ruin costumes.

Make up should be worn by the older students - they appear washed out under the lights without. Our younger students (Minis) can wear make up at your discretion. PLEASE DO NOT SEND THEM WITH MAKE UP TO REAPPLY - IT GETS EVERYWHERE!

Our older students are usually happy to help with make up if you arrange it with them early enough, but they cannot do EVERYONE and are volunteering their services only if they are not too busy!

There will be an official photographer at the rehearsal, and for both performances.  Please make sure your dancer is aware of the rules surrounding the use of mobile phones and photographs/social media - NO PICTURES SHOULD BE TAKEN WHERE ANYONE IS GETTING CHANGED. 

NO PHOTOS SHOULD BE UPLOADED TO SOCIAL MEDIA  which show anyone in the background, or the changing area. Ignoring this rule will lead to the person doing so being asked to leave. 

Performers are not allowed to congregate in the corridors - this is a rule set by Middleton Hall. Anyone choosing to ignore it WILL BE ASKED TO LEAVE IMMEDIATELY. The alternative is the whole school being asked to leave.

Please look out for the email which will arrive with all these details on! 

Tickets are available from Middleton Hall Box Office, and will cost £10 each, plus a booking fee. We have done our best to keep costs to a minimum for you, but we are already risking running at a loss, so simply cannot charge any less!

www.ticketsource.co.uk/middleton-hall 

Costumes are hired from us, at a rate of £6 per costume. The majority of our dancers will need at least 2 or 3 costumes, as each day your child attends will have 2 or 3 dances (more for those on pointe) There is a reduction to £5 per costume for those students who attend classes in every style we offer!)

For this fee we supply your performers costumes, clean and properly fitted, then we wash them afterwards - PLEASE don't wash them - any costumes returned to us in such a bad state that we are unable to use them again will incur a charge of at least £10 per costume, depending on the costume, as we have had to buy more than you think, and NONE of the costumes cost as little as you will be paying. Plus many simply can`t be replaced as they are no longer available to buy

Costumes will all be numbered, and we will have a list of who has which costume. Costumes not returned to us by the date shown on your labels will also incur a charge. 

WHO LOOKS AFTER MY CHILD BACKSTAGE? 

As stated above, all performers will be looked after by DBS checked 'chaperones' in the dressing rooms. Boys will be in a small backstage dressing room - they CANNOT be in the same dressing room as the girls as we have some performers as young as 8 entering puberty.

Both Middleton Hall and our school are very strict about rations of chaperones to students - if you are able to help by being a chaperone for either the dress rehearsal and/or one of the shows and you have a valid DBS check please contact Miss Louise directly. If you would like to be a chaperone but do not have a DBS check, please still make contact as with enough notice we may be able to arrange this. 

In previous years we have had parents look after their own child, but we found this led to a lot of confusion, over full dressing rooms and occasionally not enough respect for the rules set out by Middleton Hall and those (us) trying to enforce them in order to keep the performers safe. For that reason we are only having pre-arranged DBS checked chaperones

Without sufficient backstage help we are not able to put on a show! - If you can help us - please do! But above all - remember - the person your dancer most wants to perform for is YOU! So please remember to book tickets to come and watch them, and bring as many people as you can too!

We will definitely need help backstage - if you want to help and don`t have a current DBS check, please contact me directly - we may be able to arrange one for you. however, we can't justify arranging DBS checks for everyone - there just isn't enough money coming in - the theatre alone will cost us over £3000!

Please let me know by the end of January if you want to be considered for backstage help, and let me know if this would mean including a DBS check

Performers MUST enter by the stage door. They will then be escorted to their dressing rooms by seniors.

ONLY EXPECTED ADULTS MAY ENTER BY THE STAGE DOOR - No, you may not take your dancer to their dressing room unless you are their EXPECTED chaperone.

All audience members enter through the main doors at the front. 

Performers MUST be collected from the stage door - this is for their safety, as we must know at all times where they are.

Mini performers who are finished at the interval must be collected at the stage door - they can then go into the audience to sit with family members who are watching (the person taking them into the audience must have a valid ticket for that performance) or they can go home - but we know from experience, they LOVE to watch the bigger dancers! Mini performers do NOT need a valid ticket themselves - no performer needs a ticket!

Only you know if your baby / toddler will actually be able to sit through 2 hours of dance performances without disturbing everyone - but if you feel that yes, they can, or you have no alternative, then I'm afraid that YES they will need a ticket. This is to do with fire regulations and knowing exactly how many people are in the building

Yes - the Arts Cafe will be open in the interval and before the show for you to enjoy drinks and snacks in comfort. Performers will NOT be able to join you in the interval though!

Obviously, mini performers will be in your care from being collected at the stage door in the interval until they are due back at the stage door for the next performance

(late arrivals risk not being ready to go on stage - we won't wait!)

High school age performers are welcome to stay at the theatre with us to enjoy a packed 'tea' - no eating in the auditorium or on the stage, they will need to remain in their dressing rooms.

All performers in primary school are to be collected at the end of the first show  from the stage door and brought back at 5.30pm - a favourite is a trip to Macdonalds... this gives them time away from the dressing rooms and freedom to run and shout! 

High school age children may sign out at the stage door, and sign back in again in time for the 2nd show, but ONLY IF I HAVE WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM THEIR PARENTS TO DO THIS. An email giving this permission is fine, a text is less good, but could be accepted

In an ideal world, we would say NO PHOTOS OR VIDEOS and expect this to be the case. 

However, we can't police this effectively so all we can do is ask that if you do choose to film instead of actually watching your performer (?!) Please do not post anything on social media as permissions given only extend to us, not the general public

Remember each performer's family will receive a memory stick with a recording of the show - this is part of your performers fee

If you stand in front of Middleton Hall, looking at the front doors - the Stage door is on the Right side of the building, part way down. There is a sign over the doorway saying 'Stage door'