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Dance Preparatory Course in Arnhem
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Curriculum

Curriculum

If you take the preparatory dance course at ArtEZ in Arnhem, you follow two courses at the same time: regular education and professional dance training. You should preferably start with the orientation class when you are about ten years old.

Curriculum

If you take the preparatory dance course at ArtEZ in Arnhem, you follow two courses at the same time: regular education and professional dance training. You should preferably start with the orientation class when you are about ten years old.

What do you learn during the Dance Preparatory Course?

During the Dance Preparatory Course in Arnhem, you develop your physical and mental capabilities as a dancer. The preparatory course is a good preparation for an audition for a higher professional education in dance. You will acquire a solid technical dance basis and learn different dance styles, but the emphasis is on contemporary dance.

The preparatory course focuses not only on dance technique, but also on developing your individuality in dance, marking the start of your development as an artist. You will gain insight into the many professional opportunities in dance. From performing dancer to choreographer, from dance teacher to dance critic and so on. You will develop skills such as expressing and presenting yourself, working together, standing up for who you are, dealing with chaos, improvising and creating. Former students indicate that their preparatory course also formed them as human beings.

The preparatory course helped me discover my own identity in dance and taught me to work hard for it.
SUZANNA, 6TH-YEAR VWO STUDENT

Years 7 and 8 of primary education: orientation phase

For students in years 7 and 8 of primary school there is the orientation class. This is a good way to see if the professional dance world really suits you. In this orientation phase, you will be taught at your own primary school and you will have 2.5 hours of dance classes twice a week. Classes are given after school, in the ArtEZ dance studios in Arnhem. The programme includes contemporary dance, creative dance, classical ballet and folklore. To gain stage experience, you will perform in several shows for an audience each year. You will be taught by dance teachers who specialise in working with children. They carefully tune the lessons to your age and abilities. In this way you build a natural and healthy basis, which you will enjoy all your life.

If you wish to be admitted to the ArtEZ Dance Preparatory Course after the orientation class, you have to audition at the end of the 8th year.

Dance Preparatory Course Day

Are you interested in the orientation classes and the ArtEZ Dance Preparatory Course? First sign up for the free Preparatory Dance Day. A great opportunity to get to know us. You will be taught classical dance, modern dance and folklore. After that, students of the Dance Preparatory Course give a presentation.
The Dance Day is provided by teachers from the study program.

Date and register

Secondary school: preparatory course

If you take the Dance Preparatory Course at ArtEZ, you take two courses at the same time: regular education and professional dance training. To make this possible, ArtEZ in Arnhem works together with the Beekdal Lyceum secondary school. Together we ensure that our young people not only develop their dance talent, but also obtain their HAVO or VWO diploma. You follow a timetable in which regular and dance education are combined. In this way you can combine school and the preparatory course without getting overburdened.

Beekdal Lyceum

The Beekdal Lyceum in Arnhem, with which ArtEZ's Dance Preparatory Course works, is one of the twelve DAMU schools in the Netherlands. The Beekdal Lyceum is also a Top-Class Sport Talent School. At this school for HAVO and VWO there are about 1,200 students, of which about 200 are top athletes and dancers. At the Beekdal Lyceum they have the possibility to follow an adapted curriculum. The dance classes take place in the two dance studios in the school itself. The school has a theatre for performances. Performances are also staged in large theatres in Arnhem, such as ArtEZ and the Municipal Theatre.

Years 1 and 2

You have daily dance classes on school days, twelve to fifteen hours a week in total. Some students also attend classes at their own dance school in the first two years of school. In order to be able to take the classes of the Dance Preparatory Course, you are granted exemptions for the subjects of physical education, visual education, theatre and music in the lower years. The Preparatory Course is divided into year classes, so that you always have classes with students of the same age. You will be taught all dance styles, but the focus is on contemporary dance. In special dance project weeks you will get an idea of the wide range of possibilities in dance and work on your inividuality in dance, improvisation and composition and conveying dance to others.

From the fourth year

In the higher years, the dance programme is one of your final examination subjects. This means that most dance classes are given during school hours or immediately after the regular timetable. You have exemptions for the subjects of Culture and Arts and Social Studies. In addition to the dance classes at school, you dance in a number of shows each year. In the final examination year you can audition for a Dance course or a Dance in Education course.

Foto: Robert Benschop Photography
ArtEZ Dance Preparatory Cource - Photo: Robert Benschop Photography

The ArtEZ preparatory curse has not only improved my dance techical skills, but has also greatly broadened my vison on dance. In the time I've spent here, I've grown tremendously, both as a dancer and as a human being.
KOEN, HAVO 5 STUDENT

Who are your teachers?

You will be taught by experienced and competent dance teachers of ArtEZ. They have gained their expertise in dance as dancers, choreographers or dance teachers, and participate in a platform for talent development together with Papendal sports centre, Vitesse football club and ArtEZ Academy of Music.

Especially for boys

For our boys' performances, ArtEZ collaborates with Boys Action. This is a talent development network of independent dance schools that offer dance classes especially for boys. Our boys can also train with Boys Action on Saturday. Many of the boys who move on to the Dance Preparatory Course continue to train with Boys Action.