For pupils in years 7 and 8 of primary school.
In the orientation class, you will find out whether the professional dance world really suits you. You will attend your own primary school and have dance lessons twice a week after school. The lessons last 2.5 hours. You will attend the dance studios of the Valuascollege in Venlo.
You will work on contemporary dance, creative dance, classical ballet and folk dance. You will perform in front of an audience several times a year. This will give you stage experience.
You will be taught by dance teachers who specialise in working with children. They carefully tailor the lessons to your age and abilities. This will help you build a natural and healthy foundation that you can enjoy throughout your life.
Would you like to attend the ArtEZ Preparatory Dance Programme after the orientation class? Then you will need to audition at the end of Year 8.
For secondary school pupils.
If you enrol in the ArtEZ Preparatory Dance Programme, you will follow two programmes simultaneously: regular education and professional dance training. ArtEZ in Arnhem collaborates with Valuascollege for this purpose. Together, we ensure that you develop your dance talent and obtain your VMBO, HAVO or VWO diploma. You will follow a timetable that combines regular education and dance education. This allows you to attend school and complete your preparatory course without becoming overburdened.
The Valuascollege is a school for VMBO, HAVO, VWO/Atheneum and Gymnasium-plus with over 2,300 pupils. The school has several Talent Development Programmes (TOP classes) for talents in visual arts, musical theatre, music and dance, among other things. Nearly eighty pupils follow the ArtEZ Preparatory Dance Programme. The dance lessons take place in the two dance studios in the school itself. Performances are staged in a local theatre in Venlo and on the main stage of the Stadstheater.
During the first three years, you will take lessons in the TOP Dance class. You will start in a mixed two-year VMBO-T, HAVO and VWO programme. After that, you will choose a profile and continue within your own school type (VMBO/HAVO/VWO).
In the TOP Dance class, you will take the normal school subjects. Your timetable will also include one or more dance classes every day, totalling twelve to fifteen hours per week. Some students also take classes at their own dance school during the transition years. You will be exempt from physical education, arts and social studies.
You will have contemporary dance lessons twice a week. Once a week you will have classical dance and once a week you will have lessons in folk dance. Twice a year there is a block of improvisation/composition. You will learn how to improvise and how to create choreography. There is also a block of lessons for urban dance styles. From the third year onwards, you will take the subject Zelfgedaan (Self-made). In this subject, you will learn how to rehearse and edit from a (computer) screen.
Each academic year, you will dance in various performances. In three Zelfgemaakt performances, you will dance in front of an audience. Together with your fellow students, you will determine the choreography, lighting, costumes and music for these performances.
In the upper years, the dance programme is part of your final exam package. You will take classes together with the regular students. You will be exempt from the subjects of cultural and artistic education and social studies. In addition to the dance classes at school, you will perform in various productions several times a year. In your final year, you can audition for dance programmes at ArtEZ, such as Dance Artist or Dance Educator.
You will be taught by experienced and skilled dance teachers from ArtEZ. They have gained their knowledge as dancers, choreographers or dance teachers. The teachers are not only good at dance, but they are also good at communicating that knowledge and guiding you as a dancer.