OPEN AUDITIONS: There is a role for everyone in David Allan’s Nutcracker!
From novice dancer to seasoned pre professionals, we have a role for you to fill and a magical experience to be had!
Dancers with little to no experience in ballet are recommended to take ballet classes during the week, RBA would be happy to accommodate! The more advanced the role, the more training required… if your dancer is interested in a more advanced role they must have formal training/ experience.
Dancers in the Nutcracker will typically have a minimum of two roles and a maximum of four roles, it is not typical to have one role assigned or to be sent a rejection letter.
Rehearsals:
Rehearsals will take place on all Saturdays starting in September until the end of tech week & performances in mid-late December. There will be requirement for a few rehearsals that take place on Sundays and one Monday the week of Thanksgiving Break… No rehearsals on the weekend of Thanksgiving Break!
Costume Fittings are very important to attend, they will take place the hour or so before or after the scheduled rehearsal, for example: If Mother Ginger is rehearsing at 3pm, their costume fitting could take place at 2pm. It is important to be flexible and available for the rehearsal schedule!
What to Wear? Ladies: no bare midriff or legs please. Saturday’s have no color requirement for leotards! Tights, ballet slippers & hair is to be worn in a bun for all rehearsals. Gents: Please wear your most comfortable dance or exercise clothing & footwear, socks are acceptable.
What NOT to Bring? No food or fast food cups allowed. No expensive or valuable belongings allowed, including electronic devices. No guests or visitors allowed (siblings, friends, parents). No extra belongings; street shoes, street clothes, bags, toys, crafts, games, etc, these items can remain with parents in the Main/Platt Lobby. No smart/apple watches are to be worn during rehearsals/classes.
What you CAN bring: A spill-proof water bottle (with ONLY water inside). All BRAVA or RBA warm-up clothing & t-shirts can be worn in rehearsals over dance clothes. (Please put on dance footwear before entering RBA) Ballet Slippers, Jazz Shoes or Character Shoes (Party Scene Women only). Small dance bags with essential belongings only, cell phones must be silenced and put away during rehearsals.
Guidelines on Excusals & Absences:
If you cannot commit to all rehearsals, we strongly recommend considering participating another season. If you have three or more pre-scheduled conflicts with rehearsals, please reconsider participating. Illness and family emergencies/events are excused, we only require open communication and willingness to cooperate with our guidelines on excusals & absences. All dancers/parents must be signed up on Remind!
Illness & Injury Guidelines:
Illness and the health of our cast and their families is a very important issue to us! We sanitize frequently touched surfaces throughout our space and limit large groups of people in small spaces as much as possible. Please be respectful and courteous of those around you and consider wearing a mask or staying home if you or your dancer has been experiencing illness symptoms. Dancers who miss rehearsals due to illness must prove & test negative for covid and be symptom free for more than 3 days before returning to rehearsals/ performances. If dancers are injured, they are encouraged to come to rehearsals to observe and participate in taking notes until they are healed and cleared by their physician to return to physical activities.
Fees, Volunteering & Fundraising:
BRAVA is a non-profit organization which means that the performances and events are solely produced and supported by volunteer work and fundraising efforts! If you choose to participate, parent involvement is expected! There is a participation fee due before the first rehearsal & there is a total amount of money that is to be fundraised (per dancer) and lastly there is a volunteering requirement (parents support their performer backstage; strike team, tech crew, chaperoning, applying makeup, fixing hair, dressing in/out of costumes, repairs/sewing… OR front of house; usher, concessions, boutique, fundraising coordination, etc.). Parents that refuse to be involved will result in their dancer missing out on performing opportunities.
Required Meetings:
There are two mandatory cast & parent meetings, the first at the beginning of the season and the second takes place right before tech week (the week we move into the theatre). The first meeting is TBA (To Be Announced) within the audition acceptance letters/emails! These letters are expected to be sent out a week after auditions take place. The second meeting is the tech week, or safety, meeting. Before we move into the theatre we meet with the entire cast & their parents so we may discuss important information regarding the venue, the schedule, volunteering efforts & any questions or concerns parents may have. Lastly, there may be additional meetings for those who have been invited to participate within the Guild or the Tech Crew. There will also be dates and times for parents that need to sign up with our Volunteer Coordinator and fill their volunteering hours.
Code of Conduct & Rehearsal Etiquette:
Disrespecting others and/or bullying of any kind (adults or children) will not be tolerated while participating in BRAVA or RBA productions. Dancers can be asked to leave rehearsals at anytime at discretion of the artistic staff if they are not showing respectful behavior. This rarely happens, however, please encourage dancers to be on their best behavior. This also applies to RBA’s main lobby area, Platt Lobby… This is a shared space & we need to do our best to keep it as clean as possible. There are restrooms, water fountains, multiple benches and electricity plugs on either end of the lobby… children should be supervised at all times! Dancers are encouraged to use the restroom & leave their belongings with their parents before going into rehearsals. Dancers who have multiple roles will have small breaks for eating snacks or using the restroom, these breaks are not supervised by RBA staff or BRAVA crew… parents must be available to supervise their children in the Main/Platt Lobby at anytime.