Dance classes were what drove me to move to Berlin. My dream was to dance intensively – 12 and more hours a week. At first, I was looking for a dance study. However, most academies have entry requirements and among them is the age limitation (the applicant should be under 21 or 24 years old). I was just a bit older. I didn’t give up, though. I found private schools and programs, which offered from 5 to 10 months of dance intensive programs.

CONTEMPORARY DANCE SCHOOLS WITH DANCE INTENSIVE PROGRAMS IN BERLIN

Basic skills in Dance required. No age limitations.

TANZFABRIK

CLICK HERE for basic information about this school

DANCE INTENSIVE PROGRAM

10 months

Classes

– 6 dance obligatory intensive classes a week, – participants can attend all classes within the regular ‘Tanzfabrik-Kursprogramm’,

September

Program Starts

Auditions

March, April, June and July

Costs

340€ per month

MOTION*S

CLICK HERE for basic information about this school

MOTION*S DANCE PROGRAM

9 months

Classes

– 16 hours of tuition per week, – participants can attend all classes within the regular “Evening Classes Schedule” (7 of these classes a week are obligatory)

October

Program Starts

Auditions

May, June, August

Costs

450€ per month

DANCEWORKS

CLICK HERE for basic information about this school

DANCE AS A PROFESSION

5 months

Classes

Preparatory course before dance study – 10 dance classes a week,

September or February

Program Starts

Auditions

No required

Costs

320€ per month

DANCE INTENSIVE PROGRAMS – YES OR NO?

Let’s take as an example 10 months Dance Intensive Program in Tanzfabrik. This program immediately took my attention. Program in DanceWorks seemed for me too short and too expensive for just 10 classes a week. Motion*s Dance Program was not available at that point. So my main focus was Dance Intensive in Tanzfabrik. The dance opportunities that this program was giving me probably influenced my final decision to move to Berlin. Eventually, however, I didn’t apply for Dance Intensive Program.

When I came to Berlin, I wanted to give myself time to make the right decision. I came in the perfect moment – October. I had plenty of time to adapt and do my research (the application process for Dance Intensive in Tanzfabrik is in March, April, June, or July)

POINTS TO MAKE A RIGHT DECISION

Dance Intensive Programs In Berlin

MY BACKGROUND AND WHAT I WANTED:

  • I have already finished one faculty, so I didn’t need any education degree.
  • I didn’t care much about performances. I could take part in it, but it wasn’t my main focus.
  • The most important factor for me was to dance intensively (a few hours a day) in a professional environment with good teachers.
  • Enter the dancer’s environment and get contacts.

What the course offered:

  • 6 dance intensive classes a week, which are specially designed for Dance Intensive Program,
  • Students of Dance Intensive can take part in all classes provided by Tanzfabrik for free,
  • Performance experience.

REQUIREMENTS: It doesn’t require from the participants any previous dance experience. There is also no age limitation. In conclusion, everybody can try it out. The students are chosen depending on their personality and how they suit the Tanzfabrik project in that particular year. Some beginners are successful in the application process, and some professional dancers couldn’t go through.

COST: 360 Euro/per month. Together 3400 Euro.

WHY I CHOSE NOT TO APPLY

To Any Of Dance Intensive Programs in Berlin

Simple. It wouldn’t pay off for me.

  • The regular classes offered by Tanzfabrik and other schools provide a high level and good content. I didn’t need more than that.
  • If I took part in the program, I would be restricted to dance only in Tanzfabrik, or mostly. Firstly, because I am already spending a lot of money to dance there. Secondly, there is no time to explore other schools. What about if I want to improve my acrobatics, or acro yoga, or circus skills… Tanzfabrik doesn’t cover all these topics, whereas Berlin, yes.
  • Also, in the Dance Intensive Program, I would be bound with the schedule they offered. Instead, I made my own setup, which included the classes I liked the most and which were in accordance with my work. Well, in the end, the course costs are not the most significant expenses you will have. Renting the flat, transportation, and food are what you need money for. If you have 14,000 Euro savings, no problem. If you don’t, YOU NEED TO WORK!!!
  • You can dance intensively – take part in professional classes or in afternoon adult classes – for a lower price than the cost of the Dance Intensive Program.

    Let’s have a look at the prices (2018) offered by Tanzfabrik:

    REGULAR CLASSES
    50x entries ticket costs 350 Euro. It is valid for 6 months. This means you pay 7 Euros per class.

    PROFITRAINING
    ProfiTraining class also costs 7 Euros. 10x ticket of ProfiTraining costs 60 Euros, which gives you the price of 6 Euros per class. It is valid for 3 months.

    PRICE COMPARISON

    Tanzfabrik Intensive Dance Program vs regular Dance Classes in Tanzfabrik

    BE HONEST ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU WILL TRAIN

    Let’s say you want to train 12 hours a week. This means around 8 classes (1.5-hour class) a week. You go to all ProfiTrainings plus 3 other afternoon classes. That means you will use your 50x ticket for a little bit less than 6 months, monthly it will cost you around 84 Euros (3 classes a week x 4 = 12 classes a month, 12 x 7 Euro = 84 Euro) plus ProfiTraining 5x a week = 20 classes a month, meaning you will use two 10x ProfiTraining tickets = 120 Euros monthly.

    Together 204 Euros a month. It is 150 Euros per month less than when you pay for Dance Intensive Program in Tanzfabrik, which costs you 360 Euros/per month. Add holidays to it and days when you are sick, or you train less. In the end, you may pay much less for similar training. Moreover, YOU DON’T NEED TO DANCE ONLY IN TANZFABRIK, and your schedule can be much more flexible.

    MAKE YOUR OWN DECISION

    Are Dance Intensive Programs For You?

    IT IS NOT FOR YOU
    If your goal is to dance intensively and you are self-disciplined, I wouldn’t recommend you to take part in Dance Intensive Programs. Make your own plan, focus on what you need to improve, and if you want to try your chance in performances, there are many rehearsals for dancers in Berlin. Take part in each of them. Maybe even you will get a job 😉

    MAYBE YOU SHOULD GIVE IT A TRY
    But, if you need an external schedule, time restrictions, deadlines. If you want to participate in scheduled performances, you would like more personal guidance and feedback. Probably it is a good idea that you give it a try.

    GOOD LUCK, AND STAY MOTIVATED!!!

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    SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE BELOW

    If you are a participant of Dance Intensive Programs in Berlin or other cities, SHARE your experience in the comments below!!!