Aspiring Bermudian dance teachers are being offered a further opportunity to enhance their professional development, thanks to a new pilot programme just launched by the National Dance Foundation of Bermuda.

Entitled ‘Bermuda Emerging Dance Artists’ (BEDA), the programme will allow up to five trainee dance teachers currently studying at accredited institutions to participate in DanceBermuda 2007, the Foundation’s annual summer intensive, during which they will intern with world class master teachers.

Working alongside the master ballet, jazz, modern and Broadway instructors for three concentrated weeks, the young Bermudians will learn firsthand how to construct and manage an effective class plan; create a long-term plan for effective advancement (i.e. follow a syllabus); develop a solid technical foundation; adapt teaching styles to an individual dancer’s requirements; and work collaboratively with live accompaniment to maximise each dancer’s class experience.

They will also have an opportunity to teach classes in their particular dance discipline, and also be considered for participation in DanceBermuda’s workshop production, which takes place at the end of the 2007 summer intensive.

BEDA brings to three the number of opportunities offered to aspiring local dance teachers by the NDFB as “a solid investment in the quality of dance training on the Island”. In the knowledge that “superior teaching is the result of superior training”, the newest programme is also in keeping with the NDFB’s overall mission “to raise the standard of dance excellence in Bermuda”.

Its other opportunities for enhancing professional development are the ‘PartnerRe Teaching Training Series’, which provides over 20 hours of free instruction to Bermuda teachers from visiting master teachers in ballet, jazz and modern dance; and scholarships available to teachers wishing to pursue professional development at accredited institutions abroad.