What age to start dancing?
The question comes up all the time, from parents and from adults tempted to give it a go. The answer takes few words.
There is no age to start dancing. You can begin as a child, a teenager or an adult. What matters is not age, but consistency and desire. Schools offer classes suited to every age group, from toddlers to experienced dancers.
Children: awakening before technique
Before the age of six or seven, it is not really dance in the strict sense. It is awakening: moving to music, filling the space, listening to the body. Technique comes later, when the body is ready.
There is no point rushing. A child who takes to movement has all the time in the world.
Teenagers: the time to commit
This is often the age when dance turns serious. The body takes the strain, memory works fast, the wish for the stage appears. Many company dancers made this turn between twelve and sixteen.
That said, a teenager who starts at fifteen can catch up. Motivation counts for more than the supposed years lost.
Adults: it is never too late
People often think that starting as an adult is a lost cause. It is not. An adult learns differently, with more thought and less fear of looking foolish than they expect.
They may not aim for the same feats as a dancer trained from childhood. So what? The pleasure of dancing has no age limit.
In Nantes, a setting for every age
The school L'Atelier du Mouvement welcomes children and adults, beginners or experienced. Its company, Mozaïk Ballet', brings together two ensembles, one junior, one adult, so each dancer moves forward at the right time.
Whatever your age, the simplest thing is to try a class.