“I strongly believe that the Moving Minds sessions are something that every dancer should have access to, and I am but one of the most fortunate that has been able to experience it so early in my life…. [and] to understand the importance of the relationship between your mind and body and how it is a key aspect in being a healthy and happy dancer.” Participant of the Moving Minds sessions at the Dancers’ Development Experience

National Youth Ballet is committed to building and developing physical and mental resilience and confidence in young people both within and through ballet. Our Moving Minds programme is focussed around a specific and relevant topic of health and well-being, aimed at increasing resilience and a positive mindset in young dancers.

Our first ever Moving Minds workshops took place during February half-term 2021, and looked at how to nurture young dancers’ mindset, ways to adapt to new challenges, develop confidence and support ongoing health and wellbeing. 64 young dancers took part and feedback included:

“The entire course really taught me a lot about confidence and well-being and I came away from the class feeling enlightened and more confident in myself, especially because I felt like I knew tons more about how to have the right mindset in dance and I loved learning all of the new techniques and ways to boost my confidence.”

“I learnt lots of techniques to help with boosting confidence (confidence jar, super song) and managing nerves or anxiousness (breathing exercise, superhero pose).”

“I learnt how to control my nerves before a big event but also to accept the fact that it’s okay to be nervous and there are ways of getting rid of it.”

Further Moving Minds workshops took place in June and October 2021, and during the Dancers’ Development Experience. Feedback included:

“It was really useful learning about the impact you can have in the space and how what you bring is contagious.”

“I learnt how to be an active listener”

The sessions were led by NYB practitioners, Charlie Brittain and Carrie Johnson. Charlie’s specialism in Sports Therapy and musculoskeletal health, Carrie’s in Sports Psychology and their joint experience working in professional dance make them ideal workshop leaders for this project.