Why The Royal Ballet School?

Milda Luckute joined The Royal Ballet School Upper School in 2020 from Lithuania.

In her three years, she embraced School life: performing with The Royal Ballet in Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella, representing the School in the Prix de Lausanne Partner School Choreographic Programme, winning School awards including the London Ballet Circle Dame Ninette Award for the most outstanding female graduate, performing leading roles in Don Quixote and Raymonda, making lifelong friendships and earning a degree.

Following her graduation in 2023, Milda joined Semperoper Ballett Dresden. In her first year, she made a series of debuts in soloist roles, including the Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty, Dark Angel in George Balanchine’s Serenade and the principal girl in Justin Peck’s Rodeo.

A year on from graduating, Milda reflected on her experience at The Royal Ballet School and how it shaped her career.

How did your artistic training with The Royal Ballet School shape you as a dancer?

From an artistic perspective, I developed an understanding of what is effective when creating a role or simply performing a step, how the audience gets affected and what must happen within me internally for it to be felt by the spectators. The development of artistry, stage presence, and character execution during my studies was carried out through various projects: the School’s annual end-of-year performances, various School competitions, trips, concerts and international projects. This gave me the opportunity to work with incredible coaches, teachers and world-renowned choreographers to familiarise myself with various dance styles and to try out various characters.

And the priceless experience of seeing behind the scenes of one of the world’s best theatres – the Royal Opera House, and at the same time working in ballet classes shoulder to shoulder with leading world-class dancers, wearing their costumes for performances, getting coaching from the best repetiteurs.

I have improved my overall technical package, turned my weaknesses into my strengths and developed traits that I did not know I could have in me. I am a tall dancer, and for the longest time, I had limiting beliefs of what my body could do, but the three years of full-time training at The Royal Ballet School proved that with the right methodology and tools, as well as with the full attention, support and motivation of professionals, I could eliminate the ‘im’ from ‘impossible’. 

How did you find balancing your artistic training and academic studies?

Merging my artistic and academic training was a challenge, and although it was tough in the moment, it has taught me so much. I was always very curious, and although the artistic side of dance is what draws me in the most, the theoretical side only enriches the art and makes the artist more well-rounded.

Since English is not my first language, it took me longer to grasp the academic terms. My teachers inspired me to study the degree course with English-speaking students. It took time management and multi-tasking skills to achieve all the tasks and still have some downtime during the week. Under the guidance and support of my academic teachers, I completed my dissertation, and graduated not only as a professional ballet dancer but with a degree in Classical Ballet and Dance Performance.

I constantly catch myself using the knowledge I acquired in my studies and know that it will follow me throughout my career. I still remember stressing out about the essay I was writing on Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, and now I am grateful for that time since we will be performing his piece at the end of the season.

How did the pastoral and healthcare staff support you during your time at the School?

They were always there for us and did their best to make us feel at home, united, and confident.

The healthcare in the School is exemplary. The Healthcare staff were keeping our health as a complete and precious unit, treating any niggle or major injury as something that needs to be taken care of, no matter how small. They were remarkable at creating a safe space where we could relax, open up about our struggles or just share some funny jokes or moments from the day, allowing us to calm down and heal from the inside out. It was such a natural thing to just sit on a massage table, grab a collagen shot or get treatment while chatting about what my life would look like if I won the lottery!

What are the teaching staff and other faculty at the School like?

I have the fondest memories of every member of the teaching staff. They have exceptional knowledge and understanding of the art form and are incredibly receptive to the students’ needs. All young people, especially students from all over the world in new surroundings, young artists, and teenagers, are very sensitive to daily changes in the environment, their bodies, mood, and their internal struggles, which can affect their performance in daily classes and life outside of the studio. Teachers need to be gentle and sensitive to the minuscule changes in the students’ state, which is what the teachers at The Royal Ballet School are wonderful at.

Another important factor was their treatment of us as equals. Although all the students in the School had immense respect for all the staff, the faculty’s attitude towards us was in no way that of hierarchical superiority. I believe that this is an important element that helps the students develop into fully-fledged humans with their own opinions and voices and the ability to use them within society.

How would you describe the School’s atmosphere?

The atmosphere in the School was always very tranquil, warm, and tolerant, but equally motivating, supportive, and inspiring.

After any holidays or exeat days, we were rushing to meet each other as soon as possible again. There was also healthy and respectful competition, which allowed us to learn from our classmates’ strengths and strive to improve daily. 

A mutual love for dance always fed this sense of community. It is an international School, and our year group alone consisted of people from over ten countries. Regardless of the cultural differences, the School created a harmonious environment where we all felt a part of one big entity. Even after graduating, I still feel like I belong to The Royal Ballet School family.

What are some of your fondest memories of your time at the School?

There are so many, but one thing they all had in common was my wonderful friends, my incredible class of 2023, with whom I shared many of our memories. All these extraordinary, passionate, talented people I was so gifted to meet and to know. Of course, performing was always the thing we were looking forward to the most, but even the smallest memories, such as movie nights with my flatmates or late-evening trips to get ice cream, hold a very special place in my heart. I am eternally grateful to everyone for helping to create a home thousands of miles away from our real homes and families.

In what ways did The Royal Ballet School prepare you for a career in dance?

Besides teaching me the highest-level ballet technique, the School has taught me to tackle any choreography that comes my way. The physical training has taught me such versatility and adaptability that I can mould myself into anything a choreographer or a coach would ask me to do while still maintaining my own personality and individuality within the work that I do.

The knowledge that I acquired is also now allowing me to be my own coach, motivator, personal trainer and psychologist when needed, since as a professional there are no teachers standing by your side and nudging you to point your toes. I must be my own feedback-giver and I am able to be one because of the wisdom that my teachers at The Royal Ballet School have generously shared with me.

What advice would you give young dancers considering applying to The Royal Ballet School?

First, dedicate some time to research the School, its style and the kind of training it offers. Ballet is beautiful. In my opinion, it is one of the best professions, but it is also one of the hardest, and you have to want it sincerely to have a fulfilling career.

The Royal Ballet School is great at providing insights into the training, so use every opportunity available to participate in the intensives and online classes, watch videos and performances, and follow the School on social media to acquire the knowledge and test the waters before the big dive. If, after all this research, the answer to the question of whether you really want it is still yes, then go for it!

Applications to join The Royal Ballet School are now open. Apply now.