The first week of the international summer dance institute run by the National Dance Foundation of Bermuda prompted a mix of emotions in the 66 young people taking ballet, modern and jazz class from five members of the teaching faculty of American Ballet Theatre.

Many of the Bermuda dancers had never taken class all day, every day before. Many of the visiting dancers had never danced in such heat and humidity. Some had never been to Bermuda before.

All of the dancers were nervous about what the ABT teachers would think of their ability during the first few days of the 21-day intensive.

With the programme?s emphasis on ballet as the core foundation of a dancer?s strength and technique, a few of the more experienced Bermuda students chafed at going back to basics.

The explanation that it would make them better dancers in the long run, no matter what style of dance they pursued, did little to soothe them as they struggled with being placed at a lower level than they had expected.

Here?s a sample of what it has been like for three Bermuda dancers and a visitor from the US to be a part of the first week of DanceBermuda 2005:

In my first week of DanceBermuda, I went through placement day which was scary but fun. I didn?t really know the moves, so I really had no other place to go but the red group.

The red group is the less advanced group. I like the red group because it is the smallest class, but it is harder than my regular dance classes.

Because this is my first time in an intensive dance programme and because I am not the best dancer, the steps are hard but I am glad to be here. Also it is hard for me to do eight hours of dancing a day.

I like all the teachers, and the things that we do are fun. I have learned a lot of things ? like how to do an emboit? ? but there are some things that I do not like. The stretching in a class called Contemporary is hard, but it is good for me.

Our teacher made us do the splits (Left, Right). In the middle, we had to go up and over with our feet to the ceiling. It hurt. In the class we did not just do stretching we did pass?s and pirouettes. That was fun.

It is also fun working with people from all over the island, America and Canada. I have met a lot of people, even one who has the same name as me. Katherine van Yahres, Nora McGinley-Hence and Ali Hochberg are some of the other people I have met and they are all from America.

After the first week, I was exhausted but excited to be a part of such a great programme. Monday, August 15 was placement auditions and I became nervous as the time drew near. The fact that I was Number 27 and first in my age group didn?t help the situation either.

However, I tried to put my best foot forward in the extremely hot studio. The next day, when I found out I was placed in the beginners? group, my heart just sank. I felt humiliated.I tried to be positive, but as the day progressed I began to lose my patience.

Although I kept my composure, I really couldn?t take it. I felt so bad ? I was thinking, ?What did I do so wrong to be placed in this group??

I still focused on my dancing and tried not to show the anger I felt inside. Mentally, it was tough and I gradually started to lose the enthusiasm to dance as my body succumbed to dejection.

My only hope was that an ABT (American Ballet Theatre) instructor would notice my level and realise that I should be placed in a higher class.

On Wednesday, I was informed that I was moving to the intermediate group, and it felt like a huge burden was lifted off my shoulders ? my whole experience at the programme suddenly became brighter.

Although at times it has been challenging, I feelcomfortable, and always eager to participate.

Dancing all day is definitely tough, but I have so much fun that I often don?t notice the soreness in my muscles.The mix of local and overseas students really adds a nice flavour to the programme. Learning from and meeting new people makes the classes that much more interesting.

One of the many things I like about the programme is the opportunity to take classes I don?t normally, such as partnering/pas de deux and improvisation. Receiving top-quality instruction from the ABT teachers has been most valuable and motivational.

When I saw the view of Bermuda from the plane, I thought I was entering a dream world. My first impressions have not changed much over the first week. Bermuda as a physical place is absolutely beautiful.

I am amazed by the pink beaches and clear, teal ocean water. The houses, too, were like candy for my eyes. The brightness of the colours adds to the sunny cheerfulness of the Island atmosphere.

Beyond this first layer of beauty lies yet another deeper beauty in the people. The citizens of Bermuda are friendly and accommodating. All the locals I have met thus far have been wonderful.

They are truly interested in you and your being, as well as making your trip to Bermuda the best it could possibly be.

Our first-week chaperones at Fair Havens, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, were prime example of this loveliness. They took us international students and adopted us as their own.

They did everything they could to make sure we had what we needed, and to make us feel welcomed here. In my first week here, I have found that this reflects the attitudes of Bermudians in general. Not only do our Bermudian hosts care for us, but the staff at ABT are also wonderful. Their classes focus on very detailed technique. In improving the small things, you become a stronger and cleaner dancer.

However, the teachers focus on the dancer as human and really work on improving the whole dancer, not just the technical aspect. They create, therefore, a nurturing environment in which we learn.

This, of course, is only a small piece of all that I have experienced and felt in one week.

Between meeting many new people, making new friends, and becoming acquainted with Bermudian culture, I have learned more in one week than a studio or classroom could teach me in a year. This is only my first trip to Bermuda, but it definitely won?t be my last.

Five years ago, while living in Atlanta, Georgia, I discovered that I had a desire for dancing. I remember it like yesterday. Shanice?s new single and video, ?When I Close My Eyes?, had just come out.

I fell in love with the song the moment that I heard it, but after watching the video I was hooked.

After studying and taking class for several years abroad, and making decisions about where I wanted to study, I came back to Bermuda this Spring and heard of a dance programme with American Ballet Theatre that was going to be held in the summer.

I was immediately intrigued, but I was also a little scared. I have focused my dance career on modern dance, and ballet has always come second to that for me.

I went for it anyway. I got my former ballet teacher, Ms Keira Martin, to videotape me and it was sent to ABT. I was accepted, but informed that because of my level in ballet I might have to dance with the ten and 11 year olds.

This did worry me a little, but I realise that I have a lot of work to do, and this is the place to do it.

The first day of the programme, we had a placement test to decide what level we would be put in: red level would be the beginners and those dancers who needed to work on their technique; yellow level was intermediate, and blue level was advanced.

I immediately thought that I would be in red, but amazingly I was chosen for the yellow level.

The first few days of classes have been extremely difficult for me. There isn?t a day that I haven?t struggled in ballet. In the middle of the week my luck started to change.

I was placed in Danny Tidwell?s contemporary piece. This really excited me because I would be doing something I am comfortable with and absolutely love doing.

This week of intense dance training has been a struggle to say the least, but I will continue to work at it, and by the end of this programme I will come away with something that I didn?t know before. I know that I have a lot of work to do, and this is definitely the place for it.