© John Slater Ballet into the 21st Century Conference Ballet.co magazine coverage Introduction to Snape Conference Final conference statement Ballet into the 21st Century forum... to link with the second Ballet Artistic Directors conference. Go and have your say in where ballet should heading.

Reid Anderson,
Stuttgart Ballet
"For me the most important thing was twenty five directors getting together and rapping about ballet. We never do it and it was psychologically very important. I also liked the combination of people running big and small companies. I wish I had had these insights from experienced directors, when I first started to do it. The lovely thing was that it was just us together. No one was looking over our shoulders. I thought the numbers would be overwhelming. But they weren't. We don't want to stop doing this. It has been too good for our souls. It was tiring and I feel thrashed. But after this, I will return to my company rejuvenated and renewed"

Boris Akimov,
Bolshoi Ballet.
"For me this weekend was a very important event in my life. It made the same impact in all of us. We all share the same major problems. The biggest problem is that of nurturing a young generation of choreographers and encouraging people who can bring new creativity to our art form."

Marc Jonkers,
former director, National Ballet of Portugal
"The issues were not new to me. But what was new was the sense that my colleagues felt the same problems too. That was very nourishing for me. Often there is a problem with a tradition that is on your back and that you have to maintain and take care of. I was very inspired by some of the approaches I heard to developing new choreography. The most important thing is creativity, the rethinking of what we are doing, so that this art form can survive."

Kevin Irving,
Gothenburg Ballet.
"It was fantastic. The level of discussion was stellar. People brought so much experience. I am using too many superlatives, but I mean it. I'm very new in my position. We spoke about whether it was possible to mentor and support directors in their jobs and discussed how directors needed to create support in their organisations to do their jobs properly. It's a vital issue. But peer support is primary. You have to know them to count on their support. This meeting is a beginning and it can be strengthened. Now, if I had a problem, I could call someone like Reid Anderson and ask what he did in a similar situation."

David McAllister,
Australian Ballet.
"After this weekend, I feel a sense of connectedness with other directors. Having Charles Handy and David Lan, was wonderful. I feel like I have consolidated some ideas and learnt some new things."

Dinna Bjorn,
Finnish National Ballet
"The effects of the weekend will become apparent after a while. We all feel that this was the beginning of being able to work much better together. With most trades you have a union and you have associations and you meet on a yearly basis. As directors we've never have that and it was so wonderful to receive a confirmation that what we are doing is worthwhile."

Matz Skoog,
English National Ballet
"This is a very positive expression of globalisation. It is very important that we meet in this proactive way. "

Wayne Eagling,
Dutch National Ballet.
"It was very useful for everyone concerned to be there. It reaffirms that you are not alone. If you're board is not grasping something you tell them, you can say: 'It's not just me. Twenty five other directors think this way.' We didn't solve any problems or put the world to rights. We didn't make statements of intent, but it was useful to know we all feel the same way. The situation of the artistic director is vulnerable and people who have no knowledge can be busy with the final decision of what is going to happen. It was interesting to talk about how we deal with dancers of the future. It is no longer like how it was when we were all dancers, when we were told what to do. Now dancers ask questions. It was refreshing to discuss how we make dancers responsible for what happens in a company."