tek him to play footie like any normal lad...tell him to stop being a jessy he mite still be able to save himself!

hes maybe seen the likes of billy elliott, maybe he thinks this is a way to do you proud!

let him do it, y stand in the way of his dreams, hell either love it, in which case you can be proud and happy or he will hate it and look for a new hobby.

I don't see the problem in him learning ballet. If it is something he wants to do then let him - better than forcing him to go play football when he really doesn't want to, he'd just resent you for that.

There are plenty of men that do ballet! Just look it up on google!

I think our world is too strict on what boys and girls should do. Boys should like football and cars and girls should like dolls and clothes. Well its not the case, especially today when most people have adapted and changed. My nephew has a toy kitchen and my neice has cars. not a problem. Doesnt mean they are going to be gay/lesbian!!

If it is something he seems passionate about then let him do it - he may get bored anyway. if he doesnt get bored then I think this is fantastic, ballet is a fantastic thing to do and I would be immensly proud if my children were good at it!

I'm all for him going!

Whats wrong with him doing ballet let him go its good for kids to have a hobby!

Perhaps you should suggest him to try out break dancing out first instead or some form of dance that is a bit more "masculine."

His your son, let him have a go at it, He might have one lesson and hate it but atleast let him have a go, you might have the next billy elliot as a son. Boys can do ballet, theres nothing wrong with it and it doesnt mean his going to be gay when he grows up, his only 10 years old, they love dressing up and exploring things. Id say let him have a go at one lesson and see what happens from there.

I am a dancer, and I've been dancing for 12 years.
We have male dancers at our studio, and I've seen plenty of male dancers throughout the years. Ballet can be very girly, but there is a ver masculine thing to it also. Ballet makes you strong, gives great posture, and if your son wanted to continue dancing it would give him great technique.

Maybe you can have an agreement. Have him take ballet, since it is what he wants to do, but maybe he can take hip hop also, or even tap? Lots of males do hip hop, and its so much fun! Tap is by far my favorite type of dancing, its so free and so many males do it. Plus if your a guy dancer you have a better chance of making it in the dance buisness!

Get the best of both worlds, classical and funky!!

I certainly understand where you come from I feel that it is an important thing for parents to raise a masculine son, that being said ballet will not necessarily male him effeminate, it develops a strong athletic body which. His new found health and fitness may spark an interest in sports, plus as he gets older the chicks will dig him. It is also important to remember that there was a trend some time ago for football players to take ballet classes to develop balance or something like that, but my point is that it could be good for him.

Sounds like a good idea.
Ballet will help your son build physical endurance, strength, and coordination. And you just can't beat the music. A whole lot better than that Rap clap trap.
That and he's going to meet some very pretty girls too :-) No way is that a bad thing!

And a really talented ballet dancer can make millions. $$$$$
Don't look at it like your loosing a son, (that's entirely how you raise him) But look at it like you gaining a Porsche!

Hello,

(ANS) I would 100% definitely encourage your 10 year old son to go too ballet classes. Why?

No.1 if he does have any real talent to be a male dancer 10 years old is the right age for him to start.

No.2 YES! thats true he might be the only boy in a class full of girls. I certainly was when I did my dance training but sadly I started when I was 20 years. Your forgetting that if he is serious and enjoys ballet the girls in the class absolutely love having a boy in the class once they get over the surprise of him taking part too.

No.3 Contrary to popular mythology being a male ballet dancer is extremely demanding physically. I used to do class or company class each day for around 2hrs and its non stop hard work. Male dancers have to be fitter and stronger than most other performers or athletes. Its VERY much NOT effeminate thats a misconception, how many men can really lift a female dancers body completely over their head and NOT drop her during a performance?

No.4 Why? shouldn't a boy of 10 years old NOT be allowed to express himself in that way? ballet has a long & well defined tradition of male dancers.

No.5 Have you ever seen any contemporary dance such as Phoenix Dance company (full of male dancers they are brilliant too).

No.6 Sadly ballet doesn't come cheap though, there are shoes to buy, leotards and classes to pay for so that might be a serious consideration depending up on how many & how often he goes.

LET HIM GO I SAY !!

Regards Ivan

Good for him! I've been trying to encourage mine into ballet, without success.

Talk to him about why he wants to learn. If he's interested in dance/theatre it might be a good idea to also offer another type of dance in addition to the ballet - my son goes to a musical theatre class which he loves, and he is very interested in the theatre but sadly won't take up ballet! Ballet is very disciplined, and gives a great foundation in dance/strength/fitness, whereas the musical theatre group is more fun and contemporary.

It is likely that a boy of this age would not wear tights, but instead wear shorts and t-shirt for ballet lessons. That's what the boys wear for ballet at my kids' dance school.

Some of the hottest men on tv have had dance training. I would lay money on it that John Travolta had ballet training if you look at how he moves in Grease and in Saturday Night Fever.... :-)

you make it sound like its a bad thing
who cares its only ballet!

Give him a chance!!

your son wont be the only guy around.. they're are also male beginners!!
how will you know if its a phase or not if he doesn't try it..???
some boys seem to be more interested in dancing.. which is amazing..
because the dance industry are looking for young male dancers..
even if he doesn't become a pro dancer!! He will be thanking you after!!

Give him a chance..
you can also put him into a hip hop class..
aswell as ballet..
or aswell as doing ballet enroll him into soccer or football!!

Hope this helped!!
= ]

My son was in the ballet world for 7 years and is now a United States Marine....I'm just guessing here, but I don't think ballet made him effeminate....

Let him do it. What's the big deal if he wants to try something else? At least he's not getting into some really bad stuff if he's in ballet class. Plus, he'll be getting a really good workout, and he'll end up really toned and handsome.

And so what if he grows up to be a little flamboyant, or even gay? It's not like it's really a big deal, as long as he's happy with himself.