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Oddly enough ENB haven't put out a press release on this one,
Not odd at all. While links are obviously close, The English National Ballet School is a separate organisation, with a separate board, and a separate press/marketing department who look after things themselves.
And in fact, ENBS has issued a press release - not that it said very much beyond the usual welcoming statements. There is reference to "strengthening and developing the artistic vision and excellence of the School", but that's pretty much what you would expect.
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To discover a little of Ms Saidi's teaching abilities I had a look at Ratemyteachers.com and even allowing for naughty children having a go at a disliked teacher the comments that she has no choreographic ability, is forgetful, impatient and indulges in favouritism don't bode well. She has an overall approval rating of just 62%.
I think we should be careful with such website ratings. While they may give an idea, they are hardly scientific or necessarily representative of what the whole student body thinks. It's interesting to note, though, that Saidi is far from the only teacher at Elmhurst to get a poor rating and, actually, gets far from the lowest scores. Not sure what it all says given that I reckon standards have risen enormously there over the past 2-3 years.
Incidentally (and as Cassandra notes), her title is "Dance Director", not "Artistic Director". The latter position is currently held by Wayne Eagling. The post of "Dance Director" doesn't seem to exist right now - it's certainly not listed among the staff positions. It could be a simple renaming, although it suggests some juggling of responsibilities. Whether Saidi will get involved in choreographing pieces for performances, who knows. I have to say that I hope not. I've always found her pieces at Elmhurst (and for the National Youth Ballet) pleasant enough (e.g. lots of pretty patterns), but rather lacking in interest or innovation, and not particularly challenging.
Having said that, we remember that at ENBS she will only be dealing with 16-18 year olds. I'm not sure who she taught at Elmhurst, but from memory her choreographies tended to be more for 14-16 year olds.
Of course, Saidi's new post will have considerable management responsibilties, which I assume will mean less teaching time anyway. It might be worth noting that she was a leading figure in setting up Elmhurst's Associates programme, which now has centres and classes across the country. It is, I understand, rather successful.
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