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Not Just A Ballet Class
“Would you give your niece a ballet class when she comes to visit you?” my brother asked. “Sure,” I said. “No problem.” I made sure not to hesitate. I would sort out the tumult in my mind later. My niece is a beginning ballet student so how hard could giving her a ballet class be?…
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A Dancer on Vacation?
What is vacation for a dancer? George Balanchine once said that “the time for resting is in the grave.” If death were really that – a permanent, socially acceptable and well-earned rest – that would be very inviting indeed. I once said as much to some gravestones in a cemetery I used to walk through…
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The Dying Swan Lives
I went to see Swan Lake for the umpteenth time this past weekend in New York City. I went to see the two-act version choreographed by Peter Martins after Marius Petipa, Lev Ivanov, and George Balanchine. It was performed by The New York City Ballet, with Mira Nadon in the lead role as Odette/Odile. There…
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The Sweat That Makes You Free
At night I used to walk down 55th Street (in high school my after-school classes were at Ballet Arts at City Center) in the cold with my hair slicked back to the sides of my sweaty head. The feeling of the wind slapping against the side of my head, knowing I should be wearing a…
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When You Are the Best Dancer
I dream that I am dancing in an audition. I lift my knee in passé, extend and unfold my leg so my foot reaches upwards into développé, and my pointed toe arcs high above my head. I jump and cross my legs quickly in an entrechat and my legs cross high and clean so there…
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13 Things My Dance Teachers Said
“You just have to want it more than anyone else.” “Just get rid of it!” (extra weight after vacation) “Don’t look at the ground – this isn’t California – it’s not going anywhere.” “There is a three-year-old in California who can do that combination better than you.” “Be strong!” (chest thump) “If you get through…
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Searching for Good Pain
When I was dancing full time, I sought out what I thought of as good pain. Physically, good pain was pain in the center of a muscle that you wanted to make stronger. It was an achy, tired pain. It was not pain in a joint, or a tendon or ligament, and it was not…
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Seeing Dance in Cats, Trees, and at the Edge of the Ocean
Feeling the dancer inside means feeling a heightened sensitivity to fluid movement, grace, and rhythm. It means feeling and living within, and sometimes against, the pull of gravity, wind, and the ebb and flow of tides. George Balanchine, the neoclassical ballet innovator, choreographer, dancer, musician, and co-founder of the New York City Ballet, told his…
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I See Dance Everywhere
I know there is still a dancer inside me because I see dance everywhere. Even in things that might not look or feel like dance to other people. This winter I have been watching college and NFL football with my husband. When a player gets a touchdown there is often a burst of joy. And…