Category: Ballet
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The Security of Standards
Ballet lets you know when you’ve gotten it right. Within the various styles of ballet, such as classical, neoclassical, Cecchetti, and Vaganova, there are clear aesthetic standards for technical achievement. A penché should look exactly like two hands of a clock at six o’clock, for example – one straight line from the tip of your…
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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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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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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…
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Where Did the Dancer Inside Come From?
When I hear music, even if I am in my car or in the grocery store, I want to move. I want to swim in it and be carried along with the melodic line. I want to accent how I am moving either with the beats of the music, in counterpoint or answer to it.…