Jul 19, 2018
Mikhail Baryshnikov and Lesley Collier in Ashton's Rhapsody - Pointe
seen from Australia
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seen from China
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seen from China
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seen from Germany
Mikhail Baryshnikov and Lesley Collier in Ashton's Rhapsody - Pointe
Can we take a minute to talk about this lovely piece of dance called "Voices of Spring"?
Alina Cojocaru (the sweetheart) and Johan Kobborg.
The look
Ballet Musings
So I've still been thinking about ballet a fair amount. Been watching an episode of Princess Tutu in the ever-empty keyboard lab after my exams every day this week (big projector hooked up to a computer! Yay!), so that's kept the dream alive. Had a friend suggest I start stretching like crazy too. I'd spent so much time on my arches, I hadn't even thought of that! For the past 24 hours, I've been working on stretching my side splits, sitting facing a wall and shuffling as close as I can with my feet against it, sitting butterfly-style... and it's actually working. My legs are going lower than they have in the butterfly position since... well, ever, really. I was a really stiff-legged kid. I can also juuust manage to touch my head to my knees when I'm sitting in pike position. I've never done that before in my life. I can't believe I'm seeing so much progress in just 24 hours...
Aside from stretching, I've also spent time digging through the internet. Turns out there's a 3-day-a-week adult ballet program throughout the end of July into August. It seems relatively affordable, about $250 for 12 lessons (so, a month). How amazing would that be, to be able to dance? To just hear music, and be able to express yourself with it? It's been my dream for years, really, to be able to dance. I wish I could have admitted it earlier though. Throughout elementary school, I forced myself to be a tomboy. Probably because I thought I wasn't good enough for pretty things, painted nails, being dainty. Who knows where I could be now? I don't mean professionally at all, but maybe pointe? Maybe a pas-de-deux?
I wonder if it's too late to learn all those things. Google tells me no, it's not impossible, but common sense tells me improbable. I mean really, what kind of ballet school is going to teach a slightly-clumsy 18 year old to seriously dance? Pointe I've always wanted to do, it looks so elegant, yet still with the knowledge that pain is involved for beauty... something about that attracts me. The pas-de-deux longing is something more recently developed. I saw Giselle in NYC a few weeks ago, and after seeing a pas-de-deux in person... breathtaking.
But anyways, a couple of questions for any dancers out there who actually bothered reading through my rant. How much can be accomplished through 12 lessons in beginning ballet? What should I do to prepare? And for the pointe and pas-de-deux... is it possible for someone my age?
Until I figure this out, I'll just keep wearing my thrift store ballet slippers, and practising my stretches and working on my arch. I love these shoes. I feel like we were destined to meet.