Classical Ballet

I've been doing ballet for as long as I can remember. So around 3-4 years old. I loved the movements and music. How it all started was by the "Ballet Swan Movie" I watched how she danced and I copied her. It might sound as if it's something that would happen typically. But when I danced I saw a stage and my mom even bought me leotards and tutus. Then there I was at my first class of ballet, I stopped in the 8th grade. I didn't want to quit, it was just that the teachers liked to pick favorites. When they had long legs, if they were tall, even if they were just better than anyone else. I really disliked this. But not I want to take all that criticism and come back stronger than ever. Although I wont continue British Dancing Academy like I did before, I'm planning on joining my middle schools teacher dance classes. I picked up a book that basically has almost every move and pose you can do in the world of ballet. The title of it is, Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet by Gail Grant. You would think "Wow there's a cheat sheet to ballet" , no ballet isn't based off of if you can do it or not, it's based of how much work you've put on it to make it as best as it could. I have obviously lost flexibility and some work I've worked hard on. Why don't I still give it a try?






I started off with one of the poses I struggled with while I was still in ballet, Arabesque Croisee. Around the beginning in the book there's a definition of Arabesque Croisee, it's basically a three-quarter view of the body and faces a front corner of the stage which can be held in a variety of positions. (Grant Pg.4) I followed the illustrations on the back of the book on how it's supposed to look and from what I can remember. It wasn't specific on the footing but I believe from what I learned it's on first position. "First position: A posture in which the feet are turned outward with the heels touching."(Grant Pg. 139) But for this pose only one foot would be in the position while the other is lifted. For all dancers out there, I'll probably get a lot of criticism. But that's where it all starts right? Even the best dancers get criticism.


Arabesque Croisee



After a few times getting into position and posing in lengths of 10 seconds, this is as far as I got. Honestly, I'm not proud of myself. I can already put criticism on the pose, but hearing it from others is what I'm looking for. Many say ballet is not a sport. But I believe it's definitely a sport, a hard one in fact. Coming back into ballet really makes me happy, ballet is literally my passion. It helps me let go of everything, it lets me look forward in life.


Question:
Have you ever taken or currently in ballet? If so what was your most difficult pose?


Citation:
Grant, Gail. Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet. Third Revised Edition ed. New York: Dover Publications, 1982. Print.