Fun Friday Butt Out

Fun Friday Butt Out

I have talked about pas de couru before: http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/2015/10/technical-tuesday-pas-de-couru.html. It is an interesting step. It is one of the very few times in ballet where the dancer’s seat is permitted – indeed required – to stick out. What fun.

The angle of the body is critical for the twinkling running steps of pas de couru, in which the feet are sent ahead of the body. To do this, the derriere must stick out as a counterweight.

Another place where the seat must stick out in ballet is in a shoulder sit. Watch any pas de deux from the wings as the ballerina is lifted into this position and you will see “butt out” in action.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Ballet Secret #33x:

“In a pas de couru, the derriere is out.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH-IzBEDV2o

Quote of the Day:

“Behind every door, someone is standing without knowing that it is open.”
― M.F. Moonzajer

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Throwback Thursday and the Leigh Sisters

Throwback Thursday and the Leigh Sisters

Edna and Stella Leigh were dancers in a vaudeville act during the late 1890s. They are said to have performed in “a saucy style” and that they exposed a bit more of their legs than was usual for that time period.

They entered the pages of history in 1896 in New York when the first exhibit of Thomas Edison’s Vitascope projected a film showing them doing their umbrella dance. This early movie was so popular that it was hand colored for the next five years. Sadly, this film has been lost, but due to the coloration (if it was accurate) we know the Leigh Sisters were blonde and one wore a pink skirt, the other a blue or green skirt. The large umbrella was purple.

By 1897 Stella retired and was replaced by Edwina and the act appeared in Little Miss Chicago in Chicago Illinois.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Dance History Secret #309:

“The Leigh Sisters appeared in Edison’s first Vitagraph film in 1896.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNJfC9qtRuE

Quote of the Day:

“Those who want to get wet need no umbrella!”
― Mehmet Murat ildan

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Wacky Wednesday Warped

Wacky Wednesday Warped

Ah, the dreaded warped pirouette. You know what I mean. It’s when some part of the body, or many parts, fail to come into proper alignment. Often it is the shoulder area that is tilted sideways, forward or (gasp!) back.

Since dancers are a determined species, they force their pirouettes to happen despite being skewed. Sadly, the appearance of such turns is that of a top when the momentum is slowing – warped. Not good.

I had a wonderful dance partner who always noticed even a slight degree of misalignment – to say nothing of the major blunders. He would laugh and say under his breath: “Kinda warped there, darlin’”.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Ballet Secret #14uuu:

“A pirouette should never appear warped.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jfi2g_sFkqQ

Quote of the Day:

“…the Greeks were highly skilled at building visual compensations into their structures. Columns were crafted and positioned to compensate for how the eye interprets what it sees at a distance. Subtle variances in the surface of platforms, columns, and colonnades provide the appearance of geometric proportion, whereas if they had worked from the perspective of a flat datum surface, the brain would interpret the results as being slightly skewed.”
― Christopher Dunn, Lost Technologies of Ancient Egypt: Advanced Engineering in the Temples of the Pharaohs

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Terminology Tuesday Ballotté

Terminology Tuesday Ballotté

The word ballotté [ba-law-TAY] means “tossed”. Gail Grant states in her book Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet: “…tossing step requiring a great deal of balance, ballon and èpaulement”.

Yet this is a common step and can be done with the knees straight or bent. It most famously seen in the 1^st act of Giselle (see the Link of the Day below).

In the French school the step is called “jeté bateau”.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Terminology Secret #78:

“Ballotté means ‘tossed’.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdNlGRjbso0&t=8s

Quote of the Day:

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Mad Monday Body and Arms

Mad Monday Body and Arms

It is so tempting to wind up and use the arms as a major impetus for pirouettes. And the arms do assist – but they should never be the major players.

Imagine doing your turns with your body, not your arms. If you have trouble doing this make it real: put your hands on your hips or folded across your chest for the entire turn. That’s right, no arms at all from the preparation through the turn to the finish.

This lets you know in no uncertain terms whether you are turning with your arms instead of your body.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Ballet Secret #14ttt:

“Turn by using your body, not your arms.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsJk45LA32c

Quote of the Day:

“Opening his arms he said quietly to her, "Disappear here.”
― Jonathan Carroll

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Sunday Counting

  

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvC4MRTVJeU

Quote of the Day:

“Count your blessings, not your problems. Count your own blessings, not someone else's. Remember that jealousy is when you count someone else's blessings instead of your own.”
― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart

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Superstitious Saturday Perfect

Superstitious Saturday Perfect

Among the multitude of theatrical superstitions is one that seems to rise above the rest. I’ve heard it many times and it is this: Beware of the perfect rehearsal. It is thought that a perfect rehearsal spells catastrophe for the upcoming performance. Therefore, a bad dress rehearsal means a good - or even great - performance. Hmmmm….

According to https://www.auntyflo.com/Superstition-dictionary/dance:

 “The fears that have been associated with a perfect rehearsal include having a short performance run, and there are other times that the performance itself will be disastrous in some way.”

Exactly where this belief came from is a mystery, but it goes far back in theatrical history. For a more logical approach check out this link : https://actingcoachscotland.co.uk/blog/why-does-bad-dress-rehearsal/.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Superstitious Secret #191:

“Beware of the perfect rehearsal.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJuJee_MeRA

Quote of the Day:

“If you look for perfection, you'll never be content.”
― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

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Fun Friday Balloon Hug

Fun Friday Balloon Hug

Sometimes the only problem with a pirouette is the use (or lack thereof) of the port de bras. Often, when turns don’t work well it is because the arms are limp or droopy -and we all know there is no drooping in ballet.

Or, less frequently, it is because the arms are too tense – the opposite side of the port de bras spectrum. This usually happens when the dancer is trying too hard.

Here is a thought that will work for both: Imagine hugging a giant balloon. Hug it hard enough to hold it, but not hard enough to pop it. Even better, if you have a large balloon (or even a plastic ball ) the correct size, have the dancers pirouette while holding it.

Hug it, but don't pop it or drop it!

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Ballet Secret #14sss:

“Imagine hugging a big balloon without popping it.

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDJYJJSMgAc

Quote of the Day:

“[H]er mind was like a balloon with static cling, attracting random ideas as they floated by[.]”
― Jonathan Franzen, Purity

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Throwback Thursday and Jenny Hasselquist

Throwback Thursday and Jenny Hasselquist

Born on July 31, 1894 in Stockholm, Sweden, Jenny Matilda Elisabet Hasselquist was a dancer and actress in silent movies. She received her training from the Swedish Opera’s ballet school. She went on to perform with the Royal Ballet and in 1913 Michel Fokine noticed her and she then began performing soloist roles in ballets like La Sylphide. In 1915 she became a prima ballerina. The Link of the Day below shows her performing The White Rose, a solo strikingly similar to The Dying Swan made famous by Pavlova.

She made her movie debut in the 1916 film Balettprimadonnan.  She also acted in the movies  Sumurun (1920), Johan (1921), The Saga of Gösta Berling (1924) with Greta Garbo, and The Hell Ship (1923). Unfortunately, like so many other actors of the silent film era, the advent of “talking pictures” marked the end of her career in film.

In the 1930s she had her own school in Stockholm and she also taught for the Stockholm Opera’s ballet academy.

She died on June 8, 1978.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Dance History Secret #308:

“Jenny Hasselquist was a ballerina and film actress.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKCTxjLiD4E

Quote of the Day:

“Hope is not about everything turning out okay; it is about being okay no matter how things turn out.”

- Carol Kodish-Butt

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Wacky Wednesday Late Leg

Wacky Wednesday Late Leg

You may remember Ballet Secret #15m: A pas de chat is two passés. The problem arises when the second passé is late.

The second leg must come off the floor quickly – not at the same time as the first leg (that would be like an Italian changement) - but thinking about taking the second leg off the floor at almost the same time as the first is very helpful in preventing Late Leg Syndrome.

So imagine hitting that second passé at almost, but not quite the same time as the first passé.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Ballet Secret #15jjj:

“No late leg in pas de chat.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omIZgkAPsPU

Quote of the Day:

“How did it get so late so soon?”
― Dr. Seuss

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