Fun Friday Gloves

Fun Friday Gloves

As we progress into the season of colder weather, I thought it would be a good time to revisit a previous blog: http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/search?q=mittens.

But this time with a little bit added: The hands should always act like form-fitting gloves, not mittens. That is, the fingers never spread out and the thumb always falls neatly in line with the lightly extended fingers.

Mittens look like catcher’s mitts, whereas gloves recall elegant to-the-elbow formal wear. Much more suited to ballet…

Always think gloves, not mittens.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Ballet Secret #6ttt:

“The hands should be like form-fitting gloves, not mittens.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf8rw0nWQLo

Quote of the Day:

“And her old Uncle William used to say a lady is known by
her shoes and her gloves.”
― Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway

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Mad Monday Mittens

Mad Monday Mittens

The shape of the hands is very important, and they should always look natural – not stiff or droopy. They should move through space as though moving through water, that is, with resistance.

The shape of the hands is like that of the hands when they are hanging normally at your side, but the fingers are slightly extended. The thumb falls in line with the fingers and doesn’t stick out as though hitchhiking, and if you study the hands as they hang by your side, you will see that this is exactly where the thumb goes naturally.

Also notice that the fingers are not glued together, but there is a tiny space between them. Gluing the fingers together makes it appear as though the dancer is wearing mittens. Not good! No mitten-hands in ballet.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Ballet Secret #6nn:  

“The hands should never look like you are wearing mittens.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.facebook.com/910290695691457/videos/915821178471742/

Quote of the Day:

“Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder. Help someone's soul heal. Walk out of your house like a shepherd.”
― Rumi

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 Leave a comment about any instructions, ideas, or images that worked best for you!

Want to know more about me? Read my interview at Ballet Connections:

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Or "Like" me on my Facebook Author Page:

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Fun Friday Flowery Fingers

Fun Friday Flowery Fingers

In ballet, maintaining the correct shape in the hands is important. If the fingers are squashed together, the hands look like mittens. If the fingers are too far apart, the hands look like catcher’s mitts. Scary.

The idea is to keep the hands looking as natural as possible. They should look like hands, not like anything else. They should also move and breathe and not be held rigidly in place.

With all this in mind, imagine holding some lovely flowers, with the stems placed gently  but firmly between each finger. This leaves enough space to prevent the “mittens” effect, but not so much space that the hands look like they belong on a baseball team.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Ballet Secret #6ccc:  

“Imagine holding a flower stem between each finger.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcZ8hDXT9vw

Quote of the Day:

“A weed is but an unloved flower.”
― Ella Wheeler Wilcox

                Help expand the knowledge base!

 Leave a comment about any instructions, ideas, or images that worked best for you!

Want to know more about me? Read my interview at Ballet Connections:

http://balletconnections.com/DebraWebbRogers

Super Saturday Space Statute

Super Saturday Space Statute

I have blogged several times about how important the hands and fingers are in classical technique. Dancers tend to focus mostly on their legs and feet, and the hands become secondary. Not good.

One common problem is this: fingers that appear to be glued or sewn together. This makes the hands appear more like mittens than human hands, and it ruins the beautiful, fluid line that must be created.

If this is a problem for you, remember today’s Ballet Statute: “A tiny space between the fingers is always maintained.”  This is always true. At no time should the fingers be stuck together. Instead, allow a tiny space (like holding a flower stem) between each and every finger. This lets the fingers breathe and not suffocate.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Ballet Statute #39:  

“A tiny space between the fingers is always maintained.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FOaRS2zSQk 

Quote of the Day:

“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.”
― Confucius, Confucius: The Analects

                Help expand the knowledge base!

 Leave a comment about any instructions, ideas, or images that worked best for you!

Want to know more about me? Read my interview at Ballet Connections:

http://balletconnections.com/DebraWebbRogers

Wacky Wednesday Pliés and Peanut Butter

Wacky Wednesday Pliés and Peanut Butter

I’ve blogged several times about resistance and how important it is in ballet technique.   

             

http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/2014/10/marvelous-monday-and-gravity.html

http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/2016/04/mad-monday-mittens.html

http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/2015/11/wacky-wednesday-marshmallows.html

http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/2015/02/technical-tuesday-suspenders.html

http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/2015/09/wondrous-wednesday-lateral-shift.html

So, here is yet another way to think about it, from the very beginning of class: pliés. Since pliés occur first, (or close), it is easy for some carry-over drooping to occur. Scary.

 Instead, during each plié, imagine descending and ascending through peanut butter. Smooth, creamy, peanut butter. If you are allergic to peanuts, imagine soy butter, or even thick apple butter. Any butter will do.

This provides enough resistance to produce better plies, and avoid carry-over drooping syndrome.

Peanut butter makes it better.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Ballet Secret #2w

“Imagine moving through peanut butter.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztxAlN_qOL8

Quote of the Day:

“I believe in the magic and authority of words.”
― René Char

                Help expand the knowledge base!

 Leave a comment about any instructions, ideas, or images that worked best for you!

Want to know more about me? Read my interview at Ballet Connections:

http://balletconnections.com/DebraWebbRogers