Throwback Thursday and Yuri Soloviev

Throwback Thursday and Yuri Soloviev

Born on August 10, 1940, Yuri Soloviev was a contemporary of Baryshnikov and roommate of Rudolf Nureyev during company tours. But he almost didn’t make it as a ballet dancer due to his stocky physique. The first time he auditioned for the Vaganova Academy he came close to being rejected. But they reconsidered.

Soloviev became known for his incredible elevation and amazing technical prowess. His colleagues at the Kirov even nicknamed him “Cosmonautic Yuri”. He was unique - not only was he a powerful dancer, he was also lyrical. These two qualities are seldom seen together, particularly in male dancers. Audiences loved him, particularly in the pas de deux from Le Corsaire, and in 1965 he won a gold medal at the Paris International Dance Competition.

Sadly, he died on January 12, 1977. He was found dead at his dacha of a gunshot wound to the head. It was ruled a suicide.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Dance History Factoid #87:  

“Yuri Soloviev was a famous dancer with the Kirov Ballet known for his strength and elevation.”

                Link of the Day:

https://search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?p=Yuri+Soloviev&ei=UTF-8&hspart=mozilla&hsimp=yhs-003

Quote of the Day:

“Each of us is a unique strand in the intricate web of life and here to make a contribution.”
― Deepak Chopra

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Wacky Wednesday Frosting

Wacky Wednesday Frosting

The upper body, that is, above the armpit line, should be physical but not tense. The arms never droop (because there is no drooping in ballet), but instead are fluid and beautiful. This requires a certain physicality but not tension. And excessive tension in the arms and shoulders is a common problem among dance students.

Most of the “work” is done below the armpit line, and the upper body is the frosting on the cupcake. The frosting has integrity, and holds its shape without rolling off the cupcake, but it is fluffy and light and adds bonus points to the cupcake itself.

This is exactly the role of the arms and upper body: the frosting on the cupcake.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #1vv:  

“The upper body should be like frosting on a cupcake.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8OpvZb2Al4

Quote of the Day:

"Celebration is life's frosting: isn't frosting the very best part of the cake?"
- Bethenny Frankel

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

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Technical Tuesday Saut de Basque

Technical Tuesday Saut de Basque

Saut de basque (soh duh bask) means “basque jump”. Well, that’s not particularly helpful, is it? What does basque mean? It is a noun that means: “A member of a people of unknown origin inhabiting the western Pyrenees and the Bay of Biscay in France and Spain.” Therefore, saut de basque is a step done by or originated by people of this area.

Saut de basque is a term of the French and Russian schools of training and it is a turn in the air with one foot in retiré. It is often doubled, and as you will remember from Ballet Secret #15p: A saut de basque is a half turn in the air, so a double is really less than a double. That’s right, by the time the dancer is in the air, a half turn has already happened, so a single saut de basque is really less than a full turn. There’s that ballet illusion thing again.

In a saut de basque the leading leg battements into the air into à la seconde as the dancer jumps, then that leg pulls under and the other leg comes to retiré as the dancer completes the turn. The important part to remember is that all-important à la seconde moment. And, of course, spotting. (If it turns, it spots).

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #15ll:  

Saut de basque literally means “basque jump”.

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii7FLod9Xkg

Quote of the Day:

“My father used to say that stories are part of the most precious heritage of mankind.”
― Tahir Shah

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

http://balletconnections.com/DebraWebbRogers

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Marvelous Monday Elevator Shaft

Marvelous Monday Elevator Shaft

Here we go again with yet another elevator image.  You will remember Ballet Secret #1m:  Imagine the navel (belly button)is an elevator “up” button.  Press in it and hold when you want to go up; and Ballet Secret #12a: Press the elevator button (belly button/abdominals) in to facilitate a gentle landing from a grand battement. But today’s image is most closely related to Ballet Secret #2m: Plié like your body is an elevator in a shaft.

Let’s get specific. Imagine that the pelvis is the elevator car itself. This car is nice and level and square and the occupants don’t get thrown around during the ride up or down. That’s exactly how the pelvis should work during plies, with no tipping or tucking or rocking around. Just a simple, straight up and down ride with no turbulence.

So imagine the pelvis as an elevator car filled with people who wish to remain standing upright.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #2t:  

“ Imagine your pelvis as an elevator car going evenly up and down in a shaft during pliés.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZn_adZW6lo

Quote of the Day:

“Life's under no obligation to give us what we expect.”
― Margaret Mitchell

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Sunday Hygge

Sunday Hygge

This week I ran across an interesting, unfamiliar term: hygge. This is a Danish concept which is translated to mean “coziness”, although it goes way beyond that, and doesn’t actually have a good English translation.

It involves a feeling of embracing the moment, or making a conscious effort to create and maintain a state of well-being. In Denmark, lighting candles on a cold winter night is hygge. A gathering of family and friends with no talk of politics or any negative subjects is hygge. Hygge involves a feeling of gratitude, contentment, relaxation - yes - it is hard to describe.

Hygge may be why Danes are some of the world’s happiest people. Denmark was ranked as the happiest country in the 2013 and 2014 World Happiness Report, but only one-third of Americans, according to a Harris Poll, describe themselves as “very happy”. Perhaps we need to start practicing hygge.

It all has to do with something I’ve blogged about before – embracing the moment, and appreciating it for what it is, right now.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Motivational Secret #86:  

“Consider the Danish concept of hygge.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mk-oOXmMl0

Quote of the Day:

““A day without laughter is a day wasted.”
― Nicolas Chamfort

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Sensational Saturday Tool Statute

Sensational Saturday Tool Statute

Perfect turn-out is that ever-elusive, constantly pursued goal that dancer’s often wring their hands over. Of course we all want perfection, especially in turn-out. But why?

The quest I see most often in students is simply to get a “tight fifth” position, with little or no thought given as to what this position is intended to achieve besides the appearance of being in that position. What needs to be recognized is that turn-out is a technical tool. It exists because it makes dance technique work better – more stability, greater facility for movement – and of course, appearance and line.

My concern is for those students who can stand in a perfect fifth, but cannot work or move close to that degree of turn-out. I call it “window-dressing turn-out”: it may look good when a dancer is standing still, but it doesn’t work as the technical tool it is meant to be.

Particularly in America where so many students study dance but are not auditioned and hand-selected for their body’s suitability for ballet (i.e. genetically gifted with turn-out and flexibility), forcing flat turn-out can cause problems and even injuries. Turn-out can be very effectively developed, but it must be done (developed) from the hip socket, not the feet (top down, not bottom up). If the thighs rotate, the lower legs and feet will follow. This way, the turn-out involves the entirety of each leg, and thus allows turn-out to work as the tool it is meant to be.

Want to see how turn-out works as a tool? Before any piqué onto two feet (as in sous-sus) or one foot (as in arabesque), rotate the piqué leg a bit extra right before stepping onto it. You should feel much greater stability and balance. Try it!

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #15p:  

“Turn-out is a tool.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiG1tH4ez10

Quote of the Day:

“If you were born without wings, do nothing to prevent them from growing.”
― Coco Chanel

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

http://balletconnections.com/DebraWebbRogers

Fun Friday Belly Button

Fun Friday Belly Button

I’ve blogged many times about posture and the all-important abdominal area. But this is so critical to a dancer’s alignment there can never be enough ideas and images for it.

So today let’s consider the belly button. We all have one, and it is presumably located in the center of the stomach. When working on engaging the abdominal muscles, think about buttoning the belly button. Just like buttoning up a tight pair of jeans, a shirt, or even a sweater where the button is located in the center of the abdomen.

In order to button the button, the stomach will automatically be “sucked in” and up, thus working the crucial abdominal or “core” area.

It’s fall, and there’s a chill in the air. Button up!

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #1ss:  

“Imagine buttoning the belly button.”

                Link of the Day:

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

Quote of the Day:

“Kites rise highest against the wind, not with it.”
― Winston S. Churchill

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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:

http://balletconnections.com/DebraWebbRogers