#(verse: ballerina) swan lake

[mysteriousmissweems]

The swans

[valtsv]

while i'm on my shit about silt verses naming conventions i've decided to work out potential names for VAL before she became VAL and settled on odessa or odess, which alludes to the word "odyssey" - a long journey of changing fortune - but also to the swan queens of the ballet swan lake, the innocent odette and deceitful odile, who are typically danced by the same ballerina to emphasise their duality (and who, in the film black swan, has an abusive mother who exacerbates her transformation from innocent and sweet, albeit repressed to the point of self-harm, to corrupted and self-destructive) and feel apt because VAL's character is also rather fairytale-esque, in the traditional fairytale sense, as well as calling to mind the word "odious", which can be a synonym for abominable, abhorrent, hateful - all reactions that VAL provokes with her existence as an uncomfortably humanlike saint, and her actions.

[th3b4dk1dzz]

Darkest Hour Map/Song Analysis and speculation

Let me preface that while I would have loved Sweet Dreams in the game, I absolutely respect the hell out of the monumental task this song would have been to create. To write a song for a preexisting dance has never been done before, so to make it sync with the scene transitions and the routine, capture the right energy, tell the story effectively, be the right time length exactly and to sound different enough from the original song, that sounds like an impossible task for anyone to complete, so full credit where credit is due.

What I will say is, what we do get in Darkest Hour that we didn't get in Sweet Dreams is a lot more specificity to the lyrics, which might enlighten us to what really happened to Leda. I want to pick certain moments and go into what the implications for what they might mean.

Spoilers Ahead

And keep in mind this will be a Long Post.

"I would play the game, Every hour through the night"

Now we know Leda is from our world. We know, like Sara, Just Dance is a game that became real to her. However, unlike Sara, she chose to stay there at the end of MOTD, so suddenly, she's in the game every hour through the night. It couldn't have been good for her in the long run. I think this twisted up her perception and clarity, making her more vulnerable to whatever happened to her.

What's interesting is that before the faces in the background take on Leda's visage, they are constructed using machinery and polygonal, much like how video games are a mix of machinery and coding, which shift to resemble her more.

"In the dark flow shadows, the mirror lies to me"

The mirror lying to her might allude to the large holographic versions of her own face, harmonising with her or this giant visage of herself as the perfect ballerina. These being potentially the siren whispers she mentioned, luring her to ruin. However, it could also refer to her illusory powers, most likely granted to her from the dark flow. Using this power to first, trick Wanderlust at the end of Canned Heat and then to trick Sara in YSMIAC.

But if we want to look at specific instances of mirrors lying, then look no further than Jack's maps. First in LOOH, we see these mirrors showing Night Swan, instead of himself reflected back in the verses. Then, in Treasure, we see these versions of Jack as the perfect performer (much like Leda saw of herself) coming out of the mirrors. It should be worth mentioning that Treasure itself takes place in a reflection cast into a pool of water.

"I Traded in my Dreams"

Now, this is interesting. This means being Night Swan wasn't Leda's Dream at all. We've been led to believe that she wanted to be Night Swan, that's what she wants to be. But everything in this map suggests she is not in control and was corrupted much like the coaches under her control.

In the section where the smoke see Leda clutching her head, much like Sara does in YSMIAC while she is fighting off the thrall of the Dark Flow. Much like Night Sara was able to corrupt the other Just Dancers with her own newfound dark flow in Swan Lake, while being corrupted herself.

Maybe Leda was corrupted and used that to corruption on her minions in herself. Almost as if this Dark Flow is spreading, adapting, and evolving throughout the Danceverses, and Leda was just patient 0.

As we see in the first verse for Treasure it looks like the mirror room is in some kind of guilded cage, and the pool which the Ilusion is cast into turns gold. As we zoom out of her eye at the end of the map, it turns gold. Is Leda in a guilded cage of her own, inside her own mind?

So, who corrupted Leda?

Someone acting on The Traveller's Interests/Public Image

I don't think The Traveller would have actively harmed Leda. Also, if you want to keep a past relationship a secret, turning her into an evil magic warlord is certainly not the most discreet cover up.

We know that from when Night Swan took over the JD Twitter account in the run up to JD24, Wanderlust is referred to the 'the son of gods'. Note the plural 'Gods', not just one. So The Traveller is a God confirmed. And if there's one thing I 've gathered about the structure of Deities within the Danceverses is they have a lot of stupid rules that don't help anyone.

I could go into a deep tangent on how the political system for the Deitys seems like a hot mess. And one day, I will (believe me, I will).

So The Traveller becomes a God, and someone else essentially decides to clean up his image, including getting rid of a mortal he brought through, who won't leave. Again, I think creating an evil witch trying to take over the Danceverses isn't the best way to sweep someone under the rug, I think, maybe, someone led her to the scariest, most abandoned part of Cygnus to scare her away and try to make her go home. What happened next was not what the Gods intended.

So, which Deity would be high ranking enough enact a cleanup act of another Deity's reputation and has an association, with mirrors and reflections? Belacus, P2 from Woman.

Her headdress has a large disc that looks a lot like a mirror, much like P3 Derkes, is a fire goddess, Belacus has a lot of motifs associated with water, the fishscale teardrop in the middle of her torso, the wave-like tattoos on her chest and water can be attributed Night Swan (The pool of water in Treasure, Swan Lake, Night Swan taking to the boat at the end of DWTS). And working directly under Selios, perhaps the most powerful Deity we know of to date, she would definitely want the rest of the pantheon to her personal standards. Also, Belacus wears a lot of blue, which is also the Traveller's signature colour.

Another Villain from Eternyx

Leda says in Darkest Hour that she was haunted by the dream. Which villain do we know ca haunt dreams and is associated with Eternyx? Cthylla! We see her haunting Scotty's dream in Cradles, and also her Avatar quote, "When you sleep, I'll be there in your dreams"

The map for Darkest Hour is also filled with this pink smoke, which looks to be the same shade of pink that Cthylla is. Again, tying it to the water motif, We see her emerging from the water in the teaser for BS&V (and the real Lovecraftian mythos Cthylla, who the game version is based on, was a water dwelling deity). Also, when do most people dream? At Night.

What do we see in the sky in both Treasure and Cradles has pink clouds in the distance, while in the last chorus of Treasure, there is a large image of perfect Jack in the centre, not on the screens, but transparent like the image of Ballerina Leda when she's on the rooftops.

Also, the second verse and bridge of Treasure seems to take place in some kind of industrial part of Eternyx. Maybe the abandoned factory?

TL:DR: Leda was tricked by Belacus, working on Selios' behalf, into entering the 'abandoned' factory in Darkest Hour with the intent of scaring her into going back to Earth. However, while there, she was corrupted by Cthylla, her warped perception of reality, making her easy to control. Now possessed by the Dark Flow, she can corrupt others by proxy.

Sorry this was so long, and if it doesn't make any sense,but I thought it was interesting, That this map left so many unanswered questions, about what really went down.

[the-ballerina-battle]

And now, from a total of 519 submissions...

Our Competitors!

The Ballerina Battle will begin on Tuesday, October 10. Polls will go live at 12:00 PM.

Matches:

Part One (Tuesday, October 9)

Angelina Mouseling (Angelina Ballerina) vs. Natasha Romanoff (Marvel Comics)

Gwen Stacy (Spider-Verse) vs. Fakir (Princess Tutu)

Ballora (Five Nights at Freddy’s: Sister Location) vs. Strawberry Shortcake (Strawberry Shortcake)

Barbie (Barbie) vs. Clara (Barbie in the Nutcracker)

Ahiru Arima (Princess Tutu) vs. Haruno Haruka (Go! Princess Pretty Cure)

Cassandra Cain (DC Comics) vs. Amélie Lacroix/Widowmaker (Overwatch)

Pearl (Steven Universe) vs. Victoria Page (The Red Shoes) 

Billy Elliot (Billy Elliot) vs. Medic (Kamen Rider Drive)

Bon Clay (One Piece) vs. William Longtail (Angelina Ballerina)

Nikolina Pavlova (The Great Ace Attorney) vs. Minako Okukawa (Yuri! On Ice)

Rue Kuroha (Princess Tutu) vs. Margo, Edith, and Agnes Gru (Despicable Me)

Duchess Swan (Ever After High) vs. Hilary Van Doren (Fame 1980)

Nina Sayers (Black Swan)vs. Rapunzel (Tangled)

Anteaterina (Princess Tutu) vs. Genevive (Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses)

Roza Diaz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) vs. Christine Daaé (The Phantom of The Opera)

Yuri Katsuki (Yuri! On Ice) vs. Yuri Plisetsky (Yuri! On Ice)

Part Two (Thursday, October 11)

Minto Aizawa (Tokyo Mew Mew) vs. Suzy Bannion (Suspiria 1977) 

Izumi Sena (Ensemble Stars) vs. Madoka Kaname (Puella Magi Madoka Magica) 

Eli Ayase (Love! Live!) vs. Mytho (Princess Tutu) 

Odette (Barbie in Swan Lake) vs. Kristyn (Barbie and the Pink Shoes)

Dee Dee (Dexter’s Laboratory) vs. June (Little Einsteins)

Meg Giry (The Phantom of the Opera)  vs. Center Stage cast (Center Stage)

Alice Nimbletoes (Angelina Ballerina) vs. Shirayuki Hime (Happiness Charge Precure)

Jessi Ramsey (The Babysitter’s Club) vs. Debbie Jellinsky (The Addams Family)

Sara Johnson (Save the Last Dance) vs. Mr Mistoffelees (Cats)

Grace Monroe (Infinity Train) vs. Find Me in Paris Cast (Find Me in Paris)

Félicie (Ballerina/Leap) vs. Shim Deok-chul (Navillera)

Victoria (Cats) vs. Tandy Bowen (Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger)

Minami Kaido (Go! Princess Pretty Cure) vs. Téa Gardner (Yu-Gi-Oh!)

Catherine Dollanganger (Flowers in the Attic) vs. Adelaide Wilson (Us 2019)

Annie Edison (Community) vs. Ruou Mori (Dance Dance Danseur) 

Rachel Berry (Glee) vs. Balletusa and Primausa (Sanrio)

[astrum-aetherium]

HEY GIRLIE LUV UR BLOG was just wonderin what type of modern media (like after the 80s or smth) henry wld like in ur opinion? things like idk music/artists or movies/shows or heck even musicals! ^^

awh, thank you so much!! i'm always heartened greatly to see people finding enjoyment in my blog and my content. i do this for all of us henry-enamored masses, as goddd knows we deserve it. there is such a profound lack of content about him pretty much everywhere.

this is such a thrilling ask to receive! i would love to share my thoughts on that. because i have strong perfectionist tendencies, however, i will deviate from the instructions a little bit and break this down into two sections — a short mention of interests that align with the canonical timeline, and one that attunes to a more modern setting. beware that i'm incredibly biased, but all of these just make sense to me. click on links to hear examples.

so, we know that TSH takes place in the 80s. it's never directly mentioned which year we are actually toying with, but it's sort of generally established in the fandom that the story starts in the late summer/fall of 1983 (richard attending hampden and joining the greek class), and ends in the summer of 1984 (henry doing what he did). therefore, these first few propositions on my end are based on this boundary. not to worry, however — it'll be quite short, as i, as a contemporary member of gen z, have way more things to add to the modern list.

he would be quite fond of classical music, there's no way around it. specifically, and mostly because of donna tartt's own description of him likening an old ballerina, i would even go as far as saying that he prefers ballet. take tchaikovsky as an example — swan lake or the nutcracker as the classics, definitely. i wouldn't even exclude the possibility that he would like to go see performances thereof (aside from reimaginations of ancient greek theater, of course). i'm not exactly well-versed in classical music, but from what i do know, i would also like to add that he could like rachmaninoff, shostakovich, beethoven and bach, of course. chopin, even. and yes, i know, this might be quite boring to uninterested minds — which is why i will be moving on.

to assume a slightly more modernized viewpoint (80s-90s)... he would love depeche mode. specifically their albums some great reward, black celebration, and ultra — the comparably darkest ones. this doesn't quite align with the "canonical" timeline as all of those were released around/after 1984, but i just know he would. specifically the songs but not tonight, only when i lose myself, lie to me, if you want, and (of COURSE) enjoy the silence. just basically depeche mode as a whole — so fitting.

for a more broad approach to slightly older music: tears for fears, the cure, duran duran, billie joel, U2, chris isaak, the smiths.

now, to modern stuff. i have to mention lana del rey. there is no way around her when i talk about henry. ultraviolence and honeymoon are his albums. from UV: specifically shades of cool, black beauty, and the title track itself. from honeymoon: the blackest day, swan song, terrence, and, once again, the title track itself. from other albums, i'd say: if you lie down with me, did you know, NFR, national anthem, and i can fly. a bonus mention of unreleased songs that suit him so well: cult leader, tv in black and white, and serial killer. can you tell i am a diehard lana fan? always have, always will. i could write a novel-length essay about how each song on her discography correlates with henry. i love them both so.

other examples of newer music he would like: mitski (specifically heat lightning and once more to see you, but generally all of them), lorde, mac demarco, local natives, the national, birdy. and — you need to hear me out — some taylor swift songs. i think he would appreciate the poeticism of folklore (e.g. hoax, this is me trying, the lakes) and evermore (cowboy like me, tolerate it). sue me.

when it comes to film and tv... i'd say he would be one of those people who genuinely enjoy silent movies, lol. pretentiously so. to be less humorous, i think he'd quite enjoy complex dramas. the haunting of hill house, maybe. the sixth sense. the shining. the silence of the lambs. hannibal. TROY (although he would complain and complain and complain about the inaccuracy but still like it). a clockwork orange. dexter. evidently, i'm not a huge movie nerd, which is why this might be a little general. but here are just some thoughts.

for musicals, i needed to consult my devoted theater kid friend. to make a long debate short, we agree that it would be the phantom of the opera, les mis, and heathers (for some funny reason). as an explanation on the latter — he would enjoy the hierarchy concept and the dark comedy of it all. but this is just a wild card, lol. the other two are more fitting (specifically the phantom of the opera!).

this took longer than anticipated to compose, but i hope it provides some sort of outlook. thank you, once again, for this wonderful ask! i was overjoyed to say the absolute least.

[cynicalmusings]

reading all of the lyney brainrots here is fuelling my lyney deprivation…

i was thinking about the swan lake performance and suddenly thought of a ballerina reader and lyney dancing in a lone ballroom at noon - classical music playing at the back as they waltzed elegantly.. i think lyney would be a good dancer

gahh id love to hear an expansion on this cause my thinking abilities are so limited haha

oooh, yes. i was actually listening to some pieces from swan lake earlier today myself… very mysterious.

i definitely agree that he’s a good dancer; he’s probably well-versed in most (if not all) arts of wooing and performance. if you were a professional dancer, he’d make time for your shows whenever he could, and might even help you rehearse if it’s a dance you’re doing with a partner. he’d also join you backstage after a performance and shower you in praise and all that.

imagine if the hall you’re dancing in is abandoned (and for the sake of this working the piano plays itself—maybe this could be some kind of au, who knows?), and each note reverberates slightly around the walls with a loneliness to it which makes the music sound like the ghost of melodies gone by, when this hall was brightly lit and filled with people. now, the only people here are you and lyney, made so small amidst the grandness of this ballroom. cold light spills in from large windows onto the marble floor, and you can hear every scuff and clip of your shoes as you dance.

just… the atmosphere, man…

[paramounticebound]

🌌+ figure skating or ballet au (I am not just saying this because it's funny and ballerina pris is life)

Send ’ 🌌+ a universe / au ’ and I’ll make an AU verse based off of it. || @auroradicit || always accepting.

Right, but all I can imagine is a Black Swan au (based on the beautiful film). Director Khan, with his obsessive and overbearing ways, and ballerina Pris, trying to wade through their collective madness and convince herself that she'll nail the role.

she wants to scream, but nothing comes out. she looks at her body, sensing something happening to her. something terrifying. she spins, panicking, but it’s too late. she disappears beneath the beast’s cape. she emerges as the white swan, the iconic protagonist of swan lake.

Also consider: retired Olympic skater Khan trying to coach Pris. Or maybe he and Pris are rivals who are forced to preform together. I know nothing about figure skating aside from knowing those blades are sharp and can be used as weapons, but man, I'll give anything a go.

[pacificgrims]

file under / about soleil

sweet little unforgettable thing

full name: soleil (suh-leel!) jessamine smith

pronouns: she/her

age: 21–26

height: 5'3''

species: human (witch, succubus verses available)

traits: sensitive but tries not to be, more emotional than she wants to admit, a bit of a compulsive liar, the kind that pulls all her eggs in a basket, sunshine with a dash of sass

genres: slice-of-life, angst, fluff

fc: madison davenport

read more for a summary and wanted connex!

summary

if you look at her and think, oh, she's such a sweetheart! you'd be right, but also sort of wrong, because as she's grown up, she's become a bit of a manipulator and liar. she lived a pretty sheltered life as a kid, practically working full time at her family's estate, which is this giant farm in southern louisiana, about an hour away from new orleans, tucked in a swamp off lake pontchartrain. her folks died when she was pretty young, leaving her under the charge of her much older brother ford who didn't take too long to leave her, either. he spent about a decade serving in the marines while soleil lived through her teenage years, watched over by her godmother. tension grew whenever he came home on break because he often tried to parent over her, and she was very much in a rebellious phase, definitely not listening to somebody who was barely home!

once ford retired from the marines, he took over the farm again, bringing it back to life. soleil was old enough to leave, and set off for new orleans. she's living there full time now, working as a barista while attending university and studying performing arts. she's part of a cutthroat ballet troupe and wants to be a popstar (think caroline polachek!). she often lies to ford just to avoid him and keep him from attending her shows, even though she does long for a relationship with him again. and she also often lies to her fellow ballerinas, telling stories of a luxurious lifestyle even though her past (and present, for that matter), is anything but. oh, and the deep cajun accent is strong with this one, but it's adorable/funny because she always tries to be posh.

wanted connex/plots

would love a fellow ballerina to do a black swan-esque horror-ish/thriller plot with

soleil strikes me as the type to want a lana del rey kind of romance, where she falls in love with a bad boy/bad girl

[the-witching-ash]

📝 + Firsthusbands? (the people need to know 🥺)

Ok ok so for the people not in our DM’s FirstHusbands is the crossover for Richie Gilmore(mine) & @randomestfandoms-ocs Troy Donahue-Callisto & Harry Bechtel, specifically the Delicate verse which also features their Kirsty Gilmore, who is Richie favorite person and little sister their surrogate & Troy was the doner.

The pregnancy resulted in a set of Twins - Charlotte Kirsty and Odette Rae Donahue-Callisto.

Charlotte is named after her Grandma Lottie and Aunt Kirsty, but they primarily call her Ellie after Ellie Sattler from Jurassic Park, which is Richie’s favorite movie.

Odette is named after Odette from Swan Lake because Richie is a former dancer, the Swan Lake soundtrack has always been his go-to comfort music and it’s another way to honor Kirsty because of her being a ballerina. Rae is also Kirsty’s middle name.

[mysteriousmissweems]

Larissa has had experience doing this one.

[whatanybodygets]

Maybe you were joking but you should make a post about inej's dancing! I'd be happy to read anything about your inspiration behind this fic

First off, anon, I owe you a massive apology because this has been languishing in my inbox for literally forever, and I promise I wasn't ignoring you I just sometimes get overwhelmed by the prospect of interacting with other humans!

So, this is in reference to which real-life ballerina is the inspo for Inej's dancing in Adagio, and the answer to this is Natalia Osipova.

Now, she's not everyone's cup of tea, I know. A lot of people think she's too theatrical, she is Bolshoi to her bones and some people do not enjoy that style (I do), in terms of classical technique she sometimes sacrifices the line for the 'wow factor'. But.

As it happens, these are things that I think lend themselves well to Inej's character. I enjoy Osipova exactly for her theatricality, she is never ever boring to watch. There are some dancers - a lot of dancers - who have picture perfect technique but they look dead on the inside when they perform. There's no spark. There's no magic. For me, Osipova has that in spades, and I think that Inej would too - she is a performer at heart. Her knockout performance is the mad scene in Giselle (nobody does Giselle like Natalia Osipova) but I also really enjoy this more subtle example during the white swan coda in Swan Lake - you can feel her despair at the end.

Also, this woman has the most jaw dropping jump of any ballerina dancing today, maybe ever. Gravity does not apply to her. Her speed and timing are insane. She is a tiny package of explosive energy. Inej Inej Inej. And yes, as I mentioned above, she does sometimes sacrifice a clean line for the sake of the 'wow', but my read of Inej is that she has a certain theatrical bent and she's also a bit of a show off, and I think that this is a flaw her dancing would realistically have.

And also, Natalia Osipova was the ballerina I saw the first time I saw Swan Lake, and I just have a huge sentimental attachment to her.

Incidentally, in the Giselle scene I linked up there, the dancer playing Albrecht is Carlos Acosta, who is my 'dance double' for Jesper. Not only is he (and this is not an unpopular opinion) the finest dancer of his generation, he has the most incredible stage presense. I've had the pleasure of seeing him dance live as well, and he is hugely charismatic, he basically radiates charm which is bang on for Jesper. And he has the same theatricality I love about Osipova. I wish I had gotten to see them dance together live. Have a video of him in Don Q.

This was long, and hopefully not boring. The short version is that Adagio-verse Inej and Jesper's irl 'dance doubles' are Natalia Osipova and Carlos Acosta.

[the-ballerina-battle]

I'm back!

I'm sorry for making everyone wait so long, but I'm back and ready for Round Two!

Here are your competitors:

The first half will be posted on Tuesday, November 14 and the second half on Thursday, November 16. All polls will be posted at 12:00pm EST.

Matches:

Round Two(Part One)

Angelina Mouseling (Angelina Ballerina) vs. Gwen Stacy (Spider-Verse) 

 Strawberry Shortcake (Strawberry Shortcake) vs. Clara (Barbie in the Nutcracker)

Ahiru Arima (Princess Tutu) vs. Cassandra Cain (DC Comics) 

Pearl (Steven Universe) vs. Billy Elliot (Billy Elliot) 

Bon Clay (One Piece) vs. Nikolina Pavlova (The Great Ace Attorney) 

Rue Kuroha (Princess Tutu) vs. Duchess Swan (Ever After High) 

Nina Sayers (Black Swan) vs. Genevive (Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses)

Roza Diaz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) vs. Yuri Katsuki (Yuri! On Ice) 

Round Two (Part Two)

Minto Aizawa (Tokyo Mew Mew) vs. Madoka Kaname (Puella Magi Madoka Magica) 

Mytho (Princess Tutu) vs. Odette (Barbie in Swan Lake) 

Dee Dee (Dexter’s Laboratory) vs Meg Giry (The Phantom of the Opera)  

Alice Nimbletoes (Angelina Ballerina) vs. Debbie Jellinsky (The Addams Family)

Mr Mistoffelees (Cats) vs. Grace Monroe (Infinity Train) vs. 

Shim Deok-chul (Navillera) vs. Victoria (Cats) 

Minami Kaido (Go! Princess Pretty Cure) vs.  Adelaide Wilson (Us 2018)

Ruou Mori (Dance Dance Danseur) vs. Balletusa and Primausa (Sanrio)

[chromium-siren]

Imagine Phasma dancing ballet

I’ve always wanted to do a ballet verse. She’s the prima ballerina for the First Order Ballet Company, and her favorite performance is Swan Lake.

[travelsthruindonesia]

Ramayana Ballet Performance

July 14

Yogyakarta,Java

We attended an outdoors performance of the Ramayana Ballet on a full-moon night.

Ramayana ballet performance combines dance and drama without dialogue. The Ramayana story is based on Hindu epics adapted to Javanese culture. More than 200 dancers and gamelan musicians participate in this Ballet.

Ramayana Ballet performance, a traditional Javanese dance, combines dance and drama without dialogue. The Ramayana story is based on Hindu epics adapted to Javanese culture. The play is performed by more than 100 dancers and gamelan musicians on a giant open-air stage. The back-lit 9th century Prambanan Hindu Temple makes for a specular backdrop.

Put away all thoughts about watching ballerinas walking on toes. The Javanese wouldn’t subject their dancers to such toe-walking cruelty. The Ramayana Ballet, bears little resemblance to Western ballet. The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, or Sleeping Beauty, this ain’t.

Ramayana, one of the two most famous ancient Sanskrit epics originating from India, is one of the largest epics in literature and presents Hindu teachings in a narrative form. The epic follows the exiled Prince Rama's quest to rescue his wife Sita from her kidnaper Ravana, the 10-headed King of Lanka (present day Sri Lanka), with the help of an army of monkeys, led by Hanuman, a Hindu monkey God.

The narrative climaxes when Hanuman sets fire to Ravana’s palace.

[Despite Ravana’s nefarious action, he is worshiped by Hindus in parts of Northern India where he is said to have been born. He is considered to be the most revered devotee of Shiva, a trinity of Hindu gods. Images of Ravana are seen alongside Shiva's, the trinity of Hindu trinity gods, in some Shiva temples.]

Dated to around 500 BCE to 100 BCE, the Ramayana epic contains the teachings of ancient Hindu sages comprising of 24,000 verses in seven cantos. While the basic story is about palace politics and battles with demon tribes, the narrative is interspersed with philosophy, ethics, and notes on duty. It is one of the most important literary works of ancient India and a staple of dramatic traditions, re-enacted in dance dramas and shadow-puppet theatres.

Rama, prince of Ayodhya, along with his wife princess Sita and brother Laksmana, was exiled to a forest for 14 years through the plotting of his stepmother. In the forest, Sita, while Rama and Laksmana were away, was tricked to step out of her imaginary protective space (established by Rama), demarked by a circle, and then abducted by Ravana and held on the island of Lanka (now called Sri Lanka). Rama gathered an army of monkeys to rescue her. The army of monkeys, led by Hanuman, the Hindu monkey god, built a bridge to get to Lanka, killed Ravana, and retrieved Sita.

According to legend, the narrow, in places shallow and rocky, strait between India and Sri Lanka is said to contain the remnants of that bridge.

In order to prove her chastity, Rama had Sita walk through a flaming fire, which she survived unscathed, vindicated by the gods and restored to her husband. Some versions of the Ramayana say that when Sita walked over the flames, the flames turned into flowers.

The end of war with Ravana also marked the end of Rama’s exile and his return to Ayodhya where he took over as the rightful king. Diwali, a 5-day festival-of-lights with fireworks-exploding celebration (making our 4th of July fireworks show a nothing burger) to symbolize the victory of good over evil, marks the return of Rama to Ayodhya.

It is possible that Rama was an actual tribal hero of ancient India, who was later deified. References to Lord Rama (a perfect man or lord of virtue), the seventh of ten reincarnations of Vishnu** (see note below), a trinity of Hindu deities, appear in the early centuries, but there was no special worship of him before the 11th century, and it was not until the 14th and 15th centuries that distinct sects began venerating him as a supreme god. Every Rama temple includes a statue of Hanuman, the monkey god, positioned next to Rama’s statue.

Some scholars believe that the present-day Ayodhya (population half million) in northern India is the legendary Ayodhya where Rama was born, while others believe that the legendary city is a mythical place that came to be identified with the present-day namesake only around the 4th/5th century.

Current Events: In 1992, at a BJP (Indian Prime Minister Modi’s party) political rally in Ayodhya, which turned into a riot, Hindu nationalist razed a 500-year-old, Moghul-era Muslim mosque to make room for a temple at that site where they believe, without evidence, previously stood a Hindu temple marking the precise spot of Rama’s birth. The case of which religion/entity is entitled to hold this land had been winding through India’s notorious, snail-paced judiciary system for about 27 years.

In November 2019, in a convoluted logic, India’s Supreme Court ruled that the demolition of the mosque was “a serious violation of the rule of law,” and that there is no evidence that a Hindu Temple ever existed at that site but, nevertheless, Hindus could build a temple at the site, with Muslims to be given an alternate, as yet unidentified, site to build their mosque. Apparently, under Indian law, as interpreted by its highest court, it is acceptable to benefit from the fruits of a crime.

[**Note: According to Hindu mythology, Vishnu’s yet-to-appear tenth reincarnation, Kalki, will emerge in the terrestrial world when virtue and religion have disappeared and the world is ruled by unjust men. Kalki, the savior, will then arrive riding a white horse, with an unsheathed sword in his hand and blazing like a comet (as depicted in some of his images), to destroy the wicked and usher in a new, more just age…a belief akin to that held by the followers of one of the Abrahamic religions in the second coming of their savior. Apparently none of the world’s leaders in human history have committed sufficient injustice, ironically sometimes in the name of religion which has triggered more bloody conflicts than any other cause, to exceed the threshold of horror to trigger the appearance of the blazing comet carrying Kali, or his counterpart, for such a sacred mission.]

[alderaanihope]

modern verse ballet-related headcanons time!

~ Leia starter dance classes when she was two. She took ballet, modern, tap, jazz, and hip-hop for eight years, then after that just ballet and modern. ~ Pointe shoes: Grishko 2007 Pro, size 4.5x, medium shank ~ After graduating high school ( at fifteen, because overachieverTM ), she auditioned and got a contract with the local ballet company ( specific company is verse-dependent because…different locations ) ~ She was promoted to soloist at seventeen and principal at nineteen ~ She teaches ballet classes for smol children ~ Her developing an eating disorder never had anything to do with any of her teachers or the company — she was never pressured to be thinner or told she needed to lose weight. ~ She hates the stereotype that every dancer has an eating disorder, and when mentioned, she’s always quick to point out that it had nothing to do with dance. ~ Her favourite roles  ( in no particular order )  are Kitri, Giselle, and Manon  ~ she got her first pair of pointe shoes when she was nine. she still has them.  ~ Leia never throws out her old pointe shoes. She signs them, sells them, and donates the money to various charities and nonprofit organizations. ~ She’s tried to teach Han ballet on multiple occasions ~ She thinks Swan Lake is way overdone and kind of overrated, but she really loves the music ~ She probably had several ballet-themed birthday cakes as a child… ~ Her first pair of pointe shoes were Grishko Nova, size 0.5x, medium shank ~ When she first got a contract with her dance company, it gave her a lot of motivation to work even harder so she could eventually move up the ranks to soloist and principal. She was insanely annoyed with some of the other dancers who had the attitude of “oh, i’ve made it so i don’t have to work as hard anymore”.  ~ Ever since she was little, she’s been very quick to correct anyone who called her a ballerina, pointing out that that term is specific to principal dancers. Even after being promoted to principal, she caught herself about to correct people several times before realising that the term actually did apply to her then.  ~ Leia really liked the years she spent in the corps de ballet. She liked being able to watch the soloists and principals and be inspired by them, and liked being able to really perfect her technique while being a little more out of the spotlight.  ~ Her first role as a soloist was Gamzatti. The first role she understudied was Cinderella. 

[andrxmedablxck]

                   There were few who could hinge Andromeda’s attention without a moment’s hesitance. Though she was reluctant in offering favours - most of them leaving her shrouded in bitterness - an owl with several feathers out of place, dishevelled, disgruntled - could only signal the presence of one Rabastan Lestrange. For better or worse, the pair had been friends since they were children. Playing in the gardens of her parent’s home while the adults discussed ‘private’ affairs - ushering their wide-eyed and open-hearted children out into the wilderness. They’d foster creepy crawlies, run until they had lost their breaths, cram the atmosphere with laughter as they twirled like programmed ballerinas. It reminded Andromeda of a happier time. Where reputation was a mere afterthought and when happiness wasn’t a fabrication. While the pair saw one another scarcely, it was hard to find the time to entertain another while battling one’s own troubles, there was a fondness that remained unyielding inside of her. She still remembered him as the little boy afraid of bees, and could almost remember herself as the little girl who would often tumble into the rural English lakes because she always wanted to get a closer look at the swans. It was a time past, a time most likely forgotten by all but she. She knew little of him now, except his self-professed ‘charm’ and arrogance. Oh, how times had changed. Porcelain digits smoothed over untamed feathers, a shrill hum fleeing her lips as she caught the blackening eyes of the bird. Untangling the letter from its talons, careful not to scare the poor thing half to death, the letter was fumbled with haste.  Uncertainty spun like a spider’s web around her mind--- what could he possibly need from her?  The words ‘doxy’ and ‘injured’ were all she needed to cement her commitment. Though there was few things that prompted her to roll from her bed each morning - the sentiment of compassion and duty were two that fueled her through night and day. An address attached in fine print was all the fodder she needed in order to know that perhaps her life was not yet wasted - no matter how often she felt as though it had been thus far.  The curtain where the forest’s hem met the gawking eyes of the town was a secret to most. While many immersed themselves in urban festivities, others found solace in the depths of the oak and ash. Andromeda had never been truly captured by either. Fears and phobias ushered her from the forest’s reach without a second thought, but the notion of unwanted interaction and judgment never failed to leave a shiver running down her spine. It was a constricting way to live, really. A tension that never ceased. But there was something else. Something almost tempting about Rabastan’s invitation. A refuge from the hardships, no matter how self inflicted. “Rabastan---” Syllables that had been practised over and over seemed forced and foreign on her tongue. Anxious fingertips twiddled and laced before her, an uneasy smile resting upon chapped lips. “You asked to see me? Or at least, your letter did.” It was as though she didn’t know how to talk to him - when it had once come so easily. “Where is the doxy?” She spoke in broken verse - an ode to the fractured thoughts that clouded the poised and polished manner in which she prided herself on. “How long ago did you find it?” Concern was vivid on her contoured features, brows knitting in one, harsh line. “Injured, you say? Injured how?” Eliminating the mind-forged space between them, the brunette edged gingerly towards him, a ghost of a smile resting on her lips now - this time more permanently. “Show me, we may have very little time.” There was obvious uncertainty laced into each syllable. While she yearned to know how he was doing, how his brother had planned to woo and marry her sister--- duty was a welcomed burden. The pleading in her eyes an enigma from the reason the two had been united. He required her services--- and who was she to turn down an old friend?

@notrodolphus