#ballet technique

[so-meumundo]

[ballet-symphonie]

can you explain renata shakirova's "technical shortcomings" as you mention? i dont follow mariinsky but she has a pretty big fanbase and is beloved on here from what ive seen so i was surprised to read that!!

Hello! I think the most significant issues I noticed in her Swan Lake debut are these:

Lack of engagement in the supporting leg affected the quality and suspension of her extensions. Some developpe's looked thrown rather than held. This weakness was prominent in a ballet that is so dependent on adagio.

Arabesques that were in some cases completely turned in with closed hips. It was essentially unflattering, distorted a la second and the lack of strength in the upper thigh/hip was evident. These turnout issues weren't limited to pique arabesques but also pirouettes and even poses a terre.

She made port de bras choices that were simultaneously unflattering and inefficient. I honestly wondered how this happened? Is this what her coach Tatyana Terekhova was advising her to do? Terekhova had similar strengths to Shakirova so I've always considered this a good combination. Although Terekhova did dance O/O, she was more renowned in powerhouse roles. Is she the best coach for Shakirova in this role? I don't have an answer, it's hard to balance the extreme differences in outcomes between Shakirova's Nikiya and O/O

[danzadance]

youtube.com/watch Ballet class Vaganova https://youtu.be/5rMN4vFS11A?si=cZkSFzsFHqYr-vts

[blackswaneuroparedux]

What 'War and Peace' is to the novel and 'Hamlet' is to the theatre, Swan Lake' is to ballet - that is, the name which to many people stands for and sums up an art form.

Robert Gottlieb

It’s hard to believe that Swan Lake’s original premiere was seen as disastrous. When it first performed on 4 March 1877, at Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre.

Tchaikovsky’s magical ballet tells the story of the doomed love of Prince Siegfried and Princess Odette. Prince Siegfried goes out hunting one night and chases a group of swans – one of them transforms into a young woman, Odette, who explains that she and her companions were turned into swans by the evil Baron Von Rothbart. The spell can only be broken if someone who has never loved before swears an oath of undying love and promises to marry her. The Prince declares his love to Odette and promises to be loyal forever.

At a grand reception at the palace, the Prince must choose a bride – but he can think only of Odette. Suddenly a fanfare announces the arrival of two guests - it is Odette! The prince dances with her and asks for her hand in marriage. But it’s not Odette - the mystery woman is the daughter of the evil von Rothbart, Odile. Odette has witnessed the whole scene. Too late, Siegfried realises his mistake.

Siegfried follows Odette to the lake and begs her forgiveness. She says she forgives him but nothing can change the fact he broke his vow. They decide to die together. The lovers throw themselves into the lake.

There are a few different theories as to how Tchaikovsky came up with the idea for Swan Lake. Though the libretto is based on a story by the German author Johann Karl August Musäus The Stolen Veil, many of Tchaikovsky’s contemporaries claimed that he was deeply fascinated by the tragic life story of Bavarian King Ludwig II - sometimes called the Swan King - who died under mysterious circumstances by drowning himself in a lake.

It is likely that Tchaikovsky chose Ludwig II as the prototype of Prince Siegfried. It is easy to tell that the composer clearly enjoyed working on the music for Swan Lake, as he wrote far more material than would ever be required. As a result, the version most commonly performed today is, in fact, an edited one, created after Tchaikovsky’s death and significantly shorter than the original work. 

Considering that Swan Lake is currently the most frequently performed ballet in the world, it's hard to imagine that it was a failure upon its premiere, with near unanimous criticism of different production aspects. Critics were universally disparaging, claiming the production was indistinctive and forgettable. They disliked the set and the choreography, thought the orchestra and dancers were subpar, and thought Tchaikovsky’s score was too complicated. The dancers who performed in the ballet’s premiere also declared Tchaikovsky’s music was too rich to accompany their balletic moves, and simply too difficult to dance to.

Because of these distractions, the actual brilliant score by Tchaikovsky got largely overlooked amidst the chaos.  Although a few critics did recognise the virtues of the masterful score, it was considered far too complex for ballet, too “noisy” and too “symphonic”, resembling the grand, weighty music of Richard Wagner. Even the initial ballet dancers deemed the music too difficult to dance to as its density clashed with the fluid and graceful balletic movements.

One of the issues for the premiere performance was the absence of the Bolshoi’s prima ballerina, Anna Sobeshchanskaya. Sobeshchanskaya rejoined the production as Odette/Odile in April 1877 but insisted on making certain changes to the choreography and score. Two years later the original choreographer, Julius Reisinger, left Moscow and was replaced by Belgian choreographer Joseph Pater Hansen. Hansen set about re-staging Swan Lake, launching his new version in January 1880.  All 33 performances of the ballet between 1877-1883 sold out, attesting to the ballet’s increasing popularity amongst audiences.

A planned revival of the ballet in the early 1890s was cast into doubt by the death of Tchaikovsky in November 1893, who didn’t live to see the ultimate success of his ballet. Tchaikovsky had written far more material than was ever required, and after his death, Riccardo Drigo took on the job of revising Tchaikovsky’s score, with the approval of his brother Modest Tchaikovsky.

The revised and edited version – commonly the version of the score used today - is considerably shorter than the original, full-length work. It premiered on 15 January 1895 by the Maryinsky Ballet at the Maryinsky Theatre to overwhelmingly positive reviews.

Call it what you like - Dance of the Four Swans, Dance of the Cygnets, The Four Little Swans - but for me the pas de quatre from Swan Lake is one of the most iconic dances in one of the most iconic classical ballets of all time. It is a coveted role for a ballerina, one that requires technical precision and teamwork. The light-hearted Dance of the Cygnets involves 16 pas de chat performed by four dancers moving sideways in exact unison with their arms interlaced. 

I’ve always found its spirit of sheer innocence and beauty breath-taking to watch. I’m left with wonder restored and a distinct feeling of the flight of innocence coming back to rest in my hardened heart.

Video: Royal Ballet's Swan Lake (2018)

[deusluxuria]

concept: kakyoin being like "i have to find a horror movie that actually scares jotaro so he'll hold my hand!!" (ones that come close are "kairo/pulse" with that fucking walking ghost scene, the original and american versions of "ring," and maybe "the exorcist"), and when he finally tells jotaro his intentions, jotaro is like "dude if you wanted to hold my hand just ask"

[empirearchives]

Köbbler Sisters in ‘pas de deux de Shawl’ —Watercolor illustration by Johannes Jelgerhuis, 1812, Napoleonic era

According to Manon Schooneman, this illustration (drawn in 1812) is the earliest documented evidence of pointe ballet, which is the style of ballet where dancers stand on their toes.

This drawing was a surprising discovery because it was widely believed that the pointe technique was first performed in 1825 by the Swedish-Italian ballerina Marie Taglioni.

Background on the drawing:

Depicts an Austrian-German family of dancers, the sisters Köbbler, who moved to the Netherlands (which was then part of the French state under the Napoleonic Empire) in the 1810s.

(Source: Allard Pierson Vertelt: Tekening van de eerste spitz)

[cheezyharu]

I'm a simple person: I see void (Mournfinale) song, I go :DDDDDDDD

Anyways. Um. Great. Now there's 5 of them-

[schrodingersgirlboss]

"ballet should be an olympic sport!!" please don't take one of the only sports we have left that still focuses on artistry and make it an olympic sport i'm begging you

[excelsior9173]

okay. fully understand that the general public will not understand or care about technical ballet terms and that it’s a complete nonissue and meaningless throwaway in my book

but reading fouettés being described simply as “spins on one foot” is hurting something in my soul 😂 fouettés are a bitch. and this character did 32 in a row??? without moving from her position??? i could manage maybe 3-4 before i was wobbling all over the place and my grounding foot was shifting

like these were the turns we spent YEARS building the technique and strength to be able to perform. in theory they’re relatively simple but if your grounding foot slides even an inch you’re not perfect. and ballet is all about perfection. nothing out of place.

anyways. i was a terrible ballerina, never built for it. but i cannot let this little piece of writing go lol. it just feels like the author did the most surface level research for ballet terms and threw it into this book to attempt to make it feel like she knew what she was talking about lmao

[barrewithme]

barre with me🩰✨💕

February 24th 2024

More exciting news! 🤗🥳

Our creative director will be stepping away for a few weeks. As a part of a fellowship program with the US, she’ll be working with dance studio abroad for the next month and a half.

In her absence, I’ll stepping in as interim rehearsal director for our Graham technique classes.

Super excited for the opportunity continue growing and learning as a dancer while sharing what I’ve learned with others💞

image📸: Martha Graham Dance Company on Instagram

*image taken from Pinterest*

[citriarchive]

okay so like

take cure mermaid's ballet-esque transformation and flora winx club's theming but with yellow flowers and then add violin and that's yaevinn's transformation

[ballet-symphonie]

General/ Misc Asks - Technique, Style, Training

This is sort of incoherent but quick question- In Ali’s variation, when they can choose to land and go all the way down. How???

Ahahaha, so you’re referring to when the dancer does a big assemble jump, lands in all the way down in grand plie, and then does a big explosive sissone out of it. Landing in that position requires a lot of quad and glue strength, which, you guessed it, is built over years of practice: grand plies in ballet class, working out in the gym, pilates and calisthenics etc

Hi! I am 25 and want to become a great ballerina. Not professionally or anything, but just for me. I danced from age 2-11 and then stopped so I have a fairly decent grasp on the concept of ballet. I was wondering if you have any tips for someone starting from scratch? I’m not overweight but I have virtually no strength or stamina. I’m not terribly flexible and my hips are weak. Basically, I’m wondering what routine of classes/exercises/stretches you would recommend and how often. Thanks!! 

My first and most important piece of advice: GO TO CLASS. Find a good studio or school that has quality teachers, ideally someone who has experienced life as a professional and has credentials or a good body of work as a teacher. Do your research! 

If you can make it to class around 3 times a week, that’s a great start as an adult beginner. 

In addition, I recommend incorporating daily yoga/stretching, balancing with pilates and some lightweight training a few times a week, and your preferred form of cardio. 

Hi Ale! I have a question: are some styles of executing movements (Vaganova, Balanchine etc) harder than others? Or are they all similarly difficult but just different?

I tend to argue the latter, I personally find the Balanchine technique more difficult but that’s because I didn’t train in a Balanchine school. A lot depends on a dancer's education as well as what kind of company they end up dancing in and the repertoire performed there. 

you at some point commented on how a ballerina (i don't remember her name) struggled with keeping her heels down in plies. i used to dance - amateur, but i did love it - and had difficulty with that as well. are there any stretches/exercises that can help, or is it just that some people are born with a better ankle configuration than i have?

Some people definitely have more flexible ankles and Achilles tendons. However, improvement is totally possible and honestly a good idea for people in general. Look up ankle mobility drills as well as Achilles and calf stretches. 

Hi Ale! I don't know if this is going to be a very unpopular ask, but do you think the tall ballerina era ruined some things forever in ballet, or at least in Russian ballet? Watching Ulanova, Plisetskaya, Makarova, Bessmertnova etc, in SL is so perfect. With their puffy tutu and small limbs, they look like a perfect, fragile swan, due to their small figures. Nowdays, super tall ballerinas, with giagantic flat tutus can't look like a Odette at all (I take Lopatkina off this list). Maybe a Odile.

I’m not going to say ‘ruined’ but the tall aesthetic, especially the super skinny body type promoted by Balanchine that then extended worldwide, has absolutely and irrevocably changed ballet. Different physical traits and skills are treated as valuable as are different tempos and styles of choreography. I also think its important to note that the dancers you listed have quite different body types, I wouldn't say Plisetskaya and Markarova have similar physiques

[danzadance]

youtube.com/watch Stanislav Vlasov https://youtu.be/Rj2TJ4K9_68?si=vu78SNXS4J_eS5RF

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Technique–bodily control - must be mastered only because the body must not stand in the way of the soul’s expression. The only reason for mastering technique is to make sure the body does not prevent the soul from expressing itself.

La Meri

One of the most striking sequences for the Swan Queen is her series of 32 fouettes in Act III of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. Odile, the dangerous but seductive anti-heroine, returns to the stage near the climax of her grand pas de deux with the hero, Prince Siegfried, and revolves on one leg 32 times. Moreover, after the first 16 bars, the music changes character; she carries on regardless.

“Fouetté” is French for “whipped,” and it’s that whiplash motion of the raised leg that gives the turn its brilliance. That quick up-and-down of the ballerina’s foot sometimes sends her traveling downstage; but the ideal sequence of 32 fouettés never travels from a single spot. A ballerina whips one leg in a circular motion to the side and then into a passe while turning and rising on and off of pointe on the standing leg. In other words her raised leg, never touches the ground, but provides most of the propulsion. Men can do fouetté turns, too. But part of the excitement with a ballerina is that she does most of the turn on point.

The 32 fouettés aren’t the hardest assignment in ballet, but they’re the most exposed example of virtuoso technique. If something goes wrong, the audience will see. I remember one ballerina falling flat on her backside around turn No. 14 and several who stopped (or switched to another step) after about 20.

Italian ballerina Pierina Legnani first performed 32 consecutive fouettes in a performance of Cinderella in 1893. When she originated the role of the Swan Queen in Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov’s version of Swan Lake in 1895, Petipa added in the 32 fouettes specifically for her.

Performed by the Black Swan, Odile, the spellbinding turn sequence effectively demonstrates the power and drama of the dark side of the Odette/Odile dual role. Legnani’s legendary performance of the fouette sequence as the Swan Queen set the standard for ballerinas to come.

It's surprising to learn that some great ballerinas who avoided doing them: Anna Pavlova, Alexandra Danilova, Alicia Markova, Maya Plisetskaya did alternative steps. Margot Fonteyn, who delivered them for over 34 years in Swan Lake, laughed in her memoirs about how an American critic described her wandering path during them as her “Cook’s tours of the stage."

 Let's be clear performing 32 fouettes in a row represents the incredible skill, technique, and control of a prima ballerina. The step requires strength and stamina that can only be gained through years of dedicated ballet training. Even more than a century after Legnani’s balletic feat, the Swan Queen’s 32 fouettes continue to captivate audiences in productions of Swan Lake worldwide.

But I will whisper it quietly that I agree with one ballerina friend of mine at the Paris Opera Ballet that it can be boring to watch. Not the technique but the spectacle. The rare artist is not the one who does the most turns but the one who makes them interesting and, above all, musical.

Amandine Albisson, Danseuse étoile de l’opéra de Paris, dances as Odile in the Opera Paris production of Swan Lake.

[stembies]

abso-fucking-lutely not but thank you for believing in me like that

[chiricocuvie]

Why are Yuzuru Hanyu stans so fucking mean to Nathan Chen like wtf did he even do