Jade Eyrague

Wow, from what I read here, the shoes seem to be an important question ! I guess it is, since it's what keep you on your feet when you dance... Full soles seem to be the advice that most of you gave me, I will follow it for the next class, but of course I will also ask about it to my teacher ! I learnt the lesson : in a ballet class, the teacher is one saying the rules ^^ I don't understand neither this trend of wearing tights over leotards... sure, I am a complete beginner, but it still seems weird to me ! Wouldn't it be like wearing underwear on top of your pants ? It a strange trend, except if you are a superhero ! This brings me to another question I would like to ask you... even if that's a bit embarassing to ask. When wearing the ballet uniform of leotard and tights, what about the underwear ? I don't think that the other girls were wearing a bra. I guess if the leotard is well made, it can act like a sport bra. But what about the... crotch area ? Can you wear normal underwear under your tights, or do you have specific ones that don't show ? Sorry if my question is dumb, but I honestly don't know ^^' You seem to be much more aware of what happens in the fashion world that I am, Nicola ! I usually stick to wearing my t-shirts, blue jeans and Adidas Stan Smith sneakers, and not think much about anything related to hosiery... What are those discussions about it in the US ? Yes, I was a bit suprised about the curtsey at first, but then I remembered you mentioned it in what of your posts ! I must have looked quite awful doing it, all inexperienced and with my modern-jazz outfit, but I did my best... Something that the others girls told me is that it's very important to have a bright smile when you curtsey to the teacher. It's even best to keep that smile while dancing in the class. It is a sign of good will, and also is a good training for when you perform in front of people and have to keep a perfect face. This is something I will be working on ! I am sure you will definitely rock your class Cara ! Dancing must be like riding a bycicle, it comes back :-) Thanks everyone !

Hello everyone ! So, my first ballet class was Friday, and it went well ! All of it was very new to me and very different from my modern jazz class : much more disciplined and organized. The teacher is at the same time gentle and exigeant, giving very precise instructions about how what to do and correcting us when she saw something imperfect. She told us that if we want to be good dancers, the moves and positions need to be like automatisms, like a perfect clockwork mecanism (this is a picture I like a lot !) I did as you said Cara and Pups_mum, I listened carefully and kept an open mind. Apart from the ballet moves and names that I'm learning, they were also some rules in the class that I didn't know and surprised me. For example, when entering the class, we had to make a small curtsey with a smile towards the teacher and say "bonjour madame" (good day madam). At the end of the class, we had to all line up and give a longer curtsey - always with a smile. Thankfully, some of the more advanced girls were very helpful and helped me understand a lot of things ! Concerning the outfit, the teacher gives us very clear guidelines : leotard with a purple tone (which; she says, is our "level color", with other classes having other colors), ballet pink tights and slippers, and hair put in a bun. If we wear warm-ups, it has to be black, purple or light pink. I came to the class with my black leggings and simple t-shirt, like I wear to modern-jazz, and I felt so out of place wearing that ! If someone had a spare outfit to lend me, I would have put it here and now lol ! The girls told me they would help me find the best ballet clothes, and already gave me some advices. For the slippers, they said it would be better if it was split-soled and made in leather. What do you think ? Also, I noticed something that surprised me : some of the dancers were wearing their tights over their leotard, which to me seemed totally weird, but the teacher says it's fine and it looks more "professional". Why is it so ? Should I do it too ? Thanks everyone to accompany me in my discovery of the ballet world and for your helpful answers, and see you soon ! PS : good luck for your comeback class Cara ! I wish everything will go well, and am impatient to learn how it was ! ^^

Hello everyone ! I must admit, I am not used to wear uniforms at all... I have never worn one for school, or for anything else. For gym classes at school, we wear normal indoor sport clothes, like sport or fitness pants and tops... I have never seen a girl wearing a leotard at school ! We're very free to wear what we want. But anyway, I thought a lot about it, and agree with you all to say that it is not because I am bothered by an outfit that I should not at least try a class and see if I like it ! And after all this is a gift my mother gave me for Christmas, I don't want to refuse it and miss the opportunity :-) My first class will be at the end of this week, and even if I'm a bit anxious about how it will go, I am also impatient to be there ! Do you have any last minute advice about how to get into the right mindset before the class... ? Thank you all !

This is so sweet of you, Michelle, to give such a detailed answer ! Thank you ! Your story is very inspiring and full of details... In fact, talking with all of you here give me a lot to think about, and help me understand what it means to go to a ballet class ^^ I feel the same as you did at the idea of wearing a strict ballet uniform, feeling uncomfortable and silly... and also a bit treated like a little girl. I mean, I know that I am still young at 14, but I choose how I dress myself at that age ! Being told how to dress makes me feel as if I was 8 years old again... I understand that ballet costumes are inspired by fairytales, stories of princesses, and so on... It is totally normal to wear these costumes when it is for a character in a performance. Thanks to all of your answers, I also understood that skintight clothing is important for the teacher to see the lines drew by the body of the dancers (your explanation was very helpful and beautful to read, Cara !). There are also a lot of conventions and traditions beyond all of this. But does it justify all the rest ? For example, I don't understand why some classes ask their students to wear a black leotard, or any other specific color (the worst being the pink outfit that children must wear). And the tights : you can also see the lines of the body when wearing black tights, or nude tights, or any other color, or no tights but shorts instead... I don't know why, but when I see white or pink tights, I immediately think of the outfits that we see little girls wearing, with frilly dresses. I know that's a cliché, but I can't get it out of my mind. I would laugh so hard if I or any other girl of the class had to "look like a marshmallow", ha ha ! Maybe the problem is that I am not really a girly girl. I am not into skirts, or dresses, or princesses. I do not wear jewelry (which is a good thing it seems !). Ballet appears to be a very feminine activity, and I am afraid to feel out of place there... but at the same time, I think that all dancers are symbol of strength, art and freedom ! Dance means a lot to me. So, does my un-girlyness would be a problem at ballet ? Do you think I will be able to fit in the class ? Julie, I am taking classes in Paris. I am from Canada, but living in France : my mother is French and my father Canadian. My mother says that ballet is an important part of French culture, this is also why I want to learn it ! Do ballet uniforms change a lot, from one country to another ? To finish, I want to say : you are all so nice, patient and helpful here ! I'm happy I came to this forum to post my question !

I'm happy to see that I am not the only one to dislike the pink tights, ha ha ! I thought that every ballet dancer had to love them... I am just doing dance as a hobby, at a Dance Center near my home. Nothing professional, just a passion ! I do it for fun and because I enjoy it, not to receive diplomas, prepare auditions, or anything like that... I have been dancing modern-jazz with a very cool teacher for quite a time now, and now I'm very eager to try different styles ! The modern-jazz class where I am is very relaxed, so our teacher let us wear what we want as long as we can move freely in it. Nothing skintight if we don't want to ! It is so comfy to dance in sweatpants... But I guess ballet might be more strict than modern-jazz in that regard. So, typically, what kind of clothings are worn by the dancers of my age... ? Do you have examples, or pictures... ? Thank you again !

Thank you so much everyone for your kind and detailed answers ! When posting my questions, I didn't expect to receive so many answers ! As you said Pups_mum, I always tend to overthink things... I clearly don't want to miss the opportunity to learn ballet, but I was a bit anxious about how the first class might work, and what was expected of me. Before coming here, I only saw pictures of ballerinas wearing their wide tutus or pink skirts, and thought it looked a bit silly. When I was younger, I went to the gala of the ballet class of one of my friends, and they were all wearing pink leotards with a little skirt, pink tights and pink slippers, so I thought it was the normal ballet attire. I would really love to learn to dance it, but could not imagine myself wearing the pink leotard and tights, or worse the tutu ! It would be so far from what I'm used to. I understand the comparison with the swimming pool - even if I can add that I never enjoyed swimming a lot. But we can find more clothes that allow to dance, than clothes that allow to swim. I have the feeling that this more like a convention. The shorts are a good idea, Piccolo ! I think it would help me feel more confident. But, following what I understand, the clothes still have to be skintight, for the teacher to see my body... I am not used to that, I prefer long shirts at modern-jazz and even sweatpants sometimes. I guess it would not be a very ballet-like outfit ^^'

Thanks for your nice answers, all ! So, tutus aren't worn for class and only for performances... I went and looked at the videos of the Royal Ballet Class for World Ballet Day, and yes, they all wear so many different clothings ! At modern-jazz, I usually wear a loose shirt with a black sport leggings, it would be a good outfit for my first ballet classes ? After that, I will see what I am required to wear or what the other girls wear... I just hope it won't be pink, ha ha ! Do you think I will have to wear tutus if I participate in galas ? Pink girly frilly things are not exactly my style ^^ Even if it's not a tutu, I don't know if I would feel comfortable wearing just a leotard and pink tights. It is, you know, quite exposing... not that I don't like my body, but I don't like to wear dresses or skirts. Why are ballerina still asked to wear this in classes ? It looks old-fashioned to me :/

Hello everyone ! J'm Jade, 14, and new around here. I came because my Mom offered me ballet classes for 2018 (I already do modern-jazz) and I have a question... When we see ballerinas in pictures or movies, they're always wearing a pink or white tutu with pink tights and slippers. Do they also wear that in reality ? If yes, why ? I mean, to me, it kinda look old-fashioned, girly and childish... If I had to wear a pink tutu with pink tights in my classes, I would feel a bit silly ! Thank you all for your answers ! <3