Anjuli_Bai

In petit battement I always thought of the movement of the leg below the knee is like the pendulum of a clock. The knee is pressed back and held quiet - while below the knee the leg moves. The movement is in-out not scraping the standing ankle. Work on that in-out pendulum movemnt slowly and then when your mind has learned it - pick up the speed. There is also no movement in the body and that includes the standing hip. I always loved doing this. Yes, in petit serré - it looks like a vibration - but it is actually a tap-tap-tap - as the pointe of the moving foot taps on the standing ankle (in the front, side or back of it). Think of Odette doing it in Swan Lake. Again the knee is pressed back, and the only movemnt occurs below the knee. The rest of the body is quiet. I always loved doing these, too. Actually, I loved all the steps of the petit allegro vocabulary. Remember, if you start out saying to yourself: Quote from above: "Do they fill you with undeniable fear or uncontrollable excitement? I vote for the former because it is one movement I can just not do. Seriously it's disastrous. See trying to not move my knee infuriates me cause I'm literally like "Don't you dare move?" Thoughts?" : You are behind before you start. what is there to fear? You are not going to fall down and go boom. "Just cannot do" - tends to be self fulfilling. You're at minus zero before you even start. So, tell yourself you love it - and see what happens.

To which petit battement are you referring?

Well, I'm not sure I'd say "no teacher" - but I might agree with "many do not focus on ........" Like everything else, learning the "why" of a step - "why is this step choreographed at this place in the ballet - what is the choreographer trying to say/" - is as important as "how" to do the step. The student learns "how" to illucidate the "why." That's not easy to teach but actually is the entire reason why we dance.

Thank you ....and, yes, I have written a book. But.....I don't want to take this thread off topic....

I think that the answer to this question is not only different from dancer to dancer but would also change through the years for each dancer. First - the mundane: I never wanted to join a company. I determined early on that there were certain boundaries that were important to me. I didn't want to tour as my family home life was the center of my life - not peripheral.. I didn't want to sign any contract in which I would find myself dancing choreography or to music which didn't suit both my dance style or my taste. In other words, I wanted control. Fortunately, having a supportive husband meant that I did not have to financially support myself which gave me the freedom to be picky. So, I only signed contracts for short term specific performances that appealed to me. As you might imagine these stipulations at first restricted my opportunities - but only in the beginning. As time went on and people became aware of me, the phone began to ring more and more frequently. This was very rewarding. Second - the inner aesthetic: To be one with the music - to be completely inside of it - to feel the air rushing by my face as I flew through the air - to be immersed in its expression - to feel the strictures of the ballet give me the strength to move as I willed - the moment when ballet's strict structure is not restrictive but the path to freedom - when the years of study and sweat in producing a grand jeté allowed me to rise, soar and hover in space - long enough to look around and say - 'ah.' Third - The outer aesthetic: When I've finished and the audience is silent - and then - the applause. I know by that moment of silence that I've taken them with me - they have danced with me. I've found nothing in life quite like that - except giving birth - that moment when a new voice joins the human chorus. Fourth - Other aspects of the "dance domain": When a little girl comes up to me afterwards with stars in her eyes - or I see children in the lobby spinning, jumping - dancing. When the phone rings all these years later and a student calls me to share his/her life. When one of my youngest students said to a new child: "We work hard, but we laugh a lot." When someone who has read my reviews or feature articles responds. And many times - at this board - when someone lets me know that in some way I've touched them - that I was able to help in some way...... I think this can all be summed up by saying: I consider success when dance has reached through me to touch someone else or when dance has reached through someone else to touch me.

Let me say first - I am retired from both perforrming, taking class and teaching. I still coach occasionally and write about dance. So, that said.....in looking back, for me the most stressful aspect was finding good teachers. If one is involved at the professional level, then the assumption is that the dancer has the "tools" - the body and dedication for the vocation. The possibility of injury is always a concern. Competition is a constant. But those aspects are constants in many vocations. However, because the ballet dancer is dependent upon a daily class, studying under a good teacher is a daily need from the first day to the last. Finding a good teacher - someone who knows has to transmit knowledge - how to transmit that knowledge not only to the class as a whole, but how to reach each student is a never ending search. A teacher who is in the room for the sake of the student - not to serve his/her own ego. A teacher who corrects and interacts positively. Is not afraid of laughter. A teacher who doesn't operate through fear. Who doesn't promote unhealthy contention and competition. A teacher who makes time and is willing - eager - to discuss issues with the student and/or family. Who doesn't depend ivory tower upon distance for authority. Who doesn't monopolize his/her students - forbidding contact with other teachers. A teacher who expects that the dancer will someday leave to explore other grroves in the forest. And, sometimes, it is just as basic as finding a teacher who truly knows how to put together a ballet class. I found that dealing with all the other stresses were incidental to the all important search for good communicative positive teaching. I'm not sure this is an answer you expected. But, I hope it helps.

I loved the way the lines of her body and legs fit in with the lines of the barre behind her.

I don't think that pointe shoes are all made the same - not even most of the time. I always found quite a difference even within the same maker, style and cobbler. In fact, I never found any two shoes made the same. Every pair - and each one of the pair - felt and wore differently. In addition to the shoes all being very different - my feet also changed. The same pair of pointe shoes felt differently on the same day. As did my feet. As did my body. The floor was different at different times of the day and my response to the music changed, too. There is nothing more constant than change.

The hormonal cycle (which continues throughout a woman's life) has a definite effect on balance - and self confidence. I would advise you to concentrate on what you are doing and not to be concerned if others are following and that they might copy your errors. Just be concerned with what you are doing and the rest will take care of itself. As to looking like a fool.....well, if one were concerned with that no one - and I do mean no one - would ever walk into a ballet classroom. There are no fools in the dance class - only people trying to do this very difficult business called ballet. Don't divide your concentration by thinking about these things......just put your mind where it will do the job it needs to do. Been there, done that!

Several years ago I went to a performance such as this (solo visit) at the Orange County Performing Arts Center (Orange County, California) - it's a complex of theaters and concert halls and is considered a premiere venue for dance. The tickets were very expensive and I was really looking forward to it. That particular program was disappointing to me. Since I had never seen this acclaimed ballerina in a live performance, I was hoping for a mix of style and genre but there was not one moment of classical movement. I would have liked at least one classical dance. But that is a very personal opinion. I didn't like any of the pieces she performed. If you go to Google and type in "Diana Vishneva Orange County Performing Arts Center" a number of pictures and reviews come up for more recent performances than the one I saw. I didn't see any indication of including a classical bit - but I could be wrong - or perhaps that might not be what matters to you. For me, I did find it indulgent and disappointing. But again, I stress, that is just a personal opinion.

When I was actively teaching, some of the things I was given that I really enjoyed: A hand made card Hand knitted/crocheted scarf A beautiful aqua silk scarf Hand knitted slippers Hand made tote bag Anything hand made - including cupcakes Satin covered hangars for sweaters gift card to a dance shop Fruit and nut platter A beautiful dance figerine A basket of freshly picked blueberries from the student's garden A potted plant that I could put in my garden if I wished A gift card to an ice cream shop A dance calendar for a wall, desk or purse (but make sure the pictures are worthy - not sloppily done by non-dancers} A pad of memo notes with or without my name on them A homemade apple pie One very little girl sang a song to me that she had obviously worked on (I loved it!) Things I didn't enjoy (although, of course, I appreciated the sentiment): foot bath - too bulky to store - too much trouble to set up, then wash out, dry and store a bottle of wine - I never drink alcohol - Any card or picture of a hippo in a tutu - it was cute 1000 times and 39 yrs ago. Coffee or tea selection - but they included caffeine - so were unuseable Listening to someone tell me they were too busy to buy a gift - I didn't expect a gift - you don't need an excuse and I don't want to listen to it - feeling terribly embarrassed for both of us. I often found it was not the gift but the manner of giving it which made it memorable.

I see part of the problem as one of theatre design. A center aisle is a good idea. And more space between rows is another. Good sight lines yet another. After a long history - thousands of years - of theatre design we still can't seem to get it right.

I am not family with the specific flooring you mention - but I have had the experience of dancing on a very spongy floor which will certainly play havoc with your balance. There is a difference between a sprung floor and a too soft spongy floor. Balance is affected by many things - the floor, the unfamiliarity with the space - as well as the body's chemistry at any particular time on any particular day. "Pulled up" as you mention is good - but that does not automatically compute to a dynamic engagement of the parts of the body and how they connect to and stabilize one another.

There's more than enough room for two genuis talents. It was generous of Chaplin to give a moment in the film to Keaton. Does anyone know if Chaplin is really playing the violin?

I do like your first page format - it's inviting. The short introductory "pickout" paragraphs invite further reading. And - I like your first sentence: "Some men are beautiful." That captures the attention of the reader. The first sentence is very important but, then, that importance has to be substantiated - which you did! In addition to an occasional review for Ballet.co,, I write for two publications on a regular basis. One is a monthly (online and hardcopy) and the other is weekly (online). The monthly publication has a strict word limit (350-400) whilst the weekly publication allows me all the room I desire. However, I limit myself to about 700 words (often less) because many readers - for many reasons (time, eye fatigue, etc.) feel overwhelmed when a really lengthy article - a full page on a computer screen comes up. It is not unusual for me to use the same article for both publications. I am not plagerizing myself, the publications are aware of this and approve. It is an interesting exercise - and very instructive to the writer - to take a 700+ word article and edit it down to 350-400 words without changing either the general import as well as the particular ideas one wishes to convey. The writer becomes aware of which words and sentences are central to the information or opinion one wishes the reader to know. As I heard someone say once: "It doesn't have to be eternal to be immortal." Don't be afraid of brevity.

Thank you, Willie, for that information. It is sad when politics and art intersect - usually to the corruption of both. I am listening again to that beautiful music as I write this. It is a real shame that this movie did not get the oscar for Best Movie of the Year. (I posted this reply earlier - but somehow cannot see it - and so reposted - please forgive me if this becomes a double post)

Congratulations on a hard road well travelled! I hope she has a marvelous time with her dancing.

A harder shank doesn't necessarily translate into longer wear. While it is true that a shank is part of the support/wearing process, it is not the entire picture. The shoe could also stretch, the box could become soft, etc. And since every pair of shoes, even though it is the same make and style, is different - there is no guarantee that a harder shank in any particular pair will give you longer wear. How a shoe "wears" is dependent not only on how long you use them but also on how you use them. For instance - how strong your feet are, how squarely you are on the platform, the kind of ballet steps you are working on (sautes versus bourrés). Even how much your feet sweat. A couple of things you could try: switch shoes left/right every time you wear them. I think that's a good idea in any case. It keeps the "last" (the "last" is the shape) of the shoe more even and thus the shoes wear evenly. It also helps to keep the shoe and thus the foot aligned straighter. I know this is seldom taught, but I was taught it by an old Russian teacher as well as a Cecchetti teacher/examiner and found it to be a good idea for both my feet and my shoes. Also when you are finished with your pointe class allow the shoes to dry out in open air - don't stick them in a bag.

Another thought....... I photograph my paintings and print them out card sized and use them as Christmas cards. So - you might consider making your own. I think people like that personalized touch.

As for being a contributing factor - It depends upon how that "flat turnout" is achieved and if she as yet has the strength to hold it stable while in motion. The teacher should be able to tell you. Another factor the teacher should be able to check is whether that "flat turnout" is equal on both sides in both flexibility as well as strength. Often both sides of the body are not equal and one side can put pressure on the other - the teacher should be able to detect this, too.

Congratulations! I wish him the very best in his future.

f I do know that in the UK a referral to an orthopedic is necessary - but I've also heard that some people pay privately -- and so my intent was that in either case, the aim is to get the opinion of an orthopedic doctor.

Pain is a signal to stop and find the problem. I would first get her checked out by a medical professional like an orthopedic doctor. It's always a plus if the doctor has some knowledge of dance. Once any physical problems have been checked, the next step is often (but not always) a physical therapist to advise on "useage" - how the joint is being used and to rectify any problems in that area. Clicking and popping sometimes indicates the slippage of a tendon on its track. But pain is the signal to stop..

This has been going on for quite a while now, so I think there are many people who don't know there is supposed to be a difference.

I don't see the point of over splits.