Kate_N

I've been really impressed by the way all my teachers have adapted to Zoom. I attended Christina Mittelmaier's new Intermediate class at Pineapple last night as a Zoomer (rather than a 'roomer' in the studio) and she was wonderful at keeping a careful eye on us all, and adapting centre work for my kitchen. Although I sort of gave up at grand allegro, partly space, but also tiredness (I'd done 5 sets of heavy deadlifts at 75kg & then run very fast on the gym treadmill in the morning!) @Laura F. we are all very excited for you, so do keep us up to date about how things go. And @Colman's probably right about the 6 weeks! In my annoyance with myself at not being able to beat assemblés at the moment, I forget about what it's like to start at the beginning. I took up lifting heavy weights about 3 years ago, and i'm still learning how to squat & deadlift really really well.

Yes, this is a really good point! I have a teacher from my late 20s/30s (while I was writing my PhD) who's still in my head. And I've done class with some teachers over the last 10 years that others rave about, and I haven't enjoyed. That's about me, not the teachers, I hasten to add! But I think we're lucky in the UK in that there is a growing body of expert teachers who actively enjoy teaching adults. It also helps if you are "teachable." That is, you actively take on corrections, and conduct yourself in class with respect for your teacher, and also your fellow students (don't be late, and don't get in the way of other dancers ...)

It's never too late! I've done ballet most of my life - from syllabus classes in my early teens - a terrible teacher, so I stopped. Then took it up again at university when I was 20, and have mostly done at least a class a week ever since (it's now 40 years or so). And what you're planning to wear is perfectly appropriate. You could start to do some conditioning to help with getting used to using your body in unaccustomed ways of moving. Flexibility isn't really as important as people think - what is important is mobility and then strength. Flexibility is no good if it's static, and you can't hold it. Gentle yoga or Pilates are good complementary movement practices to help develop both of those things. You could also do some "kitchen ballet" classes on Zoom, if you wanted to get the hang of things before starting in-studio. I do a range of online and studio classes - I'd really recommend doing very basic beginners' classes - I still do them to keep me honest about the basics. One of my online teachers (the excellent Hannah Frost at Pineapple) always says to absolute beginners that it will feel strange and weird, but that you need to give it about 3 weeks at the very least, to help your body learn - muscle memory takes a while. I think one of the tricky things for absolute beginners is that that sense of grace & fluidity of movement which makes ballet look so wonderful to do, is really quite hard, and takes some time to learn. But - the huge advantage we have as adults is that we can think & process, and we know how our bodies work, so we can take on the advice of our teachers. The other thing that sometimes adults find tricky is the ballet practice of 'corrections.' If your teacher is good, they'll be constantly 'side-coaching' - that is, they'll be calling out adjustments and corrections that individuals & the whole class need to attend to. You have to learn to keep going, while taking on the corrections as your teacher reminds you. It's quite different from current day teaching in other contexts - rarely a "It would be lovely if you could just pull up your abdominal muscles, please, if you could manage that." It will be "Pull up! Navel to backbone. Get those shoulders down, and straighten your knees!" It's direct & speedy. Sometimes adults feel this is criticism - it's not. It's advice to make you a better dancer. Ignore at your peril. Good luck and I hope you get to the point where it is fun! There's nothing like moving to music with grace and control, or crossing the floor in a series of pirouettes, or jumping and turning.

I saw her dance Giselle with the Australian Ballet back in 1977. I can still remember it - mesmerising. I think that's where my fascination with the ballet Giselle started.

I've just received this from an email list for dance in HE: The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet is a landmark publication for the fields of contemporary ballet and research. We will celebrate the release of the book at a special online event with invited guest artists: Adji Cissoko, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Cathy Marston, Mthuthuzeli November,and Justin Peck. The Handbook's co-editors, Dr Kathrina Farrugia-Kriel (Head of Research, RAD) and Dr Jill Nunes Jensen (Senior Lecturer in Dance, Loyola Marymount University), will engage panelists to discuss the many ways in which ballet functions as a global practice in the 21st century, providing new perspectives on its past, present, and future. The event is free and will take place at 19:00 BST on 7 June. Registration for this event is required. RAD Members will be given a 30% discount on the book. Click here to purchase your copy and use the code AAFLYG6. See also: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_S1-BSYgySMyxyydQ7x-_aA

This is excellent advice! I've been taking MORE classes during the pandemic than ever before, because I can do them via Zoom.

I've seen your posts on both fora, @LM_Rose I think the issue is that it's hard to advise if we don't know where you are, and of course, you may not wish to disclose that. And we can't see you, so don't know what your standard is. If you've had a patchy ballet training, I'm afraid that - speaking generally - it's pretty unlikely you'd achieve a professional job. But you could be a natural phenomenon! However, there is huge satisfaction to be had from taking your training seriously as an end in itself. It can be a serious pursuit without it having to be your job as well. Lots of adults dance this way, and get a lot of satisfaction out of it.

but I wonder if the choreographers of the 1830s (height of Romantic ballet) would have said that about the choreography, style, and technique of the 1890s? I suspect they would.

Whew! So we can keep Giselle, then? 😉

And let's remember! Petipa took Romantic choreography and developed it into classical era ballet. As did Nijinska. Or we could go backwards and look at what M. Vestris did to develop the repertoire of steps choreography in the romantic ballet - or Bournonville. And so on. Things change & develop.

In terms of dance history, this is correct. Strictly the adjective "classical" refers to a particular time period - generally the latter part of the 19thC. I'm far less bothered though by the kinds of distinctions others are making here: I think that, for example, Forsythe's work, MaGregor's work, and Marston's, all use the vocabulary of ballet, but in contemporary ways. My favourite Australian choreographer, Graeme Murphy, was even more extreme in his pushing of the ballet vocabulary & repertoire, but the dancers were all fully trained 'classical' ballet dancers. Whereas, dancers trained solely in contemporary technique (eg Graham or Cunningham) have a very different look, style, and even shape of the body.

You've not missed anything - that is the proposal. It makes an inaccurate distinction between performing & creative arts courses at conservatoires and universities, by assuming that only the graduates of 11 conservatoires nationally, make any contribution to the creative/cultural sector. It focuses only on training of a handful of performers, whereas there are many more types of employment, and pathways to such employment in the cultural industries. Some of those jobs might be done by anyone without specialist training, but others not. And there are some surprising crossovers - although not surprising to anyone in the industry. The man who taught my brother how to use a follow spot in big arena concerts (my bro is now a technical director of various huge public events such as Olympic ceremonies) also knew his music & his ballet. He was once asked by a colleague how he managed to get the follow spot straight onto a dancer as the dancer jetéd on stage from the wings. "I count the music, of course" the lx man answered. He knew the ballet, he knew the steps, he knew the music.

Ys, that was my reading as well! It's also internally contradictory - things like acknowledging that creative arts education is very good for students with mental health issues, but that that is not enough of a priority. It's blatantly ideologically driven (and I've had this confirmed by someone with Westminster insider knowledge). Given that we have a PM with one of those really "useless" degrees in the arts (what does on do with a Classics degree?) it's bafflingly anti-arts & humanities.

I'm still doing ballet class in my kitchen. I can do doubles quite easily in the studio, but prefer to keep to singles in my kitchen, so I'm focusing on finishing the pirouette up on demi-pointe, and in retiré, and then put my foot down slowly and cleanly. It is very difficult!

Gosh, this is all hugely discriminatory against those of us who chose to attend the theatre on our own. I tend to book solo - because I just like to focus on the performance, or I know I'll meet with friends & colleagues at the theatre anyway. But this is makes almost a social stigma about going to the theatre alone. It's quite disgraceful really.

What a great idea! I'm not sure I should sign, as I'm not a Friend, nor do I get to CG v often, but it is an issue in almost every theatre I try to book nowadays. It's very discriminatory.

Hmmmm - we've known about the proposals since March, but the actual invitation for consultation & the means to respond were only opened about a week ago ... The overarching issue is that the current undergrad tuition fee doesn't quite cover the cost of even a "cheap" degree (such as English or Biology). The real cost is closer to the fees charged to international students. The extra costs are met primarily by all university staff working unpaid overtime. But fees are not popular, and raising them to the level which would help universities to balance their books is probably thought to be not politically wise. And as for "too many" courses and "low value" - the Cultural Learning Alliance, and the Arts Council (England) have produced some really interesting stats on this: https://culturallearningalliance.org.uk/office-for-students-consults-on-49-cuts-to-he-arts-courses-funding/ As has the government itself. The cultural/creative industries in the UK are an economic success story - the government itself estimated that they generated gross value of £115 billion per annum, and employ over 2 million people (you can find this info on the GOV.UK website). Education in music, dance, and drama departments in UK universities feeds this industry - it's not just graduates of acting or ballet schools who go into the creative industries, and the job roles and pathways of employment are much wider than most people recognise. Although posters here will know more than most about just what it takes to get a company of dancers onto the stage in front of an audience. UK performing arts are world leading (eg. think of all the people from all over the world who want to study & perform here) - I think it's such a pity that we're currently being so short-sighted about sustaining them. Anyway, thanks to people who've registered this issue - it's really appreciated. I'm proud to be a citizen of a country where the arts are so valued by us ordinary people - a pity those in charge don't see it this way sometimes.

Thank you so much everyone. If you would like to respond to the consultation itself, there is an excellent thread on Twitter with some suggested answers:

Dear All, We've known for some time informally that the Office of Students has been proposing to re-organise the extra government funding that 'high cost' subjects receive (the Teaching] Grant) in addition to the privatised tuition fee. The proposal has now been published, and there is a consultation, with a very short time frame (hmmmm) - responses are required by 6th May. The main issue is the decision to remove all extra funding to arts & humanities subjects, so as to transfer all resources to science & technology (STEMM) teaching at UK universities. This is because, apparently, these are 'high cost' but 'low value' degrees. If you would like to protest against this short-sighted policy, please can I ask you to consider signing this petition: https://www.campaignforthearts.org/petitions/stop-the-50-percent-funding-cut-to-arts-subjects-in-higher-education/?fbclid=IwAR1IC8daSQmnY4b9n4y078fqLmrQ9vhZwVptQJIJ41Lt_T9dEVtBoEFYako Anyone is invited to respond to the consultation - as an individual, a university student, a teacher, or a student's parent, perhaps. You can find the documentation here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/consultation-on-recurrent-funding-for-2021-22/ I hope the Mods don't mind me letting you know about this. As a community of arts lovers, dancers, and parents of dancers, I thought you should know about this.

The wonderful Christina Mittelmaier does live online PBT. She is a really excellent caring teacher, and so good at Zoom classes in terms of corrections, explanations, and encouragement. https://www.xristina.com/

Don't know if you're within commuting distance of Oxford, but you could try Susie Crowe's classes & those of her colleagues. You can find details here: https://balletinsmallspaces.wordpress.com/ and an archive about Ballet in Small Spaces here: http://www.balletinsmallspaces.co.uk/ Dr Crow, and her colleagues (such as Segolene Tart) are wonderful practitioners - really thinking dancers & teachers. Very safe but challenging. These are for adults, so at the moment are virtual. As you're under 18, of course you'll be able to attend in-person classes at studios. I hope you find the right one!

Oh, that is such sad news. Many condolences to her family.

This!!!! I suppose I'm concerned about this because, as an adult dancer, I've had many women telling me they wished they could have done ballet as a child/teenager, or that they'd kept up the study of ballet even when their bodily development or ultimate technical ability etc etc meant that they could never consider a professional career. Or the people who discover ballet as adults and become entranced (or sometimes obsessed) by learning it. The sense of loss of experiences is strong, and very sad. Anyone should be able to learn ballet, whatever their body shape, size or age. But also what you say @Pups_mumabout eventually being very clear-eyed about the likelihood of a career. But that can come at 16 or so - and often, young people see themselves how they measure up (sorry I really don't mean that as a pun). Until then, if she loves dancing she should be encouraged, and not told she can't because of her normal female body.

I saw his Carmina Burana in Krefeld a couple of seasons ago (to the Orff arrangement). There were no tickets left (not even for company members) so I sat in the sound box a the back of the auditorium. It was a-may-zing: the full opera chorus, plus soloists, plus local amateur & children's choirs, the Niederrhein Orchester, and glorious choreography where the dancers just never seemed to stop moving. THere's a flow to his choreography that is exhilirating (exhausting for the dancers though!)

Also, just to say, there's quite a bit of discussion here in this forum about the options for young people undertaking the serious study of ballet to a very high level, but unable - for a multitude of reasons - to pursue a career as a professional ballet dancer. There are many benefits to the serious study of ballet, and to give it all up at 10, just because of normal and natural girl's/women's bodily development, seems extreme to me. And very sad that a parent would co-operate in this treatment of their daughter.