Katie93

Thank You both for your replies. Sorry for the many mistakes - wrote that on my mobile phone whilst walking so... Well, I am actually from Vienna, Austria. But our scoring system in competitive artistic gymnastics is comparable to the USAG Level System, so I said I was training Level8. Didn't know that this was an UK-based website I am not, by any means, wanting to be an extraordinary ballet dancer anymore, I would just take it up for fun. But I still thought my "dance-journey" would help understand my concerns better. I am still very interested in those elegant sports like gymnastics, but also acro, rhythmics or ice skating. And although don't know nearly as much about the others as I do about artistic gymnastics and scoring system might be complicated, I can easily tell the grades apart. No need to talk about track and field or ball games - so easy to tell who is "the best". And since I still have holidays and no uni yet, I took some time and watched a few documentaries about ballet and got really interested. I do know there are different styles (most common Vaganova, Balanchine, Cezetti and the French style) and a bis part is put on acting, face expression and fluid movements of the body, I still can not figure out how it is "judged". Maybe I am to pettifogging and stuck in my competitive judging system. I bought the Vaganova book. It explains all the different arm and feet positions done with grace. But still I don't get it how ballet dancers "progress". Although there re easier ad harder movements, there are not really "skills" to progress, are there? It seems you could do - more pirouettes - higher leg extensions - more difficult combinations while having good technique and grace, but other than that? Would love getting more input

Dear All, I really hope I can find some help here. I have been doing ballet from age 4-9. I was really good at it and after two years of "fun" classes I was invited to train more often. I was obsessed with it. Unfortunately, we had to move due to my fathers work and at the new town there was no real ballet studio, just something for little kids. After a year break I started taking gymnastics (artistic) classes and developed quickly. I soon got invited for team and by the age of 14 I was training Level 8. However, it was never "my sport". I was scared of all the flips and heights involved and my favorite event was always beam because it was the only event I could be "elegant" on. I really missed classic ballet classes. I stopped gymnastics due to fear issues and school at age 15 and just enjoyed my teenage life, but still tried to keep fit with going to the gym and some stretching. I never got over the whole ballet thing. Anyways, now I am 22 already, I am in university and to a pilates class every other day and stretch every day to keep fit. I can still do all splits with square hips, left and right I got about 10inch overspills all the way down. My turnout and arch is pretty good and I can do arabesque and extensions without the bar for slightly over 90°, holing on to a barre more than 90° and my penché is 180°. I can do those really ugly gymnastic turns, however I do think I could learn a single "ballet" turn quite quick. My split leap or "grande jete" is 180° and so is my Russian. However, I do not know anything else ballet related! I was looking at some old photos yesterday and the whole ballet thing came up again and I thought I could try a ballet beginner class. So now my main question is: You often hear ballet is not a sport, it is an art. It is not about bending and contorting to limits, having oversplits in the air or kicking your head with your foot. However, it is more about elegance and technique. So what would the hardest be for me? Learning all the steps typical for ballet and executing all the things with the right technique? When I watch some classes Youtube they don't seem that hard. They do this leg and arm movements while holding on to a bar, pretty fingers, ribs in, tummy flat, turn out, pointed toes. I actually think I can do this. I might look a little robotic, but I think I can learn that quickly, otherwise it looks easy. Center things look a little more complicated due to balance, but still doable. Single turns might be difficult but as I said I think I will have them pretty soon. But then, seeing a performance, it looks so much harder. Different steps, moving around, complicating choreography. Can someone explain that to me? In gymnastics it is so easy to see if someone is good or bad or what level they are approximately in. But in ballet? No idea? How do you judge someone? When I look at the Vaganoa grade videos on YT, Grade 2 looks same as level 5.... Looking forward to getting some explaints! Thanks in advance