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Simply Adult Ballet: the progress of one adult dancer who took up ballet later in life


Michelle_Richer

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I hope it was one of the more flattering piccies Michelle showed you of me Terpischore!!! I tend to look like either Henry 5th or a fatter version of Olive Oil on the whole. My partner is not much help either.....he thinks Andrew Lloyd Webber could be my brother!!

 

I wanted to say Terpischore that the class at Central with the cheery Aussie is on Sundays at 12.30 and Mondays(at 7.30) for level one plus.

He also has an "absolute beginners" class at 7 or 7.30 on Tuesdays and Thursdays. But of course the absolute beginners tend to have been dancing for a year to two years so it's fine too.

 

I will also be around in a London.......apart from this coming weekend.......on Wednesday April 30th and again about a month later in May......for the young Dutch Company. I will PM you with dates etc.

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I hope it was one of the more flattering piccies Michelle showed you of me Terpischore!!! I tend to look like either Henry 5th or a fatter version of Olive Oil on the whole. My partner is not much help either.....he thinks Andrew Lloyd Webber could be my brother!!

 

I wanted to say Terpischore that the class at Central with the cheery Aussie is on Sundays at 12.30 and Mondays(at 7.30) for level one plus.

He also has an "absolute beginners" class at 7 or 7.30 on Tuesdays and Thursdays. But of course the absolute beginners tend to have been dancing for a year to two years so it's fine too.

 

I will also be around in a London.......apart from this coming weekend.......on Wednesday April 30th and again about a month later in May......for the young Dutch Company. I will PM you with dates etc.

 

Hi Lin, are the initials of the "Cheery Aussie" DK by any chance?

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Yes it's DK Janet!

 

I'm more wary of mentioning teachers actual names these days. Even if saying nice things perhaps they don't want names Plastered all over the Forum!! Always happy to give more info in PM ' s etc.

 

Anyway DK is a great teacher for a free type class aimed at adults!

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Thankyou Michelle I am blushing now......looking absolutely fabulous are not words I associate with myself these days!!

 

I loved that Giselle workshop my favourite one so far I think.

I like Giselle, but I’m not keen on the Cuban version we do with City, It’s a shame I cant make the RAD workshop but I have also suggested it to Tom at LAB, but ideally it needs to be when an Intensive occurs the same time a performance is showing in London.

 

I’ve been down the hall this morning, ran through the two solo’s umpteen times for the weekend, the second half hour in my tutu, so no surprises there. I’m still curious as how we will finish Aurora solo in place of the circular travelling turns, I tried it on the diagonal and the hall is about 25m across there and only just enough room. I did get an unwelcome surprise when I went to our local post office to settle for my monthly hire of the hall, the price has increased Grrrr.

 

I’m due to use the hall again tomorrow fortunately only my local ballet teacher has it booked, as my shipment of tutu is booked to arrive some time that morning. The organisers of the hall have said I can use it any time tomorrow after the ballet class, so hopefully I should get one last session in.

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Hi, folks, especially LinMM and Michelle. Of course I remember you both.

 

I don't think that any teacher will be annoyed if you name names: we need pupils and without YOU, what point is there in dragging up to London to teach if we cannot pass on what we know and love? It is only that I am afraid the good people who run this website will be a trifle annoyed if ballet (and other dance) teachers use it for self glorification and free advertisement! (Nevertheless, do come and try one of my classes!)  :)

 

Seriously, Monday's class at Pineapple was one of the best adults' classes I can ever remember teaching - so many people looking better and reacting well to help and encouragement! I was on cloud 9 and 3/4 for an age after class! Thanks to all who came (if any of you are reading this!)

 

Carry on loving dance and dancing - love to you all,

 

Michael

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................................................

 

I don't think that any teacher will be annoyed if you name names: we need pupils and without YOU, what point is there in dragging up to London to teach if we cannot pass on what we know and love? It is only that I am afraid the good people who run this website will be a trifle annoyed if ballet (and other dance) teachers use it for self glorification and free advertisement! (Nevertheless, do come and try one of my classes!)  :)

 

Seriously, Monday's class at Pineapple was one of the best adults' classes I can ever remember teaching - so many people looking better and reacting well to help and encouragement! I was on cloud 9 and 3/4 for an age after class! Thanks to all who came (if any of you are reading this!)

 

......................................

 

Michael, 

 

When next in London I will come to your class. If your teaching is anything like as good as your posts your class will be a lot of fun and very instructive. I have already attended one class at Pineapple with Adam Pudney and enjoyed it enormously.

 

Right now I am in the beginners' Over 55 Class at Northern Ballet Academy.  I also take a mixed age, mixed ability class at Huddersfield University. I am trying to master pirouettes, temps levés and pas de bourrée and have so far had only very occasional and probably fortuitous success. But I work very hard and always have fun.   I think I may be making progress. Very slow like continental drift so that it is almost imperceptible but it is progress none the less.

 

By coincidence the members of my workplace (a barristers' chambers) and our staff were discussing hiring a studio at Pineapple and engaging a teacher for a dance workout only this morning but we have still to decide what style of dance we want to do.

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Santa Claus came today in a TNT van and bought me a big box which contained 6 gorgeous tutu’s. Unfortunately with time pressing I simply haven’t had time to remove then from there cellophane packing, but they still look absolutely gorgeous, however they will have to wait until after the LAB Spring Intensive when I get back

 

Although it was delayed I did manage to get another practice session in at the hall this afternoon. Hair done, all packed and ready to go now.

 

Thank you Sheila for such prompt and fantastic service as always xx.

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Michelle_Richer

 

I told the students in the beginners' class that the improvers meet for lunch at Café 164 and today some 8 of us from the beginners' class did the same. We owe you a debt of gratitude.

 

There are such a nice bunch of people at both classes and also at my mixed age, mixed ability classes at The Base and Team Hud in Huddersfield.

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Thanks Sheila

 

Im at the Travel Lodge at Covent Garden, the firs day at LAB has been fantastic, we have been doing the friends dance as three seperate groups, at the end of the day each group had to perform it to the rest of the school. Our goup however contained the guys too. Im not sure how much more we have to do with this piece, but tomorrow we start on the solo's, I think  in smaller groups,

 

There was a general get togerher in one of the local bars after class, I left about 9pm, being one of t5he last, Hope my ankles are OK for tomorrow.

 

 

PS cant wait to try those tutu's on. Im the only one here in a full tutu, its the odette one, no grumbles so far, it looks gorgeous as you would expect. If I cant dance at least I look good, ha ha ha,

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I’m just back from the LAB Spring Intensive which was fantastic, fortunately my legs have held up with three days of intensive ballet. I must confess every morning they have been stiff and a little worrying, however what has seem to work is to have a long soak in a hot bath to warm up the Achilles. On the morning of the performance day my left ankle started to really ache, barre was fantastic, best I have ever had, I loved it, the music seemed very appropriate for the exercises we were doing, I really did dance that barre. During centre when it came to jumps, I sat those out but resumed when we got back to glissard/assemble combinations. My legs did finally see me through the performance. Full detail of the LAB intensive are on the other thread.

 

At least now my feet get a little rest, no more ballet until Friday when I hire my local hall, then back on Tuesday with private class in London followed by my two regular classes with ENB. Following week every thing back to normal.

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Keep going Fiz! I've missed so many classes due to work and family commitments but onwards and upwards! It makes me appreciate every moment in class and realise how much I love it when I'm there! Why does a rise on Demi pointe, in retire feel so good!! :D

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It does! It's so pretty. Last night there were no less than four of us wearing raspberry/burgundy leotards with black skirts! As G said ruefully "It's as if we're all wearing uniform". The others were in black, one in a white skirt, one in a blue floral (Tulips by Tracy?) skirt, for those interested. ;)

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Hi Sheila

 

Finally got round to checking all the tutu’s out, they fit perfectly and are really gorgeous. Only problem now is storage room, not sure if to leave them in their polythene bags stacked on their side on a wardrobe shelf, or to remove them and store them inverted in the wardrobe on a skirt type coat hanger, but that does take up more room.

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Keeping them inverted will be fine - I'll send you some cloth bags with you last tutu, so they're able to breathe, rather than keeping then in polythene.

If they're stored inverted for a long time, then I'd advise you to turn the other way around for 24hrs before wear. Otherwise store in a big stack, open and flat, in their own tutu room ;)

Sx

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Keeping them inverted will be fine - I'll send you some cloth bags with you last tutu, so they're able to breathe, rather than keeping then in polythene.

If they're stored inverted for a long time, then I'd advise you to turn the other way around for 24hrs before wear. Otherwise store in a big stack, open and flat, in their own tutu room ;)

Sx

 

Thanks for the info, my tutu room is my small spare bedroom, it already has three wardrobes in it, two are full of ballet gear. There really isn’t any room to lay them flat other than the bed. Goodness knows what I will do next Christmas when I order some more.

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Back from my only real classes this week (ENB), even though I enjoyed the break it was good to be back and two really nice classes too with a lot of new faces.

 

One little fly in the ointment: I have had an email from Northern Ballet, informing me that their adult ballet show piece is being performed on Saturday the 28t of June and not on the 5th of July a I was originally told. I could make that date as our LAB dress rehearsal is on the 29th. However Northern ballet's rehearsal class is on Tuesdays which conflicts with my one-to-one rep coaching prior to ENB which really makes it a no no. Unfortunately no matter how I squeeze things, I cannot fit it in, Oh poo!

 

Rep class today was on Le Corsaire, I have a stack of corrections which I documented on the train home, we are only devoting 15 minutes on the next session to it before moving on to another piece from a completely different ballet.

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Worked through the Le Corsaire corrections on Thursday in my local hall, mostly it went OK however there was a new frustrating issue that arose. The first part travels on the diagonal towards the down stage right corner and then from right to left across the front of the stage. My brain knows this but my body insists on travelling back on the diagonal from where it came. Even when concentrating the first movement for the change of direction was always back and then I would force a correction across the stage. I’m not convinced that issue is properly fixed yet. Oddly this never came up in the studio, but the hall is much larger and deeper, so I guess it’s just the change in geometry that is resulting in this issue. It will be interesting as to what will happen on Tuesday when I’m back in the studio at Shoreditch.

 

I have spent a considerable amount of time today (Sunday) in my home studio cramming in the “Dance of the Snowflakes”(Nutcracker), ready for Tuesday to shake out indiscretions ready for company rehearsal on Thursday when I get know what position I am dancing.

 

I have been out to two Salsa parties this weekend, although it no longer has the attraction it once had, what is disturbing, is that I’m loosing a lot of the repertoire I once had as its not regularly refreshed like it once was.

 

That now has an implication on my ballet, especially as I’m now putting a lot of time and effort into ballet repertoire of various scenes from different ballets; this is also with the help of a profession coach which needless to say is expensive. For this training to be effective I need to keep it refreshed otherwise it will simple be lost as the body memory fades. My thought are to hire an additional a low cost local studio with a sprung floor, it need not have mirrors or barre, in-fact its better if it does not have a mirror as it more closely resemble a stage where visual feedback is not present.

 

Again these are only thoughts at this stage, but each bit of repertoire would be performed to the appropriate music in turn with a few seconds gap between them, which I guess will appear like a mini performance of multiple scenes. I’m sure there will be sufficient time to run the sequence of scenes three or four times, with the last run being videoed for my own feedback. I have seen one such studio in Spalding, I called in on the off chance, and the floor I am told is a sprung floor, however it was being used at the time. The studio also doubles as a sports hall.

 

I’m not sure if this is a positive or negative attribute, but the upstairs offices and café windows look directly down onto the studio floor below as they are in the same wall, so I guess one will always have spectators. I’m not sure if that’s encouraging to get it right or more likely to put you, but hey, that’s show business.

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Lin:

Good luck with you new class, remember July is not that far away, with dress rehearsal on the 29th June at ENB, which is also the day after Northern Performance so I should be onstage there with Terpsichore too, what a small world.

 

Terpsichore

Had a reply back from Annemarie, she would like me to attend virtually every week, and certainly every week in June for rehearsal. I will be there on the 6th of May as I have an existing studio booking for the 29th April. I will review things after that first week for May especially any overuse effects as I will really be starting to push it again (over 5 hours ballet and 500miles-ish travelling). I do have two other classes I can put on ice if need be until the autumn to offset it, as I do have responsibilities to other classes for performances too.

Terpsichore have you or the girls have had any thoughts about costumes yet?

 

 

General:

Had a good one-to-one rep session on “Dance of the Snowflakes” yesterday, didn’t get a chance to run thru the Le Corsaire scene as planned. However we have now done roll-reversal for the warm up for the past two week, its now fast and furious and doesn’t waist a lot of time, but very cardio.

 

ENB was good last night but neither were my regular teachers, our level 2 was a teacher I have met several times and she often covers different levels, but its nice to get slightly different routines at the barre and in the centre as it keeps the brain active.

 

Level three was a lady that normally does ENB’s rep workshops, I was hoping to find out what scenes were being taught on the next Coppelia one at the Coliseum, but unfortunately she is not doing that one.

 

Something completely different, does anyone know where I can get a Spanish Flamenco multi-layered skirt from suitable for the Spanish dance in Don Quixote. Otherwise I think I may have to get an overlay made to go on top of a romantic tutu base.

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Ive seen a theatrical shop in Covent Garden in Shaftesbury Avenue I think it is. Perhaps you can hire one? Have no idea how expensive this would be though.

Otherwise the ballroom dancing scene might be worth investigating though I feel sure there will be somewhere in London which specialises in flamenco costumes etc. I will ask a friend who used to be into this but it was quite a few years ago now!!

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..............................................

 

Terpsichore

Had a reply back from Annemarie, she would like me to attend virtually every week, and certainly every week in June for rehearsal. I will be there on the 6th of May as I have an existing studio booking for the 29th April. I will review things after that first week for May especially any overuse effects as I will really be starting to push it again (over 5 hours ballet and 500miles-ish travelling). I do have two other classes I can put on ice if need be until the autumn to offset it, as I do have responsibilities to other classes for performances too.

Terpsichore have you or the girls have had any thoughts about costumes yet?

 

...................................

 

I should have said that Annemarie mentioned your name yesterday. I will be nice to see you as and when you can attend.

 

Nobody has said anything about costumes in my presence up to now but then it is very early days.We have had only one rehearsal. Before I can consider or be considered for the show I have to learn a lot of ballet and as I said before it does not come easily to me. I am working very hard though.

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