Blog
Why do I have to take Ballet? By Laura Di Orio
A dancer is like building a house from the ground up. You can’t start by adding the roof and interior decorations; rather, you must start by creating a solid foundation to support the structure and make it last. Similarly, a dancer must establish that foundation in technique before adding all the “tricks” and performance quality. And that foundation, according to many dance teachers and professionals in the field, is ballet.
“Because ballet has been constantly evolving for over 400 years, it has arrived at a very solid method of developing human movement potential for the stage,” says Stephen Pier, director of the Dance Division at The Hartt School of the University of Hartford, located in Connecticut.
“It’s still the most relevant technical training all around and can serve as a very effective way of organizing and developing the facility of the dancer. Most other techniques or styles have not been around that long. They are too limited to be the sole basis of training, and they haven’t worked out the science and art of dancing to the depth that ballet has.”
“Ballet is the ‘grandmother’ of them all in the Western world,” Pier says. “This system has evolved over centuries and has survived and absorbed every fad imaginable. It has great wisdom and logic imbedded in it, which every dancer should learn about. It’s not important whether or not you think you will become a ballet dancer. It is very important, however, that you become educated about your art and respect all of its various practices and practitioners
[read more]Turnout Insight for Dancers, Dance Teachers, and Dance Parents By Jennifer Denys
Turnout is every dancers dream but some bodies will be injured in their quest for more turnout. Read Canada's National Ballet School's physiotherapist Jennifer Denys series of tips "helping to demystify what turnout is and how you can approach the passionate pursuit of “more turnout” without getting injured along the way. "
The Shift Movie
The Shift Movie - A very beautiful film! Free to watch until end Sept. Don't miss it!
"There's a place deep within us that wants to know that my life made a difference and that someone's life has been profoundly touched because of my existence ...wherever you are at, whatever your age, you're only a thought away from changing your life"
"When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor. It's to enjoy each step along the way." ~ Wayne Dyer
Motor skills
Certain Motor skills will not be achieved until children reach a certain age, regardless of years of dancing! Postural control and balance are the foundations for success in almost all movement in dance, and it is essential to focus on these aspects of training in the early years. Teachers’ effectiveness and dancers’ skills can be enhanced through a sound knowledge of motor development. Locomotor skills follow a particular developmental pattern: walking, running, jumping, galloping, hopping, and skipping. These skills must be presented in order, and at the right age.
[read more]3 Mindset Changes You Must Adopt to Succeed in Dance
Through dance we learn a lot about ourselves and how to use our bodies. We learn to express ourselves physically where we’ve failed to do so with words and this helps us become stronger people, physically and mentally.
[read more]Benefits of Dance
A number of studies have shown that people who dance are less likely to be depressed and report higher levels of emotional well-being.
[read more]Competitions: Good or Bad? with Clare Morehen
Thank you Clare Morehan for your valued opinion!
[read more]R.I.C.E New research suggests Ice delays recovery from soft tissue injuries!
Dr Gabe Mirkin, the man who coined the phrase acronym R.I.C.E in the treatment of soft tissue injuries in 1978 has recanted this method in his article on 16 March 2014! In his article he states "Coaches have used my “RICE” guideline for decades, but now it appears that both Ice and complete Rest may delay healing, instead of helping...In a recent study, athletes were told to exercise so intensely that they developed severe muscle damage that caused extensive muscle soreness. Although cooling delayed swelling, it did not hasten recovery from this muscle damage" Click the link to read Dr Gabe Mirkin's full article.
[read more]14 Reasons Your Parents Are Lucky That You Are A DANCER!!
We know they might complain sometimes about the cost of your dance tuition so here is a list of reasons your parents should be thankful you are a DANCER!
[read more]Turn Boards
From time to time different training aids and products hit the market designed to give dancers an advantage and improve on what nature provided. More recently a training aid called a Turn Board has been creating a buzz around the dance world and is now for sale on-line in Australia.
[read more]Your turnout
"What most enthusiastic young dancers don't understand is that your turnout is largely predetermined. We can continuously work on our rotation, but it must be done in a healthy, productive way. It can but should never be forced."
[read more]Paris Opera Ballet School
A rare treat - A peek inside the Paris Opera Ballet School to watch a beautiful class work demonstration video with the Paris Opera Ballet etoile, Mathieu Ganio and Alice Caonnet, who is a quadrille. The teacher is a former principal dancer Gil Isoart
[read more]Dear dance gods
Dear dance gods, I am writing to you today, as the wonderful and expansive step vocabulary that you gifted our artform seems to be drowning in a sea of crotch shots and badly placed spins that once resembled a fouette pirouette.
[read more]Land Like a Dancer
NYU Langone's Harkness Center for Dance Injuries (HCDI) performed a study on the biomechanics of jump landing, comparing athletes and dancers to learn more about the incidence of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in both groups.
[read more]Land Like a Dancer
NYU Langone's Harkness Center for Dance Injuries (HCDI) performed a study on the biomechanics of jump landing, comparing athletes and dancers to learn more about the incidence of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in both groups.
[read more]My Beginner Pointe VMO Exercise
My Beginner Pointe VMO Exercise with point through demi pointe
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Qld Ballet’s Backstage videos
Queensland Ballet goes Backstage with Royal Ballet Principal Steven McRae.
[read more]How to glue your pointe shoes to make them last longer
In this video Lisa explains how to glue your pointe shoes to make them last longer! You can do this by strengthening the shank of your pointe shoe to stop it from breaking down too quickly. This can drastically extend the life of your pointe shoe saving you lots of money!!
[read more]Wondering how to put together an audition video?
Despite every ballet dancer’s perfectionist tendencies, there is no such thing as “perfect technique”. But in his audition tape for the Paris Opéra Ballet School, David Hallberg proves that it just may exist
[read more]Another terrific training exercise from Marie Walton Mahon
Students often find it difficult to find the deep rotators that assist to initiate the control from an arabesque into a passé.
[read more]How many pointe shoes
In The Spotlight With Juliet Burnett
[read more]REVIEW Dance Australia
Undoubtedly Queensland Ballet Artistic Director Li Cunxin is a man who dares to dream big. His desire to be the first in Australia to mount a production of Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet,
[read more]BULLYING TACTICS
There are always people who get their kicks by tormenting someone else. They enjoy insulting or teasing others, because they themselves are insecure or want to look cool in front of others. They are looking for a reaction, they expect it, so don't give it!
[read more]Ballet Evolved - Enrico Cecchetti 1850-1928
Proud to be teaching the traditions of Cecchetti Ballet!
"Cecchetti had set exercises that were devised in a way that they really made the body work correctly and you just couldn't get away with an eyelash in the wrong place"~ Royal Ballet Mistress Ursula Hageli
Cecchetti Legacy Fundraising Project Salon Evening
Cecchetti Classical Ballet has long wanted to be able to record the most advanced Cecchetti work, up to the professional Diploma level.
[read more]Proud to be teaching the traditions of Cecchetti Ballet!
Enrico Cecchetti was one of the most influential ballet teachers of all time, coaching greats such as Pavlova and Nijinsky. In 1918, Cecchetti settled in London, laying the groundwork for the formation of The Royal Ballet.
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