On a final note, what would you like to share with me or the rest of the class about your experience in ballet this quarter. Favorite moments, frustrations. What worked? What didn't? what was missing? What new ideas will continue to inspire your dancing?
I have enjoyed teaching this class very much. As a class, you worked very hard and were great sports about the improv element. Maybe you even enjoyed that part a little by the end. I will work on putting a short video on the blog when I have finished up with end of the semester stuff so you can see yourselves and each other.
For the final showing, I think we decided to wear all black with an accent of bright color. I will work on putting together a little musical collage of our favorite rock n' roll ballet moments. We will put it together on Friday first thing. Don't be late!
Often, I perform for my students, but I never got around to it this quarter so here is a clip of a piece from a few years ago. It's inspired by yoga, and the energetic systems of the body. It's called Hallelujah.
Here is the music for the last week of class in case you want to download and practice. We will be doing some rock n roll ballet for the final showing.
Intuition, Feist, The Reminder (I love this disc) Helplessly Hoping, Crosby, Stills & Nash, So Far (a classic) Creep,TLC, Crazysexycool (Also an excellent, fun album to dance to) Glamorous, Fergie, The Dutchess Tears Dry On Their Own , Amy Winehouse, Back to Black, (just won a Grammy Award) Pocketful of Sunshine, Natasha Bedingfield, Pocketful of Sunshine I Say a Little Prayer, Dionne Warwick, The Dionne Warwick Collection: Her All-Time Greatest Hits Sunshine (Go Away Today) Jonathan Edwards, Jonathan Edwards Rock the Casbah, The Clash (Thomas' request) True To Myself, Ziggy Marley, Dragonfly Mad World, Michael Andrews & Gary Jules, Donnie Darko (Music From the Original Motion Picture Score) P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) Michael Jackson Thriller - 25th Anniversary (Super Deluxe Edition)
How was your experience in the pool? It was great fun to watch all the diving and synchronized swimming. You guys are really wonderful. I hope you had fun. What did you learn from the exercises? For those of you who have never been to the IMA, will you go again?
Heather Rastovac has been studying, performing and teaching Iranian and Near Eastern dances since 1997. She currently performs as a soloist and as a member of the dance ensemble Delshodeh, co-founded with Sonja Hinz. Delshodeh performs the dances of Central Asia, particularly the dances of Iran and Tajikistan. Heather participates in Delshodeh as an artistic director, dancer, choreographer, researcher and lecturer. From 2001 to 2004, she was a member of Shourangeez Persian music and dance ensemble and participated in the Northwest Folklife Association's Folklife-in-the-Schools program. Heather spent two months in Tajikistan during summer 2007 studying and researching dance and is currently pursuing a Bachelors degree at the University of Washington in Persian language, Anthropology and Dance.
If any of you have videos of your many talents, I'd be happy to post them to the blog. Do you see any ballet in this kind of dancing?
1) Side to the pool edge: Hooking one arm on the edge of the pool. Use a blue float board under your arm for cushion. Stabilize with the outside arm by pushing on the edge of the pool with the flat of the hand. Stabilize the inside leg on the edge of the pool using your core muscles.
Keeping the top of the foot of the inside leg touching the wall. Explore slow motion battements, and developé to the front, to the diagonal, to the back.
Feel the underside of the leg as it moves through the water. Feel the muscles necessary to engage the downward push of the leg.
2) Back to the pool edge: Hooking the arms on the edge of the pool, battement front and diagonal side. Again, keep the supporting leg grounded to the side of the pool. (5 minutes)
Do: Battements, 8 front, 8 diagonal side, right and left. Developé side, 8 each side. Enveloppé: battement out, passé, close.
3) In the center of the pool, (with a float belt if necessary): play with port de bras. From 1st to 2nd back and forth many times. Feel the different muscles necessary to bring the arms in and out. Feel the smooth quality of the movement of the arms. Feel how pushing through the water creates a controlled, fluid feeling in the arms. Remember this feeling and bring it into your classwork. (5 minutes)
Beats: Floating in the center of the pool, beat the legs back and forth in 5th position. Feel how the inner thighs work against the water to close the legs.
4) Traveling on your back: (feel free to use the lanes) Position one: arms in 5th en bas, legs both in passé. Position two: arms to second , both legs extend out to side. Position three: arms push down to feet, legs push to sou sou. (5 minutes)
Extra credit #1
Jump off the diving board in passé, or sou sou. Arms in 5th en haute.
Just a reminder that water ballet is going to happen on Friday. We will discuss what we are going to do in the pool on Wednesday. Yes, Marina, you will need a bathing suit. No, it's not mandatory if you can't swim. Check in again soon to get a description of the exercises.
Recently at Meany Hall, Compania Nacional de Danza from Madrid with choreography by Nacho Duato. For those of you that saw this performance, what did you think?
No ballet course would be complete without some Balanchine. From the New York City Ballet, here is excerpt from Stars and Stripes: What are your impressions?
And yet another view of ballet and ballet companies, here is the Joffrey Ballet in modern dance choreographer Alwin Nikolais' Tensile Involvement. Ballet companies have been doing more and more modern work along side their classical works. What do you feel about this kind of work?
