May's Ballerina: Anna Pavlova

Fact #1- Anna Pavlova studied ballet with many people, including: Pavel Gerdt, Christian Johannsen, Nicholas Legat, Catarina Beretta, and Petipa!
Fact #2- She formed her own company in 1910.



Pavlova as the Dying Swan


Anna Pavlova in 1911


dressed for Russian Dance























Anna in 1914

Quote of the Week

"Everything is beautiful at the ballet..."

~ from "A Chorus Line"

Just a Video

May's Ballerina: Anna Pavlova

Fact #1- Upon seeing Marius Petipa's Sleeping Beauty Anna Pavlova's passion for ballet was ignited.
Fact #2- Alicia Markova's career was inspired by Pavlova.
Fact #3- She was most noted for being a principal artist of the Ballet Russes and the Imperial Russian Ballet.

Anna Pavlova in costume for The Dying Swan.





Anna Pavlova and Nicholas Legat in Swan Lake

Ballet Wishlist

I really want to try these pointe shoes sometime! They look so pretty! It doesn't hurt that the pictures are pretty awesome, too.
 http://www.wearmoi.com/details-lapointe.php

These are so cool! They may look a bit odd at first glance, but that doesn't change my feelings about them!


http://www.dancedistributors.com/shop/style_IM009.html?pid=4895&Shop=Style&SID=342494892


This would be so useful. I'm so glad I've found this!


http://shop.rheegold.com/The-National-Dance-Week-Cookbook-Barre-Food-NDWC.htm

Quote of the Week

 "There are two basic elements to classical ballet.

They are quality and quantity.

Quantity is how much a dancer can physically do...

the element that gives an artist the freedom

to concentrate on quality,

while quality is how he or she does it...quality of movement...

the most difficult phase...requires long and arduous training."

~ Igor Schwezoff

What's In My Ballet Bag

Here are most of the things that I currently keep in my ballet bag.
 

I usually keep two pairs of pointe shoes in my bag, one pair that I wear for class and one pair to either save for a performance or to use as a back-up pair in case something happens to my first pair. Right now I use Principal pointe shoes. I like them alot, but unfortunately they don't last me as long as I would like them to, so I am searching for a pair that will work better for me.

These are the ballet slippers that I am using now. The top left ones are Grishko Women's Canvas "Performance Series" Split-Sole Ballet Slipper, the middle ones are So Danca Professional Leather Ballet Shoe, and the top right ones are Wear Moi Leather Ballet Shoes. My oldest pair are the middle ones. I then wanted to try the Wear Moi ones, so I got those. A little over a week ago I ordered the Grishko ones, and they are by far my favorite ballet slippers ever!

My hair bag contains: bobby pins, hair pins, ponytail holders, and mini ponytail holders. I also keep a small spray bottle in my hair bag most of the time.










I also keep two pairs of toe pads in my bag. I originally used the bright pink ones, but then I found out about ouch pouches, tried them out, and haven't gone back since. They're great!

Some other thing that I keep in my bag are hand sanitizer, a couple notepads, a pen, a cd, and a list of rehearsals.



A couple oddities that I always have in my ballet bag are my foot wipes and my squishy block (haha, I have no idea what it is actually called). Unfortunately when you dance, your feet sweat. In my case they sweat alot, so my foot wipes come in handy, especially after a long day of rehearsals. I have no idea what the squishy block is supposed to be used for, or what I use it for, but I have always kept it in my bag.

My wallet, ID, and a list of important phone numbers are things that are constantly with me.

This is what I keep in my make-up bag. I usually have a couple of band-aids, a lip balm or two, a compact mirror, eye make-up removers, and mini nail filers.









And lastly, my dance bags of choice, an Under Armour duffel bag and an Out Of Print bag. I usually just choose whichever suits my need on that day.






p.s. I would give links to most of the things above, but for some reason my computer is not cooperating. Sorry.

Grand Jetes

A leap.....That's all a grand jete is. It's just one big jump where the dancer is doing the splits in the air. There are many ways to prepare for  a grand jete. A good way to prepare is to do a tombe, pas de bourree, glissade, and leap, or you can do a chasse, two steps, and a leap. One more way to get ready for a leap is to just simply take a few steps and then jump. Here's some pictures of grand jetes.

Here we have Darcy Bussell doing a wonderful grand jete.


Cecilia Kerche


This is Alina Somova in Don Quixote.


Here's a quick video of a grand jete.

May's Ballerina: Anna Pavlova

Fact #1- Anna Pavlova was an exceptionally strong dancer and had nearly perfect balance
Fact #2- She was able to complete 37 turns while on the top of a moving elephant!




Pavlova as Giselle


At home with her pet swan Jack





Anna Pavlova at Central Station in Sydney

Quote of the Week

                                                 "Letting go of perfectionism,
                                      so ingrained in the nature of a ballet dancer,
                                                can be the most difficult thing."

                                                          ~Author Unknown

Just a Video

Ballet Wishlist

This is called a Foot Stretch. I really want one to improve my arch! I think it looks like it would work wonders!!!

http://www.footstretch.com/order.php


I want this costume so much! It's just so beautiful.

http://www.discountdance.com/dancewear/style_TF1806.html?pid=17129&Shop=Style&SID=338794438

This looks like a great book. It seems as if it would be very helpful. I've been looking for something like this for quite a while now.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Dancers-Way-Ballet-Nutrition/dp/0312342357/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1336681384&sr=1-1#_

May's Ballerina: Anna Pavlova

Fact #1- Anna Pavlova is best known for the creation of the role The Dying Swan
Fact #2- At the age of nine her mother took her to audition for the Imperial Ballet School.
Fact #3- She didn't get into the school until the next year




Here she is as Dragonfly


Anna Pavlova as the princess Aspicia in The Pharaoh's Daughter

Quote of the Week

"Ballet is a dance executed by the human soul."

              ~ Alexander Pushkin

Pirouettes

Pirouettes are one of the most often used turns in ballet. They can be done with several different preparations and can be started from varied positions (fourth, fifth, second). Some ballet dancers can do many turns in a row, while others can only do a few.


Above and below are some pictures showing how to do a pirouette.



Pirouettes can also be done with partners. Often times it is much easier to do several turns in a row when you have a partner. If the ballerina starts slowing down, her partner can keep spinning her around.

It is important to remember that a pirouette only means a turn on one foot. Which implies that it can be done in any position (arabesque, passe, attitude, and so on).

Just a Video

May's Ballerina: Anna Pavlova

Each month I will have a different ballerina who I will post about once a week. In each post I put up of that ballerina, I will include one or more short facts about them, pictures, and hopefully a video.

This month I will be posting about Anna Pavlova!!! She is one of the greatest, if not the greatest ballerina(s) of all time. That is why I am so excited to have her as my first "ballerina of the month"!

Fact #1- She was born on February 12,1881.
Fact #2- She died on January 23,1931.

Here she is as the dying swan.






This picture shows Anna Pavlova in the ballet The Awakening of Flora.





Anna Pavlova in Danse Papillon.