Selected article

Ballet technique refers to the method by which ballet steps are performed or taught. Technique may also refer more generally to a dancer's training and ability. The core technique of ballet has only minor regional variations globally. Various training methods have been devised, these produce a different physicality of performance and aesthetic results. Ballet (especially classical ballet) puts great emphasis on the method and execution of movement.

Ballet technique can refer to the foundational principles and steps on which ballet steps are built. These foundational principles and steps include "pulling up" (a popular term used to describe proper posture and lifting the muscles so as to increase turnout, quantity and quality of turns, and proper alignment), posture, pointing the toe, and flexibility.

Selected biography

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In the news

• From 15 December 2008 to 10 January 2009, the Royal Ballet will perform The Nutcracker at the Royal Opera House, London. The Royal Ballet were the first company outside of Russia to stage a full production of the ballet and this version by Sir Peter Wright and incorporating the original choreography by Lev Ivanov, is the most widely performed by ballet companies worldwide.
  • Casting for the Sugar Plum Fairy: Laura Morera, Marianela Nuñez, Roberta Marquez, Alexandra Ansanelli, Miyako Yoshida, Lauren Cuthbertson, Yuhui Choe
  • Casting for the Prince: Valeri Hristov, Thiago Soares, Viacheslav Samodurov, Rupert Pennefather, Johan Kobborg, David Makhateli, Ivan Putrov, Federico Bonelli, Steven McRae, Yohei Sasaki, Sergei Polunin

• On the 22 December 2008, the Austrian Ballet Company - Tokyo is presenting Sleeping Beauty at the Persimmon Hall, Meguro, Tokyo.

• The Corpo di Ballo del Teatro alla Scala is performing La Bayadère from the 17 - 31 December. The main roles will be performed by Svetlana Zakharova, Roberto Bolle, Marianela Nuñez, Polina Semionova, and Denis Matvienko.

• The Vienna State Opera Ballet will be performing Giselle from the 7 - 21 December. The main roles will be performed by Maria Yakovleva, Gregor Hatala and Kirill Kourlaev.

• The Australian Ballet will be performing Stanton Welch's Sleeping Beauty at the Sydney Opera House from the 4 - 23 December.

• New York City Ballet danced their Winter gala at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 25^th, 2008; the program consisted of:
  • Chichester Psalms
  • Barber Violin Concerto (excerpt)
  • Ives, Songs (excerpt)
  • Ivesiana (excerpt)
  • Calcium Light Night (excerpt)
  • Jazz (Six Syncopated Movements) (excerpt)
  • A Fool for You
    • Rockhouse, Hit the Road Jack
    • It Should've Been Me
  • Duke!
    • Blossom got Kissed
  • Who Cares?
    • The Man I Love
    • I Got Rhythm

• The South African Ballet Theatre opened their Christmas season on 21 November 2008 with Rock-a-Tutu. This work was choreographed by Ian von Memerty and Thandi Brewster and premiered in Pretoria in 2004. The company is accompanied by a live band, two singers (including former Idols Finalist Wafeeq Saffodien) and narrator Carl Beukes from Isidingo.

• The Australian Ballet performed Concord at the Sydney Opera House from the 11 - 30 November. The programme consisted of choreography by Alexei Ratmansky, Wayne McGregor and Nacho Duato.

• On 1 November was the premiere of Variations, performed by the Stuttgart Ballet. The programmed consisted of:
  • Balanchine's Theme and Variations
  • Elo's Slice to Sharp
  • Cranko's Poème de l'ecstasy

• The Royal New Zealand Ballet is currently touring New Zealand with its production of Don Quixote. The company performs in Wellington with the Vector Wellington Orchestra (31 Oct - 8 Nov), Invercargill (11 - 12 Nov), Dunedin with the Southern Sinfonia (15 - 16 Nov), Christchurch with the Christchurch Symphony (19 - 22 Nov), Palmerston North (25 - 26 Nov), Napier (29 - 30 Nov), Auckland with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra (3 - 7 Dec), and in Hamilton (10 - 11 Dec). The alternating casts are Yu Takayama, Clytie Campbell and Adriana Harper as Kitri, and Marc Cassidy, Qi Huan and Medhi Angot as Basilio.

• On the 24 August 2008, 989 ballet dancers in Cape Town set a new Guinness World Record for the World's Biggest Ballet Class, held at Canal Walk. A previous record was attained in 2003 with 530 dancers at the same venue.

Selected picture

Credit: Tutu by Edgar Degas

A ballet tutu is a skirt worn as a costume in a ballet performance, often with attached bodice. It might be single layer, hanging down, or multiple layers starched and strutting out.

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Did you know?

'Billy Elliot the Musical, is a stage musical with music and lyrics by Sir Elton John. It began as a movie of the same title in 2000. The story is set in Durham, England during the 1980s miners strike. Billy (the son of a miner) has to undergo various hardships after discovering a love of dance. He eventually wins a place at the Royal Ballet School and the film ends with a view into the future, where we see the adult Billy (Adam Cooper) performing the lead role in Matthew Bourne's production of the ballet Swan Lake.

The stage musical opened in 2005 at the Victoria Palace Theatre in London's West End, costing an estimated £5.5 million. An Australian production opened at the Capitol Theatre, Sydney in 2007 and a Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre, New York City in 2008. A new production is planned in Seoul, South Korea. In London, the dream sequence in Act II features Barnaby Meredith, a graduate of the Royal Ballet School, who danced with Dutch National Ballet prior to joining the cast of the musical. The New York production features Stephen Hanna of the New York City Ballet.

This balletomane highly recommends this show for adults and children over the age of l0 or 12. (Be mindful of some British expressions of annoyance not commonly used American English)

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