Baryshnikov is fantastic and I'm still working on it...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTso5moVNs4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=_7jj8McPlVY

Ok after watching the clips of Baryshnikov that Jessica posted on the Carmen page, I decided to share one of my favorite pieces that he is in. “Sinatra Suite” by the amazing choreographer Twyla Tharp is a piece that allows you to see the range of personas that Mikhail is able to bring to life on the stage. His character invokes the ascetic of cool that Sinatra’s music evokes. I find that Baryshnikov can grab my attention in this piece just as much as in any other classical ballet that allows him to demonstrate to the audience his remarkable virtuosity in jumps, leaps, and turns. He is so amazing, I swear if I ever met him I would faint or do something terribly embarrassing.

On a side note, now that we are almost into week eight of the quarter, I wish we had more time to continue on the learning track that we are on. I feel that I finally have understood how to utilze engagement in my abdominals in so many movements not only at the barre but in center work as well. I have made so many realizations this quarter that I hope leaving for winter break soon does not make me lose everything that I have gained. I need to be able to retain the new information that my body has discovered in order to improve my performance in class, not just on my “good dance days” but every day. I know I’m not going to turn into a Marianela Nunez in a quarter or even ever, but I would like to keep progressing from the point at which I am at now.

P.S. To Jessica- I really enjoyed this outside discussion board. It really made me think and put into words what I need to understand in my physical practice.