I always loved tap and jazz and hip-hop but ballet was always just a requirement that I needed to fill in order for me to continue to train, perform and compete in the styles that I loved. As I approached my senior year and was auditioning for different college dance programs I realized that the styles that I took at my dance studio were not the type of classes that I would be focusing on if I decided to peruse dance in college. After auditioning for programs with a strong modern focus I realized how different it was going to be and that I had to go into school with an open mind. I had never taken modern before so I knew it was going to be a big adjustment and it still is. I am used to all of my movements being set and precise and having reason behind them but in modern it is all interpretive and free flowing. I think because of this difference in styles I have began to like and appreciate ballet even more. After getting into a routine with my first quarter semester I realized that I was only taking two technique classes and was dying to take more. When faced with the option of classes I was eager to take another ballet class to continue to work on my technique and become stronger in order for my foundation to be solid so that I could build on that in my modern class.
When I called my mom to tell her I was taking an extra ballet class she was surprised because she knew that it had not always been my favorite. I have a different appreciation for ballet and when I am in class I am in a different mind set then I used to be. Instead of thinking that I am just in class to fill a requirement, I know that I am in class because I want to be, in order to get better and keep up my technique to become a better and stronger dancer.
I have been there. I do appreciate ballet when I finally find myself thinking about something other than just the movement, but rather the artistry. I began taking ballet as a requirement for my dance program as well. I progressed in the same fashion , taking more classes, longer classes and harder classes as my dance training became more intense. I thought, much like you, that ballet was a tool to be used in the other forms of dance. although I recognized it as an art form, it ballet was award on my body. because I knew being a professional ballerina was not my goal, I didn't think of it as a from of dance on it's own, but a form of dance that supported the other one. I'm glad you posted this, because it gives me something to think about; not only how I am doing the movement, but why, and never forgetting to use my artistry.
ReplyDeleteI feel very much the same way!
ReplyDeleteStarting dancing so late in life has left me with a lot of ground to make up in terms of technique training.
I've found that although ballet is immensely difficult for me, it has proven to have given me a reliable "muscle memory bank" to work from. I think that without the ballet training I've received this and last year I wouldn't have stood a chance in Susan Hadley's class this quarter. The simple feature of ballet in comparison to modern dance technique for me is that ballet is fairly uniformly codified, whereas modern dance has such a great variety of styles and sometimes is completely devoid of any precise vocabulary.