Kathleenie_Ballerinie Posted December 16, 2007 Report Share Posted December 16, 2007 Hi, I hope I have put this is the right thread! Summer Intensive auditions are right around the corner! My teacher says I am a very slow and lyrical dancer and I need more "attack", so she wants to to audition for primarily Balanchine-based schools. I have never had a Balanchine class in my life, except for last year, when I auditioned for SAB, and the differences in style were very striking. I tried to do everything the auditioner said, like spotting the front during chaines and doing everything very suddenly on the first count (like in grande plies), but I got very flustered and wasn't able do my best and "sparkle". I feel like if had known what to expect it would have been a much better audition. This year, I really do want to go to a Balanchine school for the the summer and I feel like it would really help me, so I want to be prepared. So I was wondering, what are some specific attributes or hallmarks of Balanchine style? I know about straight back leg before pirouettes, doing a port de bras on the first count instead of slowly through the counts, and spotting, but what else? My teacher says I can pick things up at a summer program, but I get so nervous, that I don't know if I can get IN anywhere without a little mental preparation! I hope it was okay I posted this here and not on the SI boards, but this is really a question about differences in style. Thank you! Quote Link to comment
Mel Johnson Posted December 16, 2007 Report Share Posted December 16, 2007 No, Kathleenie, you're in the right place. And "Balanchine Technique" varies from one teacher to the next, all dependent on the last thing that Balanchine told them in class. The problem is that Balanchine taught his company classes to support his choreography, and whatever was in production at that time. It would take a pedagogical genius equivalent to Balanchine's own choreographic genius to get all the information into a unified technique, and to create a curriculum to enable students to dance that way. That genius has not yet appeared, despite what some people's editors claim. So just keep your eyes and ears open, and watch the demonstration, follow the teacher's instructions. And just FYI, I started in a "Balanchine School", rather before it was fashionable. Quote Link to comment
Kathleenie_Ballerinie Posted December 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2007 The whole thing is really fascinating! Thank you. Quote Link to comment
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