33 replies to this topic

[carbro]

SanderO, on Sep 10 2007, 09:24 PM, said:

Of course when we speak of the "perfect" form or beautifully proportioned dancers, one cannot think of them as statues, but how they move their bods.

Actually, I read this thread, and its male counterpart, and have replied, thinking of statues.  :-)  Bodies as bodies.  Movement is something else, and while obviously there's a feedback loop between long bones and joints on the one hand, and how that body moves on the other, I can easily separate the two.  

I have heard that narrow hips are an advantage for elevation, a disadvantage for turnout.

[EAW]

Any list of Most Beautifully Proportioned Female Dancers has to include Jennifer Penney.  Her dancing may have sometimes lacked power and presence, but what a body...and what a fluid, elegant, effortless technique.  Anyone who missed seeing her onstage can catch a glimpse of her in an excerpt from "Manon" on YouTube.  She stood out among Royal Ballet dancers for that fluidity, especially in the back and arms.

[cargill]

I certainly agree about Penny.  I can never quite get her out of my mind when I see the first fairy in Sleeping Beauty or the shade that she danced.  No one I have seen ever matched her boneless quality that was so matched to the music.

[bart]

carbro, on Sep 10 2007, 10:25 PM, said:

I have heard that narrow hips are an advantage for elevation, a disadvantage for turnout.

I'd love to hear the physics behind this distinction.  What explains it?