Gamines

[Lovebird]

I have often read or heard of a dancer being described as having a gamine charm or beauty or having a gamine personality and wondered if anyone knew exactly what this means.What dancers could be described as gamine? What characteristics does a gamine have? Is it considered a type? What roles or repertory are considered gamine? I think this type was popularized by Roland Petit and embodied in Zizi Jeanmaire.Any opinions?

[glebb]

Interesting Lovebird.

I would love any information on this as well, because a few years back, I choreographed a series of three solos to guitar music of Purcell, for a petite blonde dancer who looked like a china doll but also gave off the feeling that one wouldn't want to get into a fight with her on the street.

A good friend of mine suggested 'Gamine' as the title for the piece. I looked it up and saw the meaning - street urchin. I never thought of it beyond that, but more information on the history of this quality related to dancers would be nice to have.

[fondu65]

In the SOED the second definition, a female gamine is: A small attractively informal, mischievous, or elfin young woman. Leslie Caron was also described as gamine.

[vagansmom]

So was Audrey Hepburn.

[Mel Johnson]

And there are gamines in American theater - the character of "Anybody's" in West Side Story is a gamine part.

[dirac]

And Chaplin had Paulette Goddard play such a role in "Modern Times" -- he called the character "the Gamin" (spelled without the e for whatever Chaplinesque reason) just so everyone would get the idea.

[Lovebird]

Lucia Lacarra is considered a gamine.Is high extensions a gamine quality in ballet?

[BalletNut]

I agree that La Lacarra is a gamine, but that probably has more to do with the fact that she is so tiny and that she is good at "sexy" roles than with the fact that she has the ability to scratch her ears with her feet.