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Why do you dance?


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I was wondering, why are these ballet dancers dancing? Many people do what they do for the money... but that sounds unlikely here. There has to be more here.

Is it something that was encouraged by parents?? or was it just something simple like "I hear the music and I just want to dance". Or is it that you like to perform and be on stage... or is it something a bit more esoteric.

A person does Yoga for the mind and body, I was thinking that the movements in ballet may have that kind of effect... lifting the mind, body and spirit.

So I was just kind of curious, why do you dance?

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Well Ronny, I think you'll get an all of the above answer for all the reasons you mentioned.

What I always find interesting is how many people "happened" upon there first ballet lessons. Many an interview have uncovered the unruly, uncoordinated or even someone with a physical ailment who went to a ballet class and as they say, the rest is history! (lucky for us)

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There are so many reasons people love to dance! I know some people who think it's great exercise, others who love moving to music. For me, it's just a wonderful feeling to try to express myself through movement. I happen to love the classicism of ballet and the discipline required. It's like a whole other world. I must admit that my Mom raised me on classical ballet (thank god for PBS!), and she always wanted to learn but never had the chance to. I'm still trying to convince her to go to a basic class. She thinks it's absolutely beautiful and would want nothing more than to have something "take her away!"

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Guest Katherine Arten

Ronny:

I dance because I love it and it's good exercise, but mostly because I love to dance. I may not be the best dancer in my school, but that doesn't matter to me.

I also dance because it's my stress release valve. I can go to class really mad at people but when I come out, I feel better and I'm happy again.

d_frog cool.gif

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Guest Sammie

With my daughter, ballet just happened. She had wanted to take gymnastics, but I knew she was a bit chicken at the time, so I offered her ballet as a compromise. "It will be good for you if you want to do gymnastics when you get a little older." Well, after two classes, she never uttered wanting to do anything else. Now at almost 15, I look at her schedule and am constantly amazed she never whines that she doesn't FEEL like going to class tonight, she ALWAYS wants to be there. I also find it most telling that when life is tough, as it can be at times, ballet is where she NEEDS to be. I remember when her grandfather passed away, ballet was where she found the most comfort. It was fascinating to watch her grief turn to comfort as she danced "for him" that week.

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I dance because I love music. Just sitting and listening to music isn't enough, I have to feel it/BE with it. If I'm some place (such as a concert) I'm not just listening, I'm dancing in my imagination. It's just real intense for me. I wish I was a better piano player so I could compose and then choreograph to it, that would be the ultimate. Dance also lets me express myself better than I can otherwise. Emotions can come out, feelings, sensitivity. Andy

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Ronny, I am so glad you asked this question -- it is a GREAT question, one I think about almost every day, and as life goes on I come up with different reasons........

I'm remembering my teacher Sally Streets, who one day remarked off-hand, "Ballet is one of those things you do in order to find out why you do it...."

That struck me as profound -- that ballet is a kind of quest, it's something I do in order to find out about myself... partly to master my inner world, to see if I can find my way around inside myself well enough to (say) get my left foot to push from the toes as it leaves the ground and heads for my right knee as I spring up onto the right foot and start to turn..... and I'll go back again tomorow, just as if I were a 14-year-old with the potential of a career in front of me, to see if I can do it better tomorrow... ("Paul to toes, Paul to toes, do you read me?")

I'm sure we're all familiar with that. I also love the way ballet tells me where I am, in a more general sense -- knowing where my front side-back-sides are, my orientation toward the audience, and having that special relationship with the center of the earth, the fantastically rich sense of where DOWN is, it makes me feel expansive and confident, I KNOW WHERE I AM, in a way I don't so often in life.

And then I can get all that into my unconscious, my toes act like antennae, I don't have to think about it but can listen to the music and respond and dance, even in class.......

I also like the way time passes when I'm dancing -- it's so eventful; when I was a boy, every five minues was full of events. Now that I'm an adult, it seems the day goes by incredible fast, the week goes by so fast, half the month has gone by, and what happened? But in class, or dancing, time slows down, and lots happens....

That's partly why I go to the teachers I go to -- Sally, and Susan Weber (who also teaches here in Berkeley) give you such interesting combinations, they appeal to the imagination so strongly, it's like going to a movie at 9:30 in the morning..... Well, there's always the stuff where you feel like if I have to do another grand ronde de jambe en l'air coming from the back, I'll keel over..... but actually, they don't give much of that, and they DO use the music appropriately -- rondes de jambe en l'air feel very different when you do them to a tango than they to a waltz (they're fatter circles when it's a waltz).

Sally will actually vary the accent, so you'll do several in a row, but the emphasis on the first is the pull-up on the back of the thigh as you bend the knee,on the others it's on the roundness of the little circle as it comes forward.....

And Susan's got me so I can feel my low ribs when they start to go out -- fantastic development...

That belongs on the brag board.....

I'm not a kid any more, and I didn't start

dancing ballet-- I started with rock and roll, and I loved it -- the bop, the funky chicken, the dog, the QT, the twist, the birdland, the funky Broadway, all the funkies, I really loved those...

soI have to say, there are kinds of ballet I don't like, because they're too square.... as dances. I don't like it if it's not musical.

The kind of class that GETS me square, I LOVE that...... i'm one of those twisty people ,so it's harder to keep my ribs in place or my shoulders over my hips -- so a class that can help me get squared off enough to do a double tour and land is a great class....

But a class that's glissade jete glissade jete glissade assemble E-CHAP-PE makes me feel ground down. the kind that wakes me up , well, Sally gave a very simple combination the other day, first thing in the center, where you did tendus in second coming forward, 4 of those, with an over pas de bourree, tendu under, pas de bourree under, and a tendu over. It was almost the same moves, but really the foot version of a tongue-twister -- EXCEPT, and it's a BIG exception, the whole thing had this delightful rhythm, it fit the music like a glove, and felt like a dance.

[ March 20, 2002, 09:23 PM: Message edited by: Paul Parish ]

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I dance because it's one of the most up,perfect feelings of beauty and expression I can feel.I am a musician(pianist) and I also love singing.Dancing is part of this musical soul,I guess!I have studied ballet for my whole life and I'm in my forties and I'm sure I'll dance till I can't!My whole family is musical and we have a dancing home!I know many dancers will tell you they just have to do it!:)

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What a lovely way to begin the day - by reading everyone's thoughts on why they love to dance - or why their children do! The sun is shining and even if it was not, I think I'd feel happy just reading this thread.:)

I am not a dancer, sadly...though I used to love to dance to Van Morrison et al!:)

However my daughter is a ballet dancer - a young one...and she has always loved to dance. Perhaps it all started when she was a baby and I danced with her in my arms to whatever music I had playing at that moment? :)

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Wonderful picture BW... you dancing with baby in arms. That's a great picture.

That is something that needs to be IN a ballet. Wouldn't that be great to see that on stage... a mother so overjoyed with life and her child that she just takes flight with her child. A wonderful picture and would make a great scene in a real ballet.

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The usual story. I did it when I was 7-9ish. I took it up again a couple of years ago after being inspired by beautiful dancing from the RNZB in Cinderella. I read books and phoned some schools and know I'm adoring it more than ever! I love ballet music and have lots of cds etc.

I can say that ballet has given me a joy of dance and music for life. I don't want to be a pro, I just love to dance,

Thanks for the other incredible msgs,

See ya's,

Em

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Poppiedancer, thanks for coming over to share your joy of ballet with the rest of us! I was just thinking that unless someone's family were very "into" classical music, that in our culture they would not have too much real exposure to it... Don't know if it's any different for you down in New Zealand or not - so the fact that one can learn to fall in love with the music is just one more draw for the art, isn't it?

I would bet that many a young person, certainly in the USA, would never have been open to classical music if it were not for putting on their ballet slippers.

P.S. Ronny, glad you enjoyed the image of my daughter's intro. to dance.:)

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No, in NZ, we aren't very classically minded:) But in my family, we have alot of exposure to classical mucic. I play the piano and the viola. I have tried the flute and the oboe. But thats just me! My brothers play the violin(the two older ones do)and one plays the clarinet. Music has always been a big part of my life, I guess I take it for granted. Some of my most irritating agruments have been about who will choose the 'dinner music'!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But just recently (about the time I restarted ballet) I did 'fall inlove' with classical music.

Thanks for asking!

luv,

Em

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Thanks for the posts Poppiedancer... its always so exciting to hear from people all over the world and hear what is going on here and there. Dinner music sounds great, I didn't start doing that until recently since it was never our family tradition, but come to think of it my father was in his late 80s and still loved to dance! So maybe the tradition is not there, but it is in the blood you might say.

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Why do I dance? Why do I live? For me life is dance. This may sound profound (or profoundly stupid!) but my life is dance, everyday I wake up happy (or nervous) because I have a class to go to. You cannot dance professionally unless life is like this every cell in your body has to want to dance. By the way I do have other interests and friends (lol) but ballet is too important to me too explain in words, although some days (very few) I wish that I was like poppiedancer and didn't have the stresses and strains of professional life.

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Odette, I think your answer is lovely. I would guess that your very answer rings true for all serious dancers - it would have to be!

As a matter of fact, I only recently received a letter from someone telling me that a mutual friend had given up her budding career in ballet - the short version of the explanation was that this person had come to doubt her abilities... When I read your post tonight where you said:

You cannot dance professionally unless life is like this every cell in your body has to want to dance.
I couldn't help but recall this recent letter.

Thank you for letting us in on what your own dancing means for you. You're very fortunate to be doing what you truly love. :)

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Guest Ange4567

It wasn't anything that "just" happened. I actually started ballet at age 4, but back then I HATED it! I would beg my mom to let me quit, and the ballet teacher begged my mom NOT to let me quit because she said I had so much potential.. But back then I just didn't care.

When I became a pre teen I felt more and more urged to just "move". I *had(now I have) never been to a real ballet before.. I even had no idea ballet dancers danced actually on their toes.. I just thought that was something ballet dolls only did(lol).

Then one day I did see a ballet dancer. And I couldn't take my eyes away from her. I KNEW then that I wanted to dance ballet. I started thinking I would never get to pointe.. I just wanted to have ballet class once a week for recreation. After my first class, I realized that I loved ballet so much I HAD to become more serious.

Here I am now, 6 months into pointe work already. When I was younger, I never believed I could do it. Now I know that I've finally found something other than animals and nature that makes me as happy as can be!

That is how and why I became a dancer. I'm not sure if I want to make a career out of it(I've heard a lot of pros start to hate ballet) but I WILL continue taking it until I finish school, which is a long time :)

Maybe I'll change my mind along the way though.....

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Guest heavenlydancer

i saw the post and i couldnt resist answering. my friends ask me that all the time.....with all the sacrifices you have to make, the pain youve got to go through (i wear sandals....they see the feet) why do you dance? well in knd we were watching one of the girls recital dance, tap- from the day all i could think was i want to be a ballerina....the idea stuck and it went from a little kids silly idea to a passion. dance is everything. when i dance its a different world. im not doing it bc i need the exercise or i need something to do. i dance bc i have to. if i go 2 hours without thinking about dance its amazing! dance is a way for me to express myself, have fun, and get away from the world! dance, for me, is life!

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I dance because it makes me feel special and beautiful. When I was younger, I took dance but didn't really appreciate the way i do know. All through high school I felt like I was missing something, but I didn't know what. Finally, at the start of my Senior year, I signed up for an adult ballet class. I immediately fell in love with ballet. Even though I am too old for a professional career (im 19 now), I love it. I am not fat, but I am not real skinny either, and yet i never felt beautiful until I started ballet. Now I feel beautiful. I will be starting pointe next year, as a 20 year old, something I never though I would do, and it is one of the biggest things i feel I've ever accomplished. Yes, dancing is very good for my self esteem.

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Thank you Paul for writing exactly how I feel about dance. The first few paragraphs are so very true for me.

I dance, simply, because it is my natural way of moving. I dance because this is a very powerful way to convey all the feeling and emotions inside me. I dance, because that is when I feel complete despite the many technical flaws I make.

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My dancing days are long, long over, but I have managed to recapture some of the joy I felt in moving and stretching my body by swimming! It's a great feeling to hurl myself through water with a rhythmic stroke, point my toes and go! It's also nice to see how your legs float up into very easy battements.

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Guest alpusachni

I dance becaues I love it. I took lessons for years from a "dolly Dinkle school" in the worst sense of the word. As a young child i never learned proper technique and was put on pointe way to early(at age 11) but I still loved to dance. When I left that studio, I had to start over and relearn good technique, something which I work on to this day.

But I love dancing, I love going to class and working and trying to perfect each little step, knowing i'll never be perfect, being able to feel the music and perform and just be on stage

I love to watch dancers on tv, movies, theatre etc... and to work at becoming better. It's a huge part of my life and always will be :)

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My mom took me to my first ballet class when I was four years old. Twenty-seven years later, I still go to class. I simply cannot imagine not having ballet in my life. I have worn out VHS tapes watching the same beautiful performance over and over. I am constantly overcome with the feeling of "I have to dance now!" and I will go scampering around my house - twirling here, an arabesque there, trying not to knock over my husband.

Ballet is beautiful. I love everything about ballet. I dance because it is my life.

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Guest BACHballetGRL

I'm not really sure why I dance. I've pretty much always wanted to be a ballerina every since i watched my sister's first ballet class. It definetly doesn't have anything to do with the music because I personally hate classical music. I definetly prefer punk and metal which seems weird for a dancer. It might have to do with expressing myself. I've never been too good with words and stuff like that and ballet has given me a way to express myself. It is also love for performing because there were nomorus times that I thought of quitting, :eek: but then I thought of never performing again and I had to keep dancing. I live to be on stage and the best way I know how is to dance! It also really keeps me in shape.

(Personal information relating to location of studio deleted by moderator in accordance with board policy)

Okay back to why I dance. I absoultly LOVE partnering!! When I was a little girl my dad used to lift me up to the ceiling and partnering is the only way i know how to recreate that feeling.

Thanks for listening to why I dance.:)

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