Its March already :) The weather has been lovely this week, making me very excited for summer! Its actually feeling like spring now, I've seen daffodils & snowdrops, just need to see some baby lambs now & I'll be happy :)
This weeks blog post might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's been a really big part of my life ;) Dancing :) Even thought I can no longer dance, I love watching ballets on tv & anything to do with dance really :)
One of my favourite dancers
Obviously, this is not the most balletic of photos! But this ballet is now one of my favourites, just because it's different. The choreography and dancing are amazing! Can you guess what it is? Alice In Wonderland :) If you haven't seen it, I thoroughly reccomend it. Even to those who don't like ballet, its a great story and is amazing to watch! Even better, I just found out the other week that Lauren Cuthbertson (One of my favourite ever dancers, pictured above^) had ME! It just shows you can get through this horrible illness and achieve some amazing things. It gave me such a boost hearing she recovered from it, and is now such an amazing principle dancer. She is also not just a magnificent dancer, she's a brilliant actor too. If you watch Alice In Wonderland her facial expression and the way she hooks you in to the ballet is beyond amazing.
My favourite choreographer
Matthew Bourne is by far my favourite ever choreographer. Yes, I do love classical ballets, but again, I love his work because it is different. Someone who hates ballet could love any of Matthew Bourne's shows, he brings magic, fun, laughter and creativity to the stage every time and never fails to impress. Like in the Nutcracker, he has people dressed up as sweets (above) and an unusual all male cast in the magnificent swan lake. I've seen a lot of his shows both at the theatre and on tv, and wherever you watch it you still enjoy it and wander how Matthew comes up with such amazing ideas.
Favourite ballet(s):
I'm not going to lie, I love all ballets. I do have a few favourites though! As I said before, I love Alice in Wonderland and any of Matthew Bourne's creations. I love classics like sleeping beauty (saw the version with Lauren in live from the ROH at the cinema and loved it), swan lake (although I do like Matthew Bourne's version the best) and The nutcracker. Less famous ones, I absolutely love 'La Fille Mal Gardee'. The music, the choreography, everything is amazing! And, I especially love the clog dance (shown above). Going off topic slightly from staged ballets, Black Swan was truly spectacular. The fact Natalie Portman managed to get to such a high standard in such a short time is the thing I like best about the film. Yes, some of the film is a bit too 'visual' but again, it makes it different, and that's why I like it! Also, a slightly different one is Billy Elliott. Its my dream to see it in the west end, and its just an amazing contemporary show.
Drawings
I could actually bombard you all with photos I love of dancers, but nearly everyone has seen pictures of ballerina's doing a perfect grande jete or pirouetting prettily ;) But I thought I would show you the drawings as I think they are just as good, but totally different. The painting on the left is of Darcy Bussel, it is done in watercolour by an artist called Allen Jones. I think its an amazing painting, and I actually did a very similar one for my GCSE art project. One the right is a drawing which I think is so inspirational. I can totally relate with it, as I am now in a wheelchair, but I still see myself as a dancer. Its really nice :)
Some pictures
Well, I have quite a few photos of me from ballet. The most recent ones are of a few years a go where I played a lead role in our ballet school show, but I need to hunt them all out so I thought I would show you a few others. The photo on the left is of me, started training seriously at a very young age and participating in competition where they had to lower the age limit for me! On the right is some of my pointe shoes, I have gone through so many pairs through out my dancing times, and no-doubt when I get back on pointe again I will have more to add to the collection!
Costume and make-up
People don't actually realise how much make-up and costumes change a show. I have some amazing tutu's that I've kept because they are so beautiful, and even though I can't dance at the moment I still enjoy looking at pretty leotards and warm up gear :)
My Next Step
I don't know if you have heard people say 'I could dance before I could walk', but this is what I am hoping for. At the moment, I really struggle walking even a few steps, hopefully that will change soon, but in the meantime, I have asked for a pair of tap shoes for my birthday. I'm going to sit on the edge of my bed when I'm well enough, and do the simple moves, hopefully gradually building up so when I can stand for longer I can do a few really simple steps :)
So there's a little bit about ballet from me :) Its both relaxing and gripping to watch, and the stamina and flexibility you need for it is unbelievable.
Craft project:
On the subject of dance, it inspired me for this very simple craft project. At ballet, I always had to have my hair up in a bun. The only way to make your's more unique was by accessorizing. To make this button hair grip is very simple. Buy a pack of hair grips, and hunt out a spare button. Simply glue onto the grip or sew!
lots of love, kate x
No comments
Post a Comment