Tag Archives: ballet

Are Ballet Dancers Fitter Than Swimmers?

According to a new study conducted by British researchers, the answer is “yes.” Take that Michael Phelps. Researchers concluded that the overall fitness of ballet dancers is greater than that of international swimmers. The study involved comparing members of the Royal Ballet and English National Ballet School with a squad of British National and International Swimmers, including members of the Olympic team. Participants were tested on strength, endurance, balance, flexibility and their psychological state. The results were then compiled to form individual “fitness profiles.” According to the study, the ballet dancers had stronger “fitness profiles” than their swimming counterparts. Researchers … Continue reading →

Shall We Dance (1937)

In the classic Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers film “Shall We Dance,” Astaire stars as Peter P. Peters, an American hoofer who has been masquerading as a Russian ballet star named Petrov. Having built up a fairly decent following for himself in Europe, he’s tired of the ballet scene and wants to do something different. Jeffrey, owner of the ballet troupe, is rather dismayed when he finds Peter tap dancing. Star of the stage Linda Keene (Ginger Rogers) has been touring Europe as well and it’s time for her to return to the States. The ballet troupe is sailing as well, and … Continue reading →

Rosie’s Big City Ballet – Patricia Reilly Giff

If you have an intermediate reader who is interested in ballet, “Rosie’s Big City Ballet” is for you. Rosie takes ballet once a week, and she thinks it would be nice to become a ballerina some day, but she sometimes forgets to practice, and there are times when she’d rather be outside playing than thinking about her assignments. She has an older neighbor named Amy who is in the chorus at a ballet in the city, and she invites Rosie to come see a performance of “Romeo and Juliet.” Rosie is delighted, and even more so when she gets to … Continue reading →

An American in Paris (1951)

The 1928 classical composition by George Gershwin was the inspiration for this film starring Gene Kelly as Jerry Mulligan, an American artist sent to Paris to fight during the war but who chose to stay on to study painting. He lives in an apartment house across the hall from Adam, a talented concert pianist (Oscar Levant) who is also struggling to make it big. Also a friend of theirs is Henri, star of the stage. Henri is doing somewhat better than the other two, but is happy to share his success with his friends. In fact, when he decides to … Continue reading →

Barbie in The Twelve Dancing Princesses (2006)

In this, the most recent release in the Barbie movie series, our golden girl stars as Genevieve, the seventh of twelve daughters born to a loving king and queen. Unfortunately, the queen has passed away, leaving the king alone to raise the children, but he’s done fairly well on his own. Each girl has their own personality and their own talents, and their days are spent developing those talents. Each afternoon they gather together to dance, a tradition their mother began. She loved dancing and even had a pavilion built outside the castle for that purpose. The king begins to … Continue reading →

My First School Field Trip

Today I went on my first field trip as a mom. We went to the Mobile Ballet to see the Nutcracker. Initially the principal was unsure if the kindergarten class would be allowed to attend. She didn’t think they would sit still for such a long production. At the last minute she decided to let them go but asked as many parents to attend as possible. Unfortunately with most parents working during the day this was not possible. In Tyler’s class I was the only parent along with the foster grandmother, who comes everyday. The computer teacher also helped out … Continue reading →

Dance – Practice! Practice! Practice!

Every dancer out there can attest to the following statement: dance is something that must be practiced over and over again. Like all forms of exercise, dance requires repetition in order to achieve the desired results. Check out the ballet room and the ballerinas who practice their 1st, 2nd, 3rd , 4th and 5th positions until they can do them in their sleep and that’s just the beginning. Take a Ballet Class More and more dance studios are offering adults a chance to reignite childhood dreams and take dance classes they may not have been able to afford or had … Continue reading →