In this third episode of Behind the Dancer you get to meet Sterlin - a ballet beginner as of five years ago who is now directing an adult ballet performance group and has started a professional dance company and school!!
I am so fortunate to get to dance and perform with Sterlin at Oklahoma City Ballet's school and reap the benefits of him paving the way for dancers of all ages and levels to get to perform, as you guys have seen in my performance vlogs throughout 2019!
After sharing this video with Abby before it went live, she sent me the perfect takeaway of listening to Sterlin tell his story!
"The main message I think is so great about Sterlin's video is that, yes, maybe you can't start that late in life and go pro, but you can start really late in life and still have legit involvement in the art and in the community. That it's not about going down the same track as students that start young and go pro, but creating and forging new tracks for people also doing what you are doing. And that just because it hasn't been done yet or isn't done as a standard, doesn't mean there isn't room for something new." - Abby
Enjoy the video and make sure to subscribe to us on YouTube for more!
In my latest vlog I bring you along for rehearsals and ballet class where I've made some major progress with my mental blocks!
I've been gradually adding in pointe shoes to my Wednesday night Beginner/Intermediate ballet class and this week I did all of center class on pointe! I felt really proud of myself for getting through pique turns, pique arabesques, and even chaine turns without letting my mental blocks get the best of me!! I could not believe it! And then to finish class we did 8 releves to retire on each side, which I was scared of but just told myself to go for it and I actually felt in control for the most part!
I also bring you along for some rehearsals as we gear up for my first adult ballet collective performance of 2020! Stay tuned for an upcoming video where I share more about the performance and my summer intensive plans!
Oh, turnout. Or, as we like to refer to it: rotation. We can never seem to have enough of it, right? If you're like me and have trouble even finding the muscles to activate your rotation, I'm here to share some exercises that have helped me!
You can use a theraband to do these, but I recommend getting some nice resistance bands if you can! These thicker ones with no-slip grips from Arena Strength are great, as well as the Tone It Up resistance bands you can get at Target.
Working in the most efficient way, I'll take you through 10 modified barre exercises to get those rotation muscles firing so that next time you're in class it should be easier to activate them and get the most out of your class time!
Backstory: I peaked with my dancing when I was with a company at 17-18 years old. When our season ended, I was hitting 6 turns en pointe, my extension felt great, my jumps were high.
The minute I started dancing in college, it never felt the same. I got increasingly frustrated that I was regressing, partially because the dancing was not as rigorous as in a full time company. Knowing that my parents were not going to let me leave college and come back home to return to dancing professionally, I instead left dancing and concentrated on college.
I started dancing again, recreationally, once I graduated, and contemplated returning to the professional world. But, I was not in the shape I needed to be in to get a contract, having done nothing for more than 3 years. Plus, by this time, I was working almost full time, in graduate school, engaged and marrying my husband, and by 24, I had my son.
Once my son was born via c-section, my body has never quite been the same. I opened a studio when he was a toddler, but was primarily teaching and not dancing myself, so I created some bad habits and muscle imbalances (imagine hours a day of demonstrating only one side - even though teacher training warned us about this!). I injured my left hip, and was in pain because of it for years after, which also created more imbalances because of compensating.
When we moved again, I was able to dance more full time for a while, but by this time, my muscular structure was totally off. My hips were constantly tilted forward, and my leg muscles very obviously showed all my imbalances. I went to my chiropractor at one point, and he said, "I don't want to overstep, because I know you know more about ballet than I do, but to me, your muscles are completely off. You are overbuilt in areas where you shouldn't be, and not using muscles you should be." And he could see this just from how I walked around!
The next few years, I was also limited in how much I could dance, I was taking care of my sick parents, and I used the time to really start to condition in ways to try to correct things. I did pilates regularly, and was constantly looking online for exercises to help me.
Last year, my son started training at a Cuban school, and I started taking a couple of times a week there. The teacher did not let me get away with anything! And while they focus on turnout, it's not in a way that only forces the ankles. They really emphasize the use of the hamstrings and glutes, and this has changed so much for me. I am still in class with her regularly, and this is one reason I am so sure that my son is the perfect place to train! She is helping me hold my turnout and alignment properly for the first time since I was 18 years old.
In trying to work in between classes to get the correct muscles firing so they would be stronger in class, I started experimenting with loop bands. That's how this workout was born! I feel like this is one of the best conditioning workouts to give automatic feedback in the next class, because you will feel the engagement of the muscles needed for more turnout and rotation - in a correct and safe way!
Happy New Year, dancers! I thought I would kick off 2020 by answering one of our most frequently asked questions on YouTube:
"Am I too old to start ballet?"
I think the question most commonly comes from the 12-16 age range, and while as a 35 year-old I look at that question and think “Of course you’re not too old! Why would you think that?!”, I forget what it’s like to be that age and start something new that your classmates may have been doing since they were three. So I’m here to address this, whatever age!
The answer is NO! You're never too old to start! Think about it this way: if you are currently 13 years-old and are contemplating starting ballet, think about your older self, say age 25. Do you think your 25 year-old self is going to be mad you started ballet at 13, or are you going to be glad that you did because now you have 12 years of ballet under your belt?! You do can do A LOT in 12 years!
The thing is: Time is going to keep moving whether or not you do the thing you want to do. So you might as well do the thing you want to do!
For the teen late starters, I understand it can be a tough age to start. It’s easy to compare yourself to friends that have been dancing for years, maybe are already on pointe, and you’re going to have to learn how to just stand at the barre and hold your posture right! But you're going to have to go through that step whether you start now or wait until you're older! You may have to dance with younger kids for awhile; you may stumble around for awhile; but it will come together if you keep going. Remember, this is YOUR journey, not anyone else’s journey. As I kid I was really hung up on keeping up with friends who were ready for things I wasn’t ready for yet. I wish I had learned how to put on my “blinders” on back then. Keep focusing on you and work hard and HAVE FUN!
I think as we get older it gets easier to not worry about what other people think. But it can still be hard in our 30s, 40s, 50s, etc. to start something new or return to something we loved back in the day, especially as our aging bodies like to make things more difficult lol!
But the answer is still the same: It’s never too late to start! I went back to ballet at age 21, overweight from college life and nervous as hell about returning to something I loved so much and gave up too early. But if I hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t be 14.5 years into ballet with so many wonderful experiences and friendships and performances that have morphed who I am today!
So I encourage you to start something you're passionate about! And if you need help figuring out where to take a ballet class, you might start here with our Find a Studio page or our Find an Intensive page! And you can start connecting with other adult ballet dancers through our private Facebook group that Abby runs!
Much love,
Jana
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Welcome! Today we are talking about rond de jambe, specifically rond de jambe à terre.
Rond de jambe means: "circle of the leg on the ground". (Rond de jambe can also be done en l'air, but we are not addressing that yet.)
3 POINTS OF ROND DE JAMBE:
1.) Rond de jambe can be performed en dehors and en dedans. En dehors takes the leg from the front to the back, and en dedans takes the leg from the back to the front.
2.) You want to think about where you have a tendu to the front, to the side, and to the back, and rond de jambe is connecting the dots. The leg has to pass consistently through the same places it did for tendu. The same goes for en dedans moving from the back, to the side, to the front.
3.) Closing to first has to maintain turnout. From the back, heel leads to close, and from the front, the toes lead into close.
3 COMMON CORRECTIONS:
1.) Maintain the disengagement of the leg from the hip, working rotation. The hip is a ball-and-socket joint formed between the hip bone and the femur. We want the femur to move independently within the hip bone, without taking the hip bone with the femur. Sometimes this is referred to as "hula hoop hips" because it looks like the hips are moving as they would if we were doing a hula hoop!
2.) The hip of the supporting side needs to stay very turned out and lifted. Allowing the supporting side to relax, either because we simply forget or because we feel like we can gain more rotation of the working leg, is incorrect. Turnout and rotation should always come from both hips!
3.) Be aware not to let the foot turn in as it passes through first. Maintain rotation throughout the entire exercise!
Please keep in mind these are the very basics for rond de jambe, and by no means a comprehensive guide to everything going on in this step. I hope these will be helpful for those of you beginning or returning to ballet, as well as a good reminder for more advanced dancers!
Check out the video version below for further help!
Hello friends! Jana here. In a few weeks I am flying to Miami to see Miami City Ballet's Program Three performance! I am really excited for a short getaway for ballet, palm trees, and sunshine!!
I picked this performance because I have been wanting to see The Concert for so long! When I saw it was paired with a classic Balanchine piece, I knew I had to make this happen! :) Our friend, Kristin, jumped on board with me so we're making a mini vacation out of it!
I wanted to extend the invitation to our community of adult ballet friends in the area that might want to come to the ballet and meet up after! Here are the details:
Abby shares this brilliant guide to some of her favorite educational and fun ballet books! There's something in here for everyone, so here's a breakdown of her thoughts she shares in this video!
This book is like a crash course for ballet! Good for the adult ballet beginner, it's a great reference with visuals. It goes over the elements of barre and center work and as well as basic terminology, dealing with dance injuries, and the history of ballet.
This book is essentially the entire syllabus for Vaganova training. It's a very good resource for teaching Vaganova or gaining a better understand of the Vaganova background.
A book intended for pedagogy training at the collegiate level, this includes information about class structures, musicality, and other elements related to teaching. This is a good read for adult dancers, even if you aren't interested in teaching, because as adults we can take in more information cognitively, and understanding the "whys" behind teaching can help us during class.
This book may be good for the adult dancer who has been dancing awhile and wants to understand further the elements of class and technique. There is information on planning classes, which can be beneficial if you want to give yourself class.
If you're interested in what muscles you're working when doing certain movements or want to know how to cross train better for dancing, this book is a great guide with great illustrations and explanations!
This is the ABT guide you can purchase without taking the National Teaching Certification Curriculum courses. It goes over anatomy, kinesiology, dance related injuries, turnout, pointe work, development in health, etc. This is a very good book if you are a teacher or a parent of a dancer.
This book covers the theory and technique of Ceccehetti by taking you through all the different elements of ballet class.
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We hope there's something on this list that suits you (or might make a good gift for a dancer!). Let us know in the comments what your favorite ballet books are!
I've tried yoga a couple times in my life and I've never left feeling a strong desire to do it again. The first time the experience was a little too...organic for me? The male instructor was wearing short shorts and came over to compliment my flexibility (oh, the good ole days) and proceeded to stradle over my face to help me deepen the stretch. It was just a little too intense, lol.
The second time the room was super hot, which felt good for my muscles, but as you all know I am one of the sweatiest people on the planet so I was literally slipping all over my mat trying to hold a lunge. I got so frustrated, but didn't know at the time about a helpful accessory called the yoga towel.
But after a year of my body taking a beating from my corporate photo/video job, I've gotten to the point where all the massages in the world won't fix my tightness alone! It seems everyone I know that does yoga just feels really good all the time. I wanna feel good all the time!
So I went. My friend Michelle went as well so we could be newbies together. We took a calm Restore & Flow class because I want to start slowwww. Most of the class was spent focusing on breathing, which until then I thought I knew how to do... Wow, was I wrong! Lol. My heart is thanking me because I had no idea how much I was restricting my own breathing with tension!
Here more of my thoughts on the first class (I've been to a couple more since and will continue to update you!) and what I'd like to get out of yoga here!
Just want to give a big "Thank you!" to the now 10,000 of you watching our YouTube channel! From two gals who can talk ballet all day every day, we love that this outlet of ours has reached others who are just as passionate!
