Was there a common thread among the issues I seemed to constantly be correcting among my students?
Was there a single thing that I seemed to be focused on primarily?
Could we condense 2019 into one technique tip that everyone could learn from?
I talk so frequently about turns, about visual images that help us in the center, about performance quality, about technical details...was there one that connected everything? And then it hit me:
LIFT.
It is the number one thing I have been talking about throughout the entire year: lifting.
Lifting the sides of your waist at the barre or in the center.
Lifting your heels on turns and balances en releve.
Lifting your eyes so you don't direct your energy into the floor.
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| cc lic Shannon Clark |
Lifting your collarbones on turns and promenades.
Lifting your back on arabesques and turns.
Lifting your core on jumps and developpes.
I talk a lot about lifting your rib cage out of your pelvis, which gives you more room under your hips for fast footwork and bigger battements. We especially talk about this in pointe work. You want to move your rib cage slightly forward when you bourree, when you echappe, when you turn. The only way to accomplish this is to feel your torso lift up and out.
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| cc lic Oregon State University |
There is, of course, an internal component to this notion of lifting. Often when we feel exhausted, mentally or physically, we express that in our posture: our shoulders roll forward, our centers collapse, the backs of our knees soften. Sometimes we don't even realize we are doing that; it has become so much a part of us. And it doesn't help to commute long distances, to sit in front of computers at desks for so many hours, to stare down at our phones all the time. Those activities, seemingly innocuous, take a huge physical toll on us.
Ballet combats this.
Ballet - wait for it - battles it.
(Ha! Dance joke!)
Seriously, though, we are constantly adjusting our alignment in ballet and the smallest details can have a great impact. A tilt of the pelvis, a curl of a toe, or an over-rotation of an ankle can lead to big problems when we walk or drive or sleep. Conversely, making those minor changes can solve lots of real-life issues, not just in dance class:
--Finding a new way to hold your upper back can lead to less fatigue when you're driving.
--Engaging your core muscles can energize you when you're at your desk.
--Pulling up your knees, supporting your arches, freeing your neck from tension - all are ways to prevent you from being tired and creaky and sore.
And when we feel good physically, that can help improve our mood. And vice versa.
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| cc lic courtesy tshein |
So I will add one last tip to this: do what you can to lift your mood.
That can happen just by walking into the studio, by surrounding yourself with your friends in a supportive environment, by focusing on something other than work and life problems, by physical movement and endorphins, by giving yourself permission to feel bigger and prouder and confident. In class, we can be lifted by giving others a lift: when we encourage and support others in class, whether they need an emotional boost or a helpful suggestion or even a compliment on the way they hold their hands at the barre, we can give ourselves a boost too. It's a wonderful cycle to continue!
Let's lift a toast to lifting more in 2020. Happy dancing!
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| cc lic State Library of Queensland |
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