tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43277785967661332112024-03-05T12:44:45.553-08:00Dancing with JoySusan R. Lin's reflections on rehearsal, performance, and on dance and its cultural influences.Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.comBlogger80125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-6890723207112802992016-03-30T10:00:00.000-07:002016-04-07T20:46:13.247-07:00Still Breathing, Still Dancing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Despite pain in my left foot during the past year and a half, I have continued dancing and conditioning as much as I can. For quite some time I have feared I would never be able to dance properly again. I feel incredibly lucky that I have been able to walk, stand, and even run mostly normally throughout. Pointing my left foot would bring sharp, stabbing pain, and sometimes I felt like my foot would want to "crack" apart from my ankle!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRawC53Qft_fJaFWCCUoR_moFwmBy6IV6hYwKiD8nT0GCXng8-EPRpBxjQVmXfYQng137P_AzqgZGcwmmkCSVhzF427cHWidOQDo3ZnboIi-iQEZfvRtlxW39kjOvO-z8n-GeM__HpFVg7/s1600/Dance_Farewell2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRawC53Qft_fJaFWCCUoR_moFwmBy6IV6hYwKiD8nT0GCXng8-EPRpBxjQVmXfYQng137P_AzqgZGcwmmkCSVhzF427cHWidOQDo3ZnboIi-iQEZfvRtlxW39kjOvO-z8n-GeM__HpFVg7/s320/Dance_Farewell2.jpg" width="234" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Performing through it all!</td></tr>
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After extensive physical therapy and finally an MRI and CT Scan, the podiatrist discovered an unusual structure between two bones. Apparently I have an "extra" growth where there shouldn't be one, thus causing the pain. Thankfully, it is fibrous and not osseous (meaning the growth is not comprised of actual bone). After receiving a steroid injection into my ankle to break up and soften the growth, my range of mobility has increased. I still have to be careful, though, and I make sure I warm up my ankle properly before attempting any activity.<br />
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(And no, it's not that kind of steroid - I am happy to report that I did not grow an unusually muscular left foot after receiving the injection!)<br />
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The podiatrist recommended surgery, and I confess I would like to avoid that unless absolutely necessary. I am encouraged by the effects of the steroid injection and will monitor the progress. And every day, no matter how tired I feel before I start my morning exercises, I remind myself how fortunate I am to even have the choice to be mobile. No matter what happens, I will dance on, even if it is only in my heart. </div>
Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-19889094552967405902014-04-12T09:29:00.000-07:002014-04-12T09:29:05.133-07:00Going Tribal<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaxz6D25iPa_2fuiUFVsuGXEkjc1ARa3AdZjlyHgbDN5gVt8b1gewDrEk5cYSgLPl0kXnES0yDa7I4ajQ5hEGaYiseCOicMF2NO_RX3ojz4aPmV8FyGCysZFXijKssMCtBb7RYhXR7mJX1/s1600/Wa_Kick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaxz6D25iPa_2fuiUFVsuGXEkjc1ARa3AdZjlyHgbDN5gVt8b1gewDrEk5cYSgLPl0kXnES0yDa7I4ajQ5hEGaYiseCOicMF2NO_RX3ojz4aPmV8FyGCysZFXijKssMCtBb7RYhXR7mJX1/s1600/Wa_Kick.jpg" height="320" width="214" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In costume for the Wa Fire Dance</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s not too often that I get to let my hair down, literally, and it’s even more rare that I get to toss it about without reserve. I’ve never been in a mosh pit or engaged in much head-banging. Maybe I’m missing out, but in dancing this unique piece I don’t particularly feel any loss. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wa_people" style="line-height: 1.15; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wa people</span></a><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">live in the south of China, in the Yunnan province, bordering Burma and Thailand. They also live in those countries as well, but since some technically live within China’s borders I am lucky enough to have the opportunity to learn their dance and culture as a part of my Chinese ethnic dance studies. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">People around the world have tended to respect, fear, and revere the elements as part of cultural tradition. The Wa have their fire worship. The dance I’ve been working on and have performed is a tribute to the nurturing and fearsome powers of fire. It is absolutely the most non-classical and raw tribal movement I’ve ever formally learned, and I love it. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">My hair was to the prop, and the method of head-thrashing was very precise. I admit it felt pretty good once I got the hang of it, as long as I was fully warmed up. Whiplash is not fun.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivVSarboj32Atd4z__2IJpzwFuYcddMMDhcXUwhKEdyOS_sXBQ8ES9eB2WYkV0TEigvVrlAntGsnqaiZg9YmIaGNVo1lk69SSqZc87vg1OnFdv-yt1rA6L2BxLo2BvTfYmzSBjdmZshl-t/s1600/Jenny_Susan_3.2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivVSarboj32Atd4z__2IJpzwFuYcddMMDhcXUwhKEdyOS_sXBQ8ES9eB2WYkV0TEigvVrlAntGsnqaiZg9YmIaGNVo1lk69SSqZc87vg1OnFdv-yt1rA6L2BxLo2BvTfYmzSBjdmZshl-t/s1600/Jenny_Susan_3.2014.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Having fun after the show with fellow dancer Jenny Fong!</td></tr>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-22bb73c0-56c0-e286-ef97-1ebc7255c412"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My teacher suggested I flat-iron my hair to make myself look more like the traditional image of a Wa girl, i.e. with long and very incredibly straight hair. My hair is poofy, wavy, and generally given to its own ideas of what shape it will take any particular day. From experience I know that flat-ironing would tame my locks down for about five minutes before rebelling, so I knew that would be a losing battle. (My compromise? Lots of pins.) Besides, I thought: Hey, I’m the person dancing this piece so I might as well be me but in as Wa a way as possible, through my movements. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">While the overall effect of the dance is to be wild and free, I discovered that it takes even more control and discipline to create movements that have form and character; otherwise it becomes nothing more than a messy romp.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">That said, even my teacher observed that my body took to this tribal style and choreography more quickly than anything else I’ve ever learned. My mother did always say to me that I was a little wild thing.</span></div>
Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-25439789835461485442014-02-14T09:20:00.000-08:002014-02-14T09:20:10.737-08:00A Rose for Valentine's Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Romance can be experienced in many different ways, whether enjoyed as a couple, with close friends - even family - or during a quiet moment of reflection as an individual in this wonderful world.<br />
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I love this ethnic Uighur dance because it celebrates the idea of romance and all the giddy possibilities that come with it, but it's enacted through the bright imagination of one. The inspiration? A red rose. That's all it takes, sometimes!<br />
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Wishing You a wonderful Valentine's Day, wherever you are, whoever you're with (or not!), and however you choose to spend your day. An excuse isn't necessary, really. Celebrate life! </div>
Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-54022894864070177272014-02-11T08:12:00.002-08:002014-02-11T08:23:09.540-08:00The Show Will Go On!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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My left foot was in fairly excruciating pain and I had a couple of hours to decide if I was going to pull out of the show that night. Despite the painkillers and anti-inflammatories, every time I even began to point my foot a sharp stab shot through me, up almost to my knee. I knew I'd landed a bit off one too many times from jumping in rehearsal, and the tiny bones in the top of my foot were probably misaligned. All too often, dancers ignore pain as part of daily wear and tear, until it's a bit late.<br />
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I thought I wouldn't be able to dance that evening every time I felt the pain and looked at my swollen foot, but the only times I'd pulled out of a performance were because I was either completely bedridden with the flu or I'd injured myself to the point of not being able to physically leave the house. In other words, if I could get my body out the door, I would dance.<br />
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And so I danced, and during those moments onstage I was happy. I could have danced more - danced bigger without fear - but oddly enough there was no fear in my heart even though my body registered the pain. In fact, I was more anxious about watching the video later, preparing to wince at a half-baked performance. I was relieved to see that I appeared to be enjoying myself as much as I had felt while dancing onstage.<br />
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These are the times I pray that the love that burns inside me shines brighter than any technical shortcomings. I hope that you, too, can feel a bit of the joy I wish to give every chance I get to dance.</div>
Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-66399669648268643252013-11-13T21:51:00.000-08:002013-11-13T21:51:11.973-08:00Rediscovering Why I Dance<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dancing atop the grand staircase at the Asian Art Museum</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s been another hiatus, but I’m happy to report that I’m back and going strong! After a somewhat low period, my love of dance has been thoroughly reinvigorated. How? By performing! In the months nursing my injury, I’d forgotten what I was working for. It wasn’t until I was called for a job performing for a private event at the <a href="http://www.asianart.org/about/about" target="_blank">Asian Art Museum</a> in San Francisco a couple of months ago that I remembered, with full force, just how much I love to dance. </span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-6a29da67-4ffe-f45e-1ba8-63dbbaa83ff5" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’d designed a program that spanned different ethnicities, in styles that would maximize the cultural breadth of China: Yi (southern), Uighur (western), and Han (northeastern). In terms of color, it was: bright pink, bright orange, and bright pink! It’s funny, because blue is my favorite color and I hardly have any costumes in that hue. Still, I’d selected dances and costumes that were diverse from one another and beautifully designed and made. </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I had four sets, from the moment guests arrived in the beautiful foyer to the very end, as they exited. Hello, and goodbye! I received numerous compliments and questions about what ethnicities my costumes and dances represented, which gave me such joy. Although, I do my best to limit any conversation with guests; when performing as a dancer at a function it’s important to stay professional. But, I didn’t want to be rude and ignore people point blank. And of course, I enjoy sharing with people the cultures behind the dance styles. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJj_pcTBTbfImg8XR4l07GAnMnXf3vZMiQ3g-DBy4jOl7hIrfmygMRg1UbZtPziUMeENJEEgU_fucysFP4ZJtU03JWiO4NxaO7oWN4qVW-sY0ZSeUWqSeFm1pirO12EvHEKEc3dnUTmStP/s1600/chinesedancer8.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJj_pcTBTbfImg8XR4l07GAnMnXf3vZMiQ3g-DBy4jOl7hIrfmygMRg1UbZtPziUMeENJEEgU_fucysFP4ZJtU03JWiO4NxaO7oWN4qVW-sY0ZSeUWqSeFm1pirO12EvHEKEc3dnUTmStP/s320/chinesedancer8.png" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I warmed up amongst beautiful Chinese porcelains while waiting to perform. </td></tr>
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<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On the heels of this job was a stage show in which I performed a Yi ethnic minority dance from Yunnan in the south of China. Still on a high from performing at the Asian Art Museum event, I found a renewed energy during my rehearsals. Suddenly, instead of going through the movements, I was actually living the dance. I was ... dancing!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s really true; knowing the movements and being able to accomplish the technical requirements of a dance by itself does not constitute dancing. You could call it movement, or a series of linked movements. Dancing, however, is imbued with life. There is a breathing, an ebb and flow, a sense of direction embodied by rhythm and energy. There is a spirit that the movement serves to set free. </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’d temporarily lost that spirit in the months before. I’d worked diligently on keeping in shape and learning dances, but my heart wasn’t in it. It’s hard to feel motivated when the the most basic movements required in my style of dancing causes sharp pain. Still, I’m glad that at least my sense of basic dedication (and the strong influence of habit) to dance, stretch, and exercise kept me going. </span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The difference in my experience after regaining my inner spirit for dance was palpable. When rehearsing, I felt my face break into smiles so natural and fitting for each moment of the dance. There was nothing premeditated or forced. I knew then, that the dance had finally begun to become a part of me, and that I was becoming the dance. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let’s just say I also knew I was doing something right when my teacher said at the end of my rehearsal one day, “It’s better. It’s improving.” She does not pay compliments when she doesn’t mean it, so even though she’d delivered the message rather tersely I was thrilled. And most important, it had felt *good* dancing the piece. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8B7EVPphhl72Ob1Wg_K_F0TvJkaKk9_mgo7C0hT9x4lpfgahHilCcBryGmneI08DZHLTc_ZkYR49qBMtrR1umK5Xi60TDaTb9_6GEcs9NsSiSYbJh6dIID88inkDy0Nr4tUlFQ-fZEHfM/s1600/Dragonfly_backstage.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8B7EVPphhl72Ob1Wg_K_F0TvJkaKk9_mgo7C0hT9x4lpfgahHilCcBryGmneI08DZHLTc_ZkYR49qBMtrR1umK5Xi60TDaTb9_6GEcs9NsSiSYbJh6dIID88inkDy0Nr4tUlFQ-fZEHfM/s320/Dragonfly_backstage.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just about to head backstage!</td></tr>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I had my usual nerves backstage, but once I was out there a strange sense of calm overtook me. It was just me and the stage again, the bright lights flooding me from the wings and above me, and the darkness out in the audience. In the back of my mind I worried that I wouldn’t be able to find center mark or the front of the stage after my series of turns, or that my slow front walkover would go wrong. But when I got to those parts, I felt no fear. My body knew what to do. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And when it was over, I lay awake at night going over my performance over and over again as I am wont to do. While I was tired and would have gladly welcomed more sleep, I knew what kept me up. I was excited. I couldn't wait to get back into the studio and work. Every chance, every moment I get to dance, is precious to me. My joy in rediscovering this knows no bounds.</span></div>
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Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-50994194078200559832013-05-06T19:20:00.000-07:002013-05-06T19:20:42.049-07:00Fitting In: A Mini-Study of Motivation in Ballet Dancers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5dbf9e4f-7cbc-a74a-3d7a-a0177a537ca4"><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A version of this piece is cross-posted at anthropologist <a href="http://mikebarnesanth.wordpress.com/academic-bio/" target="_blank">Mike Barnes</a>’ site, <a href="http://mikebarnesanth.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Anthropology en Pointe</a>. For this mini-series, I was inspired by <a href="http://mikebarnesanth.wordpress.com/research-framework-public-draft/" target="_blank">Mike’s research goals</a> of exploring motivation and the ballet dancer: </span>"How do professional ballet dancers accommodate shifts in motivation through a lifetime of change, success, and disappointment?"<span style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></span></i></b><b id="docs-internal-guid-5dbf9e4f-7cbc-a74a-3d7a-a0177a537ca4" style="line-height: 1.15;"><i><b id="docs-internal-guid-5dbf9e4f-7cbc-a74a-3d7a-a0177a537ca4"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I highly recommend taking a look at Mike’s site. He poses intriguing and relevant questions, the ensuing exploration of which provides valuable insight to motivation for dancers and non-dancers alike! </span></span></b></i></b></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<b id="docs-internal-guid-5dbf9e4f-7cbc-a74a-3d7a-a0177a537ca4"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></b></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span id="docs-internal-guid-5dbf9e4f-7cbc-a74a-3d7a-a0177a537ca4"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Although there is a particular “look” of a classical dancer - slim body, long neck, legs, and arms, arched feet and open hips - what is a dancer but a human being, and each of us is unique. It may not be immediately evident in a line of corps dancers in a traditional classical ballet company’s production of Swan Lake, but if you look closely enough or watch each of those dancers in class or rehearsal I guarantee you will see distinct qualities not only in their bodies, but in their approach to movement. In other ensembles, the variety of physicality is a key element to the aesthetic.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-5dbf9e4f-7cbc-a74a-3d7a-a0177a537ca4"><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><div dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Given the unique qualities of body and movement, how does a dancer find the right place for his or her career? I took a quick dive to explore this through live interviews with several professional ballet dancers of varying backgrounds, supplemented by online videos and my own experience as a dancer of non-traditional proportions. While it is not an empirical study by any means, it has given me precious insight into one of the key factors that makes or breaks a dancer’s motivation to carry on. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What I came away with is that the journey of finding one’s own place is ultimately less about fitting in to a particular company or style; it is about trying on different “skins” - whether artistically and culturally - and asking oneself the difficult question of whether the current job is right. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the stories these dancers shared with me, I heard the following thematic questions emerge: </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>What is my own skin: my internal artistic style and personality? </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Where can I be in my own skin and still have a fulfilling, ever-growing, and collaborative experience?</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ll share these stories with you in a multi-part series, since each dancer is an instrument and vehicle not only for an artistic director or choreographer’s vision, but for his or her own self-actualization. I believe they deserve to be heard one at a time, to further convey the sense of individuality.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">Junna Ige - Finding Home</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-DgBZUKe2iNCsSlgBOxA5NLW27m3yaf_CXrBHXjIAdCCZXYk_l-FRvzwtuoh5QZ3lZgBRPFnOqNipn1f0sIJ2otoimhSW6tOl-AeTR6_UImJpA3RCxd7qJX4clImvcMlROg-gkdlW8wH7/s1600/d_ige.gif" imageanchor="1" style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-DgBZUKe2iNCsSlgBOxA5NLW27m3yaf_CXrBHXjIAdCCZXYk_l-FRvzwtuoh5QZ3lZgBRPFnOqNipn1f0sIJ2otoimhSW6tOl-AeTR6_UImJpA3RCxd7qJX4clImvcMlROg-gkdlW8wH7/s1600/d_ige.gif" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In her fifth season dancing with</span><a href="http://www.balletsj.org/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ballet San Jose</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, this bright-eyed dancer is pint-sized but dances with an expansiveness that makes her limbs appear miles long. “There are very limited opportunities for the serious ballet student in Japan,” she laments, and in her mid-teens Ige left for northern Germany to further her studies.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While she consistently received top marks at the academy, when it came time to find a job she came out empty handed time and time again. After a huge effort auditioning in some eight countries in Europe, Ige headed back to Japan - the worst possible outcome for her - dejected and lost. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In Japan, Ige taught ballet to little girls, and worked at Starbucks. “Why was I even doing this?” she asked herself, referring not only to her predicament, but to all her years training in the hopes of becoming a professional, classical ballet dancer. She was told over and over again at auditions that the reason there was no contract for her was: “You’re too short.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Somehow, despite the heartbreak of so much rejection - not to mention money spent traveling for auditions - Ige decided to give herself and ballet one more chance. She flew to North America and auditioned for several companies. “I’d never been to America. I thought, maybe they would see things differently.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At Ballet San Jose, she was encouraged upon seeing dancers of different sizes and heights. When then artistic director Dennis Nahat told her that he saw artists and not just bodies, she felt hope. When she was offered an apprentice contract four years ago, she took it and never looked back. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Now I feel like I can be myself,” Ige smiles, and her voice cannot hide her joy. “I realized I’d spent so long wanting to be something I wasn’t. I wanted not to be short. I wanted to be tall, to be </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">something</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> else. But I’m not; I’m me. And at Ballet San Jose, I was hired because I’m me!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This fortunate circumstance has allowed Ige to gain confidence as a person and as a dancer, and it has paid off: she was promoted towards the end of the last season and is now a soloist with the company.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And, this year she carried the tremendous pressure and privilege of dancing the lead character of Kitri in </span><a href="http://www.balletsj.org/Chapmanbio.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wes Chapman</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">’s production of Don Quixote on opening night, partnered by no less than international superstar </span><a href="http://www.abt.org/dancers/detail.asp?Dancer_ID=20" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">José Manuel Carreño</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. She pulled the full-length ballet off with determination, sass, and showed us glimpses of pure abandon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I love it. Why? It’s the dance,” she says in her lightly accented English. Her eyes sparkle, and she doesn’t need to say any more. She’s found her home.</span></div>
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Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-33832318245279569502013-04-16T11:15:00.000-07:002013-04-16T11:15:48.482-07:00Pain and Pleasure<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mid-air, trying not to think of the landing</td></tr>
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Pain and pleasure ... who hasn't experienced this before, when it comes to something one loves? I haven't been to technique class in a very long time as I cannot point my left foot without a sharp, stabbing pain. It's as if the top of my ankle is being lanced with great gusto by a thick, sharp needle. When it first happened, I was executing the most simple tendu a la seconde. The pain was quite shocking and before I knew it I was on the floor, pushing myself off the marley with my hands to get out of the way of the other dancers.<br />
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Of course, it wasn't the tendu itself that had caused the pain. I admit that my left foot had been bothering me for quite some time, but not enough for me to have stopped and gotten it checked out. Who doesn't dance with one or more nagging discomforts at any one time? My left foot had been feeling stiff and "crunchy" for months. It suffices to say that a number of misaligned small bones, slightly swollen tendons, and a whole slew of big jumps finally did me in. <br />
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But why did it have to converge on the day the show opened?<br />
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Don't get me wrong; I'm not whining. Much greater heartbreak has occurred to dancers everywhere. But when it happens, you just have to think: Why now? You've worked so hard to prepare for the stage, and now you either can't present your work or you'll have to dance it to less than your potential. I honestly don't know which one is worse; it entirely depends on the extent to which you can dance full out with the injury.<br />
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But we dancers are gluttons for punishment, but not because we simply like suffering: Think of the burning desire to get out there and dance! That's what we've trained and rehearsed countless hours for. Dance is performance art, after all.<br />
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I couldn't give it up, so when the time came I took painkillers and tried to warm up my stiff muscles; no matter what I did I couldn't seem to warm up. I now realize it was psychological. Doubts raced through my mind: How am I going to do those big jumps? How am I going to get through anything if I can't point my foot? I'd gingerly test a movement and my heart would plummet as the pain shot through me.<br />
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In the end when I got out there, I danced my heart out as I am wont to do. When performing, it's extremely difficult to hold back or to "save" yourself to nurse an injury or to preserve endurance for subsequent shows. You want to give your all.<br />
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So, I gave it my all. Despite having taken the painkillers, the stabbing sensation was intense. Miraculously, a feeling of calm flowed through me and I smiled without having to force it. I felt real joy. I was dancing!<br />
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It goes without saying that I didn't dance the next day. Or the next day, or the day after that. But, I was satisfied; I had danced the show. Maybe the jumps weren't so pretty, but the energy was there. Now I must be patient. The extent to which I miss going to class is painful in its own way, but I will be good. It's better to be out now than push an injury too far and be out for longer ... or forever.<br />
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I can hold out for self-preservation, and even more so, for the chance to dance one more time. I'll take pain now, for the pleasure to come. </div>
Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-7124143672061777902012-07-30T15:14:00.000-07:002012-07-30T15:14:48.601-07:00Flesh and Blood<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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It seems completely obvious for a dancer to focus on movement, but I'm continually amazed by how much more I could be doing. In fact, after today's rehearsal of an <a href="http://www.cs.pitt.edu/~mehmud/uyghur/music_dance.html" target="_blank">Uighur dance</a>, I began to realize how much I <i>wasn't</i> doing.<br />
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To approximate what my coach, a distinguished teacher from the <a href="http://www.bda.edu.cn/" target="_blank">Beijing Dance Academy</a>, told me in Chinese:<br />
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<i>"Without ebb and flow, there is no contrast. You merely have motion. But when you focus on the origin of the movement and you know when to be soft and when to be hard, then! Then, it becomes dance."</i><br />
<br />
Another way she drove it home, after stopping me for the umpteenth time after a break in a series of turns:<br />
<br />
<i>"You've got the framework, but it's just the skeleton. Breathe! When you allow your body to fully live the movement, you build the flesh and blood. That's what gives <b>life</b> to dance."</i><br />
<br />
As she spoke, her eyes softened as her entire body melted into a mesmerizing fluidity of girlish coquetry. She perfectly embodied the Uighur maiden, blushing secretly to herself at the mere thought of love.<br />
<br />
During moments like this, I am unable to tear my eyes off of her. How do I become that movement, so full of life? I'm frustrated at my inability to sublimate the movement and simultaneously filled with complete adoration for my coach. Her body, her eyes, every little thing about her, is completely captivating. <br />
<br />
Then the moment is broken as her eyes harden and train upon me. She's back in coach mode. "You got that?"<br />
<br />
Quickly I nod, not quite recovered, and try again. And again, and again. We run the dance several more times, and by the end I'm so far gone I barely hold the last pose, a snap backbend. My coach is a tough trainer, but she takes pity on me at the end of the rehearsal. <br />
<br />
"When you know the steps better, you'll get there," she said, her gaze softer. You've already improved. Be unafraid, let your body live the movement." In a split second, her eyes sharpen. "And for heaven's sake, let your neck go!" <br />
<br />
"Yes, Teacher," I said, smiling, and do what I do at the end of every class: She dismisses me, and I bow with a hearty "Thank you, Teacher!" This formality is a given in China, and while my coach does not enforce it much here in the States I am careful to always show my respect. Her proud, lifted chin does not quite hide her satisfied smile of approval. <br />
<br />
Back home, I move in front of the mirror or in the light reflected off a window in the evenings, trying to find, and then grow, the movements within my body. Instead of wearing them like an ill-fitting outfit, I must learn to activate them seamlessly as I tap into the appropriate state of being. Only then will I become the flesh and blood that is my dance.<br />
<br /></div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-17813935431356949342012-07-21T22:32:00.000-07:002012-07-21T22:32:21.311-07:00Practicing to Make It Count<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Countless hours practicing running pinwheel turns => showtime!</td></tr>
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<br />
You know the feeling: that sinking sensation that, despite all the time you've put into working on getting better at something, you're nowhere near where you need to be. Maybe you're still unable to execute a clean series of brisés volés to the left (me!); maybe you've been slaving away on fouette turns and are nowhere near the emblematic <a "="" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/32_fouett%C3%A9s_en_tournant" target="_blank">32 in a row</a> every ballerina aspires to.<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Not Making Progress? How Are You Practicing?</span></b><br />
"I've done ballet for three years and I'm <i>still</i> no good!" is a cry of dismay I often hear from my mother, an adult beginner. "But, Mamee," I explain patiently, "you're following very well but you haven't yet learned the fundamentals." Dancers know that in order to gain technical prowess it is absolutely essential to understand how to use one's muscles, how to use one's body, the floor, and gravity to do what is required to make the required movements possible, much less make them beautiful. You must learn and internalize the basics. Unfortunately, my mother doesn't yet grasp this concept, and continues doing the movements in the same way she's always done them.<br />
<br />
The point is, <b>if you keep doing the same thing that isn't working over and over again, you're probably not going to see much improvement</b>, if any. My mother has indeed taken many ballet classes, sometimes going as much as five times a week. <b>The issue isn't frequency. The issue is the nature of the practicing</b> she does.<br />
<br />
My mother takes open ballet classes, meaning she goes through a standard 1.5 hour technique class for adults with varying levels of experience. The instructor cannot reasonably be asked to consistently teach the fundamentals that children learn as beginners to build a solid foundation for advancement. Busy adults generally don't want to give up their hard-earned money for one whole month of concentrated work on how to stand properly in <a href="http://dance.about.com/od/stepsandmoves/ss/Ballet_Five.htm" target="_blank">first position</a>, or how to do a <a href="http://onlineballetclass.com/battement-tendu/" target="_blank">tendu</a> in the correct manner. (1) In glossing over these essential fundamentals, however, adult beginning students like my mother find it very difficult to improve.<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Art of Deliberate Practice</span></b><br />
This brings me to what <a href="http://www.psy.fsu.edu/faculty/ericsson.dp.html" target="_blank">Anders Ericsson</a>, a professor of psychology at Florida State University, calls "deliberate practice": practice with the objective of improving your performance. (2) According to Ericsson:<br />
<br />
<i>"Deliberate practice is about changing your performance, setting new goals and straining yourself to reach a bit higher each time."</i><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Get Feedback</span></b><br />
This means that you have to understand what you need to do to improve. You need to put yourself out there and ask for feedback. <i><b>Don't be afraid of losing face</b></i> - you want to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly. Remember - this is for you! If you don't want to know what you don't want to hear about how you're doing, ask yourself: do you really want to improve? Keep your eyes on the prize: you and eventual mastery!<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Repeat Your Strategic Practice Routine</span></b><br />
Once you know what you need to do to get better, do it. Over and over and over again. In Chinese opera, it is said that one small hand gesture is the product of 10 years of concentrated labor.<br />
<br />
Classically trained dancers are no stranger to this. Even if you're an international superstar who has received 10 minutes of standing ovation at a major opera house the night before, you're back at the studio the next morning working on that step that didn't go quite perfectly. It's the same formula on the road to mastering whatever it is you want to do.<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Don't Be Afraid to Ask for Help!</span></b><br />
Put that pride away. My mother still refuses to sign up for private ballet classes because she's afraid the instructor will think she's stupid if she doesn't pick things up right away. If you are having trouble understanding how something works or how to do it, ask! Otherwise, you'll always be stuck at the same place. As my piano teacher says, "If you were perfect, you wouldn't be here, would you?"<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Work On the Areas You're Having Trouble With</span></b><br />
My success rate in executing clean turns to the right when I dance is low compared to my left turns. I can lift my left leg higher and more easily than my right leg. Instead of working twice as much on turns to the right, or stretching to increase flexibility in my right leg, I could just do what takes less effort and look pretty good doing it. This is a real pitfall. What if a choreographer comes in and asks everyone to execute a series of turns to the right? I'm not going to get cast in that piece!<br />
<br />
That said, it can be advantageous to focus on one's strengths, and I admit I do like being cast in strong, athletic, or roles that require more acting, as these come more naturally to me and I feel in my element. In general, if you really are not a particular type of dancer (e.g. adagio, brio, etc.), it may not be worth it to always try to go against your natural grain. <br />
<br />
But when it comes to mastering something that you really want to do, you do have to focus on the problem areas - at least to the point of gaining enough proficiency towards overall progress.<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">It's Not Going to Be Easy, But You're Worth It!</span></b><br />
As motivational expert <a href="http://www.danpink.com/" target="_blank">Daniel Pink</a> points out in his wonderful book <i><a href="http://www.danpink.com/drive" target="_blank">Drive</a></i>, "Prepare for the process to be mentally and physically exhausting."<br />
<br />
If it was going to be easy, do you think it would be as interesting or worth doing? Still, it's tough to make that commitment. I always dread working on running pinwheel turns in Chinese dance, but it's a staple technique and to get this down is to be able to dance many, many pieces. Plus, I remind myself that I have come a long way since the days I first started learning it - I usually ended up either on the floor, or wanting to throw up (or both)! <br />
<br />
But is it worth it? Oh, yes. The free-flying sensation of pure movement that is owned by my body is worth every bit of repetition, N x 100 (or 1000, as it were). As long as it's deliberate practice, that is.<br />
<br />
So don't give up! If you know you want to improve and it really means something to you, practice with these fundamentals in mind:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="background-color: white;">Approach practice with the singular goal of improving your performance</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;">Seek feedback - the good, the bad, the ugly</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;">Work especially on areas that are holding you back from making progress</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white;">Do it over and over and over again</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
So if you want it badly enough, do yourself a huge favor and commit to improvement. <b>Figure out what you want, and then find ways to do it really well.</b> You won't see it in 3 days, but by the 3000th day, you bet there will be a marked difference. Onward, and upward!<br />
<br />
<br />
(1) Excellent <a href="http://danceadvantage.net/2010/04/19/improve-tendu/" target="_blank">article on Dance Advantage</a> on why the simple tendu one of the most important building blocks of classical dance<br />
<br />
(2) For more on Professor Ericsson and the concept of deliberate practice, <a href="http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/10/30/8391794/index.htm" target="_blank">see this Forbes article</a></div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-92071588994200991962012-06-30T21:22:00.000-07:002012-06-30T21:22:30.262-07:00Muscles! Princess! Muscles! Princess!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying my darndest to be graceful!</td></tr>
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<br />
The integration of these diametrically opposed concepts is what a ballet dancer grapples with from day 1 as a student throughout the entirety of her career. (Notice I didn't state "female ballet dancer" since the all-too-beautiful divas of <a href="http://www.trockadero.org/" target="_blank">Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo</a> and <a href="http://www.balletsgrandiva.com/" target="_blank">Les Ballets Grandiva</a> are wonderful examples of this dichotomy. I love how each ballerina is referred to in the feminine. Oh, to be <a href="http://www.trockadero.org/fernando-medina-gallego.html" target="_blank">Svetlana Lofatkina</a>!)<br />
<br />
A ballerina must be as strong as steel to perform technical feats that are - let's face it - largely unnatural to the human body. But the audience must only see the luminous radiance of a beautiful woman: regal, poised, yet delicate and pliant. <br />
<br />
So we work hard on building strength and length, meticulously and carefully. We must be strong, but we must not bulk up in the wrong places. "Lengthen, don't grip! Do you want thunder thighs?" If I had a penny for every time I've been told that ...<br />
<br />
And when we're strong enough, our appearance and movement must not be the embodiment of that strength. We must be strength <i>sublimated</i> into grace. We must be strength in agility, fortresses of ethereal beauty. <br />
<br />
It's not easy for me. I'm naturally a tomboy and love "strong" roles. It's at once a great challenge and completely frustrating to work on "girly" roles. I'm often told that I look too hefty in my upper body, that I need to soften. I soften, and then I'm told I'm not regal enough. I straighten my back, my elbows all the way to the tips of my fingers, and lift my chin a little. No, no, no, too stiff! And so it goes. <br />
<br />
I owe the title of this post to one of my favorite teachers, <a href="http://www.balletsj.org/company/moreno.html" target="_blank">Ramon</a> from <a href="http://www.balletsj.org/" target="_blank">Ballet San Jose</a>. "You must feel like you're the most important person in the world," he smiled, encouraging me to show the carriage befitting a ballet dancer during center adagio. "You are a princess!" <br />
<br />
In nearly the same breath he gave another correction as I executed a développé écarté (slow extension of the leg to the side) - "Muscles!" to let me know I needed to tighten even more to smooth the movement into a beautiful unfurling of leg. I repeated the movement. "Princess!" he exclaimed, lengthening his back and chest to indicate the lifted, proud yet relaxed look I should be projecting. "Muscles! Princess!" he repeated as I tried again. <br />
<br />
Finally I did it to his satisfaction, and only after I closed into fifth position carefully did I burst into laughter; I couldn't help myself. At Ramon's quizzical look, I gestured to my lower body, "Muscles!" and then my upper body, "Princess!" and after a beat repeated in quick succession, "Muscles! Princess!" <br />
<br />
Ramon smiled and said in the indulgent manner only he can pull off, "Yes, that's right." (I really appreciate Ramon's patience and sense of humor ... if it had been another teacher I probably wouldn't have allowed myself to laugh!)<br />
<br />
Even as I struggle with projecting strength and delicacy as a seamless whole, I'm gratified to know that at least I'm improving. I admit I can see the difference in more recent performances, as well as when my Chinese dance coach gives me a rare and unexpected compliment: "It's a little more natural, now," she told me not long ago, and then gave me more corrections on how to improve. When Chinese dance gets girly, it's <i>really</i> girly. <br />
<br />
I'm ready to keep learning, to keep trying to become more graceful. <br />
<br />
So, bring it on!! Er, I mean, yes, please! ;-)<br />
<br /></div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-19098001444753607892012-06-28T08:48:00.000-07:002012-07-12T15:25:38.173-07:00Fitness Challenge On!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Feels so great to stretch at the studio after all that gym work!</td></tr>
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<br />
I'd meant to update sooner, but life has this amazing way of filling my days with so much that I'm only getting to it now! Happily, a good deal of that activity has been physical. <b><i>I completed the 2 Week Challenge!</i></b> (<a href="http://misssusanlin.blogspot.com/2012/05/susan-vs-kettlebell.html" target="_blank">Read about how it all started.</a>) It wasn't easy ... After facing kettlebells, trainer Nic introduced me to other new (and seemingly cruel) ways to build strength and endurance.<br />
<br />
<b>The Squat Rack</b><br />
I laughed at the name until I realized what I was supposed to do. The great thing about the <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=squat+rack&hl=en&prmd=imvns&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=W3TsT4DrOI6g8gS3xJzSBQ&ved=0CEsQ_AUoAQ&biw=1166&bih=573" target="_blank">squat rack</a> is you can use it in different ways. First I was directed to use it as modified pull-up tool, with my body held straight with core engaged right beneath the bar. It's like this: Put both hands on the bar (set low) and pull yourself up, keeping your body perfectly straight. Nic wanted me to sweat and groan, so he had me put my legs way out beyond the rack - less leverage means more work!<br />
<br />
That was fun, but then I got the real deal. The bar was adjusted to my standing height so I could lift the bar off the rack and place it on my shoulders. All I was missing were buckets on either end, filled with water or noodles or whatever!<br />
<br />
First I did squats, then single leg lunges, then again - then Nic began adding weights on the end (be careful what you wish for!). By then I was starting to fatigue with the repeated reps, so after I finished each set, I watched in trepidation as Nic calmly picked up progressively bigger black weights. In the end, after nearly dying, he informed me that I'd been lifting <i><b>60 pounds</b></i> at the end. Whoa! I was proud of myself!<br />
<br />
<b>Wobbly Walking Push-Ups</b><br />
I have no idea what this exercise is called, but picture having your hands and feet in low-rider rollerskates that have gone wonky like bad shopping or airplane carts (you know, where the wheels will *not* go straight) and walking with your arms L-R, pushup, R-L, pushup, repeating, for 200 yards. And then back again. Body straight, with only the arms doing the walking. <br />
<br />
Cruel and unusual punishment, I say! I thought my upper arms were going to fall off - I could hardly do another pushup towards middle of the second set (yes, second set up and down, another 400 yards) even if I could manage to walk forward, arms shaking. <br />
<br />
The funny part was that just about everyone on the gym floor stopped to watch and gave me helpful encouragement. "You kicked butt," Nic told me after I picked my sweaty self off the floor, "Most guys can't even make it down one way the first time - I couldn't." I totally didn't believe that he couldn't the first time, but then again, dance has given me a stronger than average core, which has helped me immeasurably throughout my fitness challenge. <br />
<br />
<b>Shock Your Body!</b><br />
I did many other kinds of exercises in between, but the above two really made a deep impression on me. They were super hard and very rewarding. "C'mon, strong! Mighty Mouse!" Nic would say whenever I started to flag. (I sometimes wear a yellow t-shirt depicting Mighty Mouse in flight, over my leotard and shorts.)<br />
<br />
In the weeks since, I've incorporated many new and interesting exercises and techniques into my warm-ups and workouts. I like to "shock" my body by mixing it up each day so it doesn't get too accustomed to using only one set of muscles. It's more interesting, and it also has me cross-training for the first time in my life! <br />
<br />
I've found that I really enjoy working my body in different ways. It informs my dancing and hasn't bulked me up like my Chinese dance teacher cautions me not to do (I'd never tell her I am going to the gym!). I feel stronger in my core, too, and my endurance has improved. <br />
<br />
The best part is, working out makes me love dancing even more. I feel gratified when I lengthen my muscles and point my feet, shod in slippers and not trainers.<br />
<br />
Most of all, I feel like I have more ways to challenge myself and to take care of my body. I want to be like Skip, the 60 year old who congratulated me on my pushup walks - he was incredibly fit and proceeded to do the same exercise, but with a unicycle for his feet. Hard core!<br />
<br /></div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-41911509927949769792012-05-11T15:01:00.000-07:002012-05-12T22:25:24.086-07:00Susan vs. Kettlebell<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love me some kettlebell ... sort of!</td></tr>
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<br />
No, it's not a legal battle: I'm on day five of my self-imposed Two Week Challenge at a local gym, and what a journey it's been so far! In addition to taking hour-long classes auspiciously named "Body Sculpt" and "Muscle Mix", I've been working with a personal trainer in half-hour sessions. I found out mid-week that my trainer, Nic, is known as "The Punisher". He is a <a href="http://www.mixedmartialarts.com/" target="_blank">Mixed Martial Arts</a> athlete and looks like it. Like most dancers, I am pretty good at driving myself hard, so I wanted someone who would push me - Nic certainly is tough!<br />
<br />
My goals of cross-training and exploring different ways of working my body are certainly being met. I thought that as a dancer, I'd already learned how to use my muscles in myriad ways, especially with my work in Chinese ethnic dance. But as soon as I started the challenge at the gym, I learned just how much dance has trained me to use my body in one way: Up and forward, on the balls of my feet, always stretching towards the heavens. Even Korean dance, the most "down" I've ever had to be, is still forward compared to what I'm working on now.<br />
<br />
<b>Back on Your Heels!</b><br />
One of the first things I learned was the proper "squat" stance. It is a prerequisite to many exercises, including one that involves holding a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kettlebell" target="_blank">kettlebell</a> and swinging it between the legs, then snapping the hips upward to swing the kettlebell up. After Nic showed me the stance and moves, I gamely picked up the weight and nearly swung myself out across the room.<br />
<br />
"Back on the heels! Sit in your hips! Butt back into your hips! On the heels, snap the hips, on the heels!" Nic barked, albeit in an encouraging way. <br />
<br />
Wait, what do you mean, "back on the heels" and "sit in your hips"? This was the very antithesis of everything I've ever learned! It suddenly dawned on me as I panted and sweated that this was going to be very tough and interesting, indeed. <br />
<br />
After a grueling half hour of variations on kettlebell routines, involving single arm swings, presses overhead, circling the kettlebell around the head with elbows tight, and so forth, I was feeling it everywhere. The next day I could barely bend my legs without acutely feeling all these new muscles that I'd never engaged before, since I am never back on my heels.<br />
<br />
By the way, when I first laid eyes on the 18lb iron <i>thing</i> Nic had placed before me on the floor, all I could think of was those weights that would, if you were unlucky, drop on your character and cause his untimely demise in the old sidescroller game <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Castle" target="_blank">Dark Castle</a>. I certainly wasn't going to let the kettlebell crush me, and yesterday was my second session of kettleball delight - a series of 5 exercises, repeated twice. <br />
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And you know what, I felt stronger the second time around! I felt more secure in the back of my heels, butt so far out that it felt like it was in outer space. However, this position really does enable you to snap your hips and get that kettlebell up so you're not only using brute force in the arms. It works your whole body like you wouldn't believe.<br />
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Two unexpected side effects of this work:<br />
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1) <b>I am acutely aware of where I'm weak and where I've been cheating in dance.</b> Nearly all moves are done in perfect parallel in the fitness world, and if you're attached to a kettlebell even the smallest imbalance is magnified 100 fold (or so it feels). I realized that I've been skewing my body in arabesque to the left much more grossly than I'd imagined. I felt how much less strong I am on that side, and now know what I need to work on. Bless/Darn that kettlebell!<br />
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2) <b>Going to ballet technique class after a fitness workout reminds me of how much I love ballet, and how much it is "home" for my body.</b> I get to engage those familiar muscles, to lengthen, to stretch to the sky. It was like a breath of fresh air, despite my soreness. Ah ...<br />
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Week Two, here we come. I'll best you yet, kettlebell!</div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-48200156998593977112012-05-04T17:34:00.000-07:002012-05-04T17:34:52.314-07:00Into the Unknown<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-r_0M4PzWo2r849xkXgm51eNHqiJeHGmdbKTWmz-lMYq_pzZBkLHe6ObW_RLtdK70m1FqpgRrEJVFqfFl5psP_ADvYwq48EZKffESClS3piNZxeYM4gIQPtLlPdSVUMa3aOzfkQOdz81V/s1600/MoSheGe_Promo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-r_0M4PzWo2r849xkXgm51eNHqiJeHGmdbKTWmz-lMYq_pzZBkLHe6ObW_RLtdK70m1FqpgRrEJVFqfFl5psP_ADvYwq48EZKffESClS3piNZxeYM4gIQPtLlPdSVUMa3aOzfkQOdz81V/s320/MoSheGe_Promo.jpg" width="219" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yi Ethnic Dance "MoSheGe" - A great endurance buster!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
... the Unknown being "fitness"! I'd come across many references to "cross-training" as an important component to overall strength for dancers in various publications such as <a href="http://dancemagazine.com/" target="_blank">Dance Magazine</a> and <a href="http://pointemagazine.com/" target="_blank">Pointe</a>. Ever since coming back from working in Beijing last year where I didn't dance at all and resorted to running on the "hamster wheel" at the tiny hotel gym to keep up a shred of endurance, I've become much more aware of what it takes to stay in shape. <br />
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I still feel woefully out of shape, to be honest, as I haven't been performing as often these days. I hope to get back into the groove soon, but in the meantime I need to make myself strong. Unfortunately, technique class doesn't seem to be cutting it. <br />
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To be sure, class is everything I need to feel my muscles working, to feel the floor, to make sure I'm doing things the right way. I will not go without it! And yet, I'm not sweating as much as I'd like - petit allegro and grand allegro across the floor are exhilarating (I've always loved jumping) but it's over all too soon, and my heart rate has only just started to get going! As a result, I end up feeling somewhat unfulfilled. I continue working after class, of course, but after reading about cross-training I decided to venture into the realm of "fitness" to see what the fuss was about. <br />
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I even leafed through the <a href="http://health.com/" target="_blank">Health</a> and <a href="http://www.self.com/" target="_blank">SELF</a> magazines my cousin and sister had lying about their homes to see what kind of exercises they recommend for their readers. I tried to ignore the inevitable feature headlines ("Flat Belly Secrets!" "Drop 10 Pounds Eating What You Love!") and cut to the exercises. That's when I vowed to try this strange looking contraption called the <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=elliptical&hl=en&prmd=imvnsr&source=lnms&tbm=isch&ei=JW6kT6CbBMWngwfa6NWnAQ&sa=X&oi=mode_link&ct=mode&cd=2&ved=0CJMBEPwFKAE&biw=1259&bih=554" target="_blank">elliptical</a> - it's supposed to be good for the heart rate and have less impact on the knees, which seemed fitting for a dancer. <br />
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I searched my memory for any references to the elliptical, and all I could come up with was Bill Murray's character in the film <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_in_Translation_(film)" target="_blank">Lost in Translation</a> </i>in the scene where he gets on the machine and goes out of control on it, haplessly calling out, "Help ... HELP!!" Undaunted, I bravely wandered into the gym at work and the very next day and tried it. I didn't go out of control, and rather liked the experience. I could listen to my podcasts, sweat, and even close my eyes and zone out if I wanted to. (Doing the latter on a treadmill would have disastrous, slapstick results.) Afterwards, I would work on my core, backbends, and other stretches.<br />
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I've kept this "cardio" activity up the past few weeks and am not sure if I should mix things up more, since honestly this kind of activity isn't exactly as interesting or stimulating as dance is for me (read: monotonous, despite the podcasts). I'm still exploring some of the "fitness" sites and publications. While I occasionally find some useful exercises or tips, I find that in general these cater to folks with goals and needs different than those of dancers. Conversely, dance publications often focus on certain aspects of technique, and those all-too-familiar areas of insecurity: turnout, arched feet, a higher arabesque, etc. rather than overall strength and total body health.<br />
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As part of my exploration, I am embarking on some personal training sessions at a local gym. The goal is to challenge myself to completely different styles of movement and exercise, to see what I can do and what this does for me. Yes, I'm a little nervous. Stay tuned for the next chapter of my fitness exploration! </div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-83489055951844512462012-04-17T18:06:00.000-07:002012-04-17T18:06:16.918-07:00Waters of Tibet<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1pwXn58MXYnUJLxdlwovc7Zk4ygzSEp4d5YmweVgOZXnHyEFKAXcnbf0C2ohtPRVQKzCh8D0eVbF1BUEVSuSrT9AagCqK8aEMqCAtc6AUYer75UKbl2MAv1ukTPQc7wZ66F0VMxeZG_hx/s1600/DSC_1015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1pwXn58MXYnUJLxdlwovc7Zk4ygzSEp4d5YmweVgOZXnHyEFKAXcnbf0C2ohtPRVQKzCh8D0eVbF1BUEVSuSrT9AagCqK8aEMqCAtc6AUYer75UKbl2MAv1ukTPQc7wZ66F0VMxeZG_hx/s320/DSC_1015.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div><br />
</div>My first performance of a Tibetan dance is now under my belt! After having worked tirelessly on keeping my upper body held and yet my knees very loose - such a difficult combination for a classically trained dancer! - I feel that I've finally had a taste of this unique and beautiful style. I have yet a long way to go to get anywhere near fluent in it, as most dancers who take ballet class regularly know well, it's a real challenge to be relax the body and be "down" rather than tense and lift "up" on a strong beat. <div><br />
</div><div>This dance was quite special for me, as through my research to prepare for the dance I was able to learn an intriguing aspect of Tibetan culture. As you might have heard, water is <a href="http://www.keepersofthewaters.org/inspiration.cfm" target="_blank">scarce</a> these days in the region, but the relationship Tibetans have with water has a quasi-religious quality. The dance, whose title translates best to "Wellspring" (源), is a celebration of this wonderful element that gives us the gift of life. And yet, it is to be revered with seriousness, given the destructive quality it can have when it overwhelms that to which it gave life. </div><div><br />
</div><div>The piece's movements reflect this relationship with water: The opening is serious, almost dirgelike. This soon progresses to frolicking and then gleeful splashing, finally giving way to serene contemplation. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Not only have I begun to internalize a new style of movement, I am widening my cultural vocabulary. I look forward to this every time I learn a new dance, even if it's in a style I have studied before. And, I find it personally fitting that I dance a piece about the wonder of water, as "Ocean" (海) is my middle name in Chinese. It's true that there are no oceans in Tibet, but the urbanity and yet mystical quality of water itself is worthy of reverence. </div></div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-77736689302048222902012-02-20T16:15:00.000-08:002012-02-20T16:15:15.784-08:00Mind over Body<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKr5D8-J8rOC-OL7Y_JL2STuHX30PWpBaVt4tjUxN7OCUTmioV80IR9f6dcmz0AL-MCP6aH7AMpRxOSxf_k0Z9LMQUwAx6nw5yVI8tuaewaNaaR98pp5BbU0j_ivU0Lz0njGK4grHSHcL1/s1600/20120129.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKr5D8-J8rOC-OL7Y_JL2STuHX30PWpBaVt4tjUxN7OCUTmioV80IR9f6dcmz0AL-MCP6aH7AMpRxOSxf_k0Z9LMQUwAx6nw5yVI8tuaewaNaaR98pp5BbU0j_ivU0Lz0njGK4grHSHcL1/s320/20120129.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
Today's ballet technique class was taught by Laura, whom I'd never taken class with before. She mentioned she had recently returned from a decade or dancing and teaching in Amsterdam and was now mostly teaching at Alonzo King's <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CD8QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.linesballet.org%2F&ei=hdtCT-maFPTUiAKw9YXGAQ&usg=AFQjCNFVGfZxVkZ5gbN6a1a_OxIjeV1o3Q&sig2=nGOF2HHrlWpaOSJn4m4kvQ" target="_blank">LINES Ballet</a> and at the <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CDkQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fodcdance.org%2F&ei=lNtCT4-IGaKPigKctr2nAQ&usg=AFQjCNGYvLtZkNF8pkptU75gdjktK97ubw&sig2=CcSD_v-cL1mrwiDU5jUoIA" target="_blank">ODC</a> in San Francisco, which was exciting to hear. Her class did not disappoint - it was full of class-strict, classical staples, but yet wonderfully influenced by a slightly contemporary edge. <br />
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What really got my attention was Laura's singular focus on the influence the mind has over the body. After we finished a combination at the barre that ended in a front passe balance, she asked us what our thoughts were as we got into the balance. To be honest, my thoughts were something like: "Okay, balance coming up. HUT!" and as a result, as Laura helpfully pointed out to me, my chin was lifted a little too high, and my chest, neck, and shoulders tight. Was I even breathing? Probably not enough!<br />
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Now I'm pretty proud of my strength and the balances I'm able to execute. But does that mean I can't improve or make it easier? As I found out, I certainly can make it easier, and present a more beautiful presence at the same time. Laura exhorted us to think very positive thoughts as we embarked on our balances. "I am so ON today!" she exclaimed gleefully as she pulled up into a passe balance. We all laughed, but when we tried it from there and throughout the rest of the class, I was humbled by the difference it made. <br />
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In addition, I received another crucial correction from Laura: I'm pushing my chest out too soon when hitting a balance, especially at the end of a moving combination. I was to pique up into a back attitude en releve (step onto the ball of the foot, with the other leg bent behind me), and I was giving the full "Ta-DA!" with my upper body way too soon. "If you give it all at the beginning, there's nothing else left! Save it a little, then when you know you've established the balance, then show it all off!" <br />
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The result of these two observations was that I felt I could balance for longer, with less tension in my upper body, and it was just ... less effort. As I stepped into my attitude balance, it was not about "nailing it", it was about establishing a presence and then blooming into the full movement. I hesitate to even call it a pose - when I tried her correction, I was constantly moving, evolving. I felt elegant and beautiful, even! <br />
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Laura's consistent reminders and excited exclamations of "Yes!" whenever someone incorporated her corrections were very encouraging, and made me work that much harder. I wanted to receive a "Yes!" (I did get a few :-)<br />
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"Have your mind be a witness to your body," Laura concluded about the positive thoughts concept, and I was struck by how powerful this statement was. It also made me realize just how much dancers must overrule the natural tendencies of our bodies in order to hone our art, to constantly gird ourselves psychologically to master limb and muscle. But the way Laura described it, I suddenly felt that it's less about overcoming our bodies, but about observing and encouraging. Our bodies are, after all, our prized instruments - I've only got the one, and it's irreplaceable. It's time to stop fighting it and to work with what I've got, imperfections and all, and to make the best of it! </div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-84964812829623609532012-02-19T23:14:00.000-08:002012-02-19T23:14:23.902-08:00In the Eye of the Beholder<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIN_0ouqa7VFDowksJYYDJAdex0e2Dw95coCehSCAkJKVFzulpe1bMMpwglnHML69sFBfyhlYZUhTmEi9p6_SdmxE7oup7_1z0f6TN4luwacmuiIREp9h9Gu4v3YyLBhEoky1K_awAM55L/s1600/20120129_212545_00075.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIN_0ouqa7VFDowksJYYDJAdex0e2Dw95coCehSCAkJKVFzulpe1bMMpwglnHML69sFBfyhlYZUhTmEi9p6_SdmxE7oup7_1z0f6TN4luwacmuiIREp9h9Gu4v3YyLBhEoky1K_awAM55L/s320/20120129_212545_00075.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
I was volunteered recently to collaborate with a few photographers who had no experience working with dancers, and I gladly obliged since it's always interesting to see what results from working with photographers. A photo shoot is always a neat opportunity to try out new poses and movements as well as go with the tried and true. <br />
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When I received some of the photos, I was dismayed by what I saw were unflattering angles and broken lines. Did I really look that bad, or were the photographers just not capturing the moment? But then I realized that this was 'working as intended' - the images I'd received were what the photographers considered the cream of their crop. What I expected to see was obviously not their ideal. <br />
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Take the image here: I was disappointed because I'd worked so hard, jumping countless times (on a concrete floor!), to create the look of the bottom leg folded beneath my body while the other was behind me towards my head. So why did the photographer insist on framing the moment just as my bottom leg nearly made contact with the ground for landing, rather than to seize the jump at its greatest height? <br />
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You can imagine my surprise when the photographer beamed proudly at this image, explaining how he'd captured the symmetry of my legs in opposition, "like a yin and yang symbol." I'd never thought of it this way, and began to see his point despite my dismay. I find I've warmed up to the image ... a little.<br />
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More important, this interesting experience made me realize how insular the dance world is and how much we take for granted the definitions of correct and incorrect in terms of classical lines. We scrutinize ourselves in the mirror every day and take pains (literally) to learn what the "correct" positions feel like on our bodies. But, upon seeing the collection of images from three non-dance photographers, I'm beginning to understand that beauty, after all, is in the eye of the beholder. To know that someone sees something perfect and lovely in what I consider to be a complete miss is, to be honest, really refreshing! It kindles hope within me that even I, with my flawed body and limited facility, can provide a perfect moment in dance for someone.</div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-90599116614483760182012-01-14T23:29:00.000-08:002012-01-14T23:29:27.588-08:00The Challenge of Contrasts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGm95ZNlekn5Ud1fq-W4h1BRULiUgcrwGcSeZ3nXVh8fFMvySDT5rDTxKhiAwYkndveN_CcduHInKtdiWSTR57HUIVRI9JJDhob76CpgRyahkRzFZyQRCpFXWYN4jK0LmDrMUWkQAhIFBO/s1600/YF6O9661.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGm95ZNlekn5Ud1fq-W4h1BRULiUgcrwGcSeZ3nXVh8fFMvySDT5rDTxKhiAwYkndveN_CcduHInKtdiWSTR57HUIVRI9JJDhob76CpgRyahkRzFZyQRCpFXWYN4jK0LmDrMUWkQAhIFBO/s320/YF6O9661.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><br />
It's fascinating (and sometimes frustrating!) to be working on classical ballet technique, and then to switch to something wildly different like the Tibetan dance I'm rehearsing for an upcoming show. Ballet is, as most dancers say, is 'up', referencing the pulled up, elongated muscles and posture, while Tibetan is 'down'. <br />
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Now, there are many different kinds of 'down'. When I was in NYC studying latin jazz with <a href="http://www.broadwaydancecenter.com/faculty/bios/torres_maria.shtml" target="_blank">Maria Torres</a>, I learned to put my weight into my steps to get that deliberate, pert forward momentum that makes this dance style so alluring. That's one kind of 'down'. However, the torso is still very much held upright, making latin a kind of contrast unto itself. <br />
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But Tibetan? It's closer to what looks like a relaxed version of knee-bending seen in some styles of hip-hop, but with a fluid upper body and precisely placed arms and hands. It's new to me, and I still haven't figured it out yet. I'm still too 'up' and it makes me look awkward in a number of moves; the straight legs and trained upper body break the flow of the movement. I still have a little bit of time to get it right before I go onstage. I'd better keep practicing with the mirror and internalizing the Tibetan feeling - fast! <br />
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At the same time, I love the feeling of being pulled up all the time in technique class. It's like my bread and butter (or, for my Asian side, rice and vegetables); very basic and yet oh-so-satisfying. This morning in class, our instructor, Rika, told me to hold onto my rotation three times as much on my way up from plie. It turns out that I've been letting it go ever so slightly, which results in my tush sticking out in a very un-balletic manner. I sweat all through the barre, and by center all the muscles in my groin were especially tired. It was an exhilarating feeling - I'm starting to get it, a little! That's all I can ask for - progress, one bit at a time, in whatever style I'm working on.</div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-2395359906619569402011-12-28T22:44:00.000-08:002011-12-28T22:44:51.389-08:00What Hangs in the Balance<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/K-gOQlLFXvw?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
Happy Holidays! The end of the year has snuck up on me, and I haven't been able to devote as much energy to dance simply because my reserves have been drained by the demands of my office job this quarter. If this continues, my physical health (not to mention my sanity) is going to be at risk and I'll have to ask myself some tough questions. They always loom in the back of my mind, but at some point I have to buckle down and think about who I am and what it is I want to be spending my energies on. <br />
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My dance life recently hasn't been non-existent, rather it's redeveloping. I realize I go through phases in my choice of daily class. I'll find myself wanting to feel all my muscles working properly and to go back to the basics; you'll find me at ballet class 70% of the week. Then at some point I'll just want to <i>move</i>, no holds barred, focusing on endurance and strength. I'll want to end the session with me, flat on my back on the floor, relishing the sweatiness! Mop me off the floor at the Chinese dance studio.<br />
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I'm somewhere in between at the moment, trying to recover from work. I'm simply happy to be dancing at all.<br />
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This video is of the Yi ethnic dance "Mo She Ge" that I'd dubbed "<a href="http://misssusanlin.blogspot.com/2011/03/yi-feisty-girl.html" target="_blank">Yi Feisty Girl</a>" in an earlier post. It reminds me of why I keep pushing myself; no matter how tired I am from work, I make sure I do something every day to stay in touch with my body and to get myself to class (or to give myself class if I have to). It's to keep on pushing the boundaries of what my body can do, not just in terms of strength, but in internalizing new styles of movement. <br />
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The distinctive, playful movements of this Yunnan province dance are meant to look natural and at ease, but in reality learning this was completely unnatural for me! This sounds strange, but it felt akin to putting on the most ill-fitting suit and shoes, and being asked to tap dance while giving a speech. Obviously this wasn't specifically the case, but you get the idea: I had no clue as to even which muscles I should use to initiate the movements. Awkward. I know it's bad when my normally intense teacher laughs after I try something! In the end, I somehow pulled this off between business trips to Beijing and the results were at least fun and colorful. <br />
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The point is, this reminds me that dance is a real part of me. When I'm a stressed zombie after another 15 hour day at the office and have no room left in my brain, I need to remember who I am. I am not just a worker bee. I dance. Perhaps it's time to reevaluate the (lack of) balance in my life. <br />
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Here's looking forward to a year ahead of music, movement, growth, and joy! </div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-33539318656987947842011-11-12T14:26:00.000-08:002011-11-14T10:16:04.338-08:00The Nutcracker in China: Not Yet Home<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5MFtDX3fPXwDanypfOAelKjiOmQV0-es1FwKPw0TNnB019Ny8JZRZflPXn90UqzVmogA05NK4tGIlAiDk09FWgH8zxltwRtn8AKJbuxLWA3bVgCLma77jEPnoxvL9GGpdq9TI5Os0ubwz/s1600/DaHe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5MFtDX3fPXwDanypfOAelKjiOmQV0-es1FwKPw0TNnB019Ny8JZRZflPXn90UqzVmogA05NK4tGIlAiDk09FWgH8zxltwRtn8AKJbuxLWA3bVgCLma77jEPnoxvL9GGpdq9TI5Os0ubwz/s320/DaHe.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><br />
Earlier this year I attended the National Ballet of China's production of The Nutcracker at the National Theater in Beijing, timed to coincide with the Lunar New Year. As Nutcracker season is once again in full swing, I'd like to share a review I wrote after seeing this Chinese attempt to appropriate one of the most enduring European classical ballets. I hope you find this cultural exploration thought-provoking! (Photos below are courtesy of Xinhua.)<br />
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<div style="background-color: transparent;"><div dir="ltr" id="internal-source-marker_0.4658598597161472" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In China, popular ballets have been based on themes close to home, such as the military-themed </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Red Detachment of Women</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, featuring uniform-clad, gun-toting women in pointe shoes, or on national literary treasures and legends, as in </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Raise the Red Lantern</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The White Haired Girl</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. It was, therefore, a leap of faith for The National Ballet of China to stage a locally flavored version of that most cherished western holiday classic: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Nutcracker</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Traditional, Western ballets are respected in China but garner comparatively little enthusiasm; traditional Chinese performing arts tend to stress overt acrobatic flourishes, which are amply supplied by traditional and folk dance ensembles. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>This is not to say that there are not balletomanes in China; the presence of several fine companies in the country suggests otherwise. But for the average theatre-goer, it would take something extra to bring ballet closer to home. It’s quite fitting that Feng Ying, artistic director of The National Ballet of China, chose the ballet that arguably exposes more new audiences to the art form in the west to attempt to make history in China.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>This is the second iteration of the production that premiered in 2001. Perhaps it was in a nod to the ballet's origins that the premiere was held in December, despite the fact that most Chinese do not celebrate Christmas. It returned in late February this year to coincide with the end of the Lunar New Year festivities.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYWr20g8tZqtidPT8QB0Y9fTnLrmYCm8KnUEQnyVp1ozTf_VML5W0SG4g8W7JE76WSaR53n_q9IUcnG5bgJWNIVJVGoP3uiQuF0O9UnlJQjrv4CQura6r7bmkBO2G6Feh0U4DU-wrK5fbg/s1600/CNB_Nutcracker5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYWr20g8tZqtidPT8QB0Y9fTnLrmYCm8KnUEQnyVp1ozTf_VML5W0SG4g8W7JE76WSaR53n_q9IUcnG5bgJWNIVJVGoP3uiQuF0O9UnlJQjrv4CQura6r7bmkBO2G6Feh0U4DU-wrK5fbg/s320/CNB_Nutcracker5.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>In this Chinese adaptation the setting is the Lunar New Year, and Yuan Yuan and her brother celebrate with friends in their hutong, traditional neighborhoods formed by courtyard residences that are fast disappearing from modern Beijing. The music that traditionally announces the presence of Drosselmeyer, the eccentric toymaker, heralds a European antiquities dealer as the guest of Yuan Yuan's family. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>What ensues is a scene that any local could identify with: toasts raised with tea cups at the dinner table. While this is a fitting mirror to the activities that occur in the European Stahlbaum family during Christmas, it was unfortunate that the choreography did not make interplay with the beautiful score. Granted, the first act tends to consist mostly of pantomime in any version, but Tchaikovsky provides coy hesitations and lush climaxes that beg for movement; most of these were not realized by the choreography.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The Nutcracker, bestowed upon Yuan Yuan by the European visitor, comes to life and joins forces with tigers to defeat the Nian, a Chinese mythological monster. Yuan Yuan then morphs into a beautiful crane fairy, danced with a frail grace by Zhang Jiang. Her attentive cavalier, Sheng Shidong, accompanies her to the land of the cranes. Where snowflakes would have floated across the stage, a coterie of sylph-like cranes welcome the couple to their enchanted world. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Yuan Yuan and her cavalier find themselves in the Porcelain Kingdom, where they are received by a parade of items come to life that any Chinese household would be familiar with: fans, silk, toffee hawthorns, kites and peg tops, the last of which featured a man turning endlessly en pointe. "This is a dream that only a Chinese girl could have," said Feng Ying, artistic director.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB62xXmaGqCyDz0I597EqLPcfzeOYGmEZHfbdseCA2RoJh8ZDKcMxbu8FO4Om9Oo7AsA6yWoB4ZQ7EU8tX4GP77pFOvNfT7_jG5whB4fdu9Jqf9kwNr-Vka6i6kwMAQXd9ZBKQWKOWkx3b/s1600/CNB_Nutcracker2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB62xXmaGqCyDz0I597EqLPcfzeOYGmEZHfbdseCA2RoJh8ZDKcMxbu8FO4Om9Oo7AsA6yWoB4ZQ7EU8tX4GP77pFOvNfT7_jG5whB4fdu9Jqf9kwNr-Vka6i6kwMAQXd9ZBKQWKOWkx3b/s320/CNB_Nutcracker2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Arguably the most entertaining of all, judging from audience reaction, was the 'Mother Ginger' segment. Instead of Mother Ginger, however, came a giant golden pig of prosperity whose doors opened to spill forth dancing golden ingots. Children are an integral part of any Nutcracker production; they appeared in this one piece and it proved most charming.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>The final pas de deux was phrased beautifully. Zhang’s wrists beckoned softly and her gaze never failed to drift back to her cavalier as she was partnered tenderly by Sheng, who seemed genuinely entranced by her.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Despite the entertainment and beauty, I was left with a nagging feeling of incompleteness. This was not entirely due to the fact that the Sugar Plum variation was noticeably absent. I found myself longing for choreography that ascends on the wings of Tchaikovsky’s emotive music. Music and dance are inextricably linked in any ballet and this production felt akin to a lovely veneer of colour and movement. I soon realized it was because the ballet did not feel like a finished piece, culturally - it had not yet reached a sense of home.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>As the curtain fell on the lavish production, the stage darkened with a simulation of firecrackers exploding and I wondered at what lies at the cultural heart of a tradition. Is it too much of a challenge to attempt appropriation of a foreign work with no more than a local overlay?</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I watched audience members' reactions to the ballet with interest; people identified, aloud, each divertissement's representation as it appeared onstage - the kite, the fan. These adaptations resonated with the audience at their finest and were recognizable at the very least.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>It would be gratifying to see this holiday classic become a new tradition for ballet in China, although I wonder whether it will live to see that day. The music is undeniably European, and one senses a fundamental disconnect. It's almost as if a story from a different time and place had reluctantly agreed to allow itself to be superimposed upon another. Still, it is an admirable and joyful work with some breathtaking moments. This balletomane certainly looks forward to witnessing an evolution of this effort, to see whether a traditional ballet can transcend the distance of culture and provenance to bring forth home.</span></div></div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-76632181351332677902011-11-09T20:49:00.000-08:002011-11-17T20:37:39.056-08:00Spotlight on Uighur Dance<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbHaX2YnkXm36cXlSuw_Q8rPdTaPR4MMWvwNmIbxa3WiImUh6WuLT2qjMlJy84eDy7Z96n24S0b2EYKUsjIFc-hC0DKVD1QjXn2WGzJzEki7nUSW29u9fGYQ8THzhxajbyBwFh1dCWobL6/s1600/LingDang_Stage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbHaX2YnkXm36cXlSuw_Q8rPdTaPR4MMWvwNmIbxa3WiImUh6WuLT2qjMlJy84eDy7Z96n24S0b2EYKUsjIFc-hC0DKVD1QjXn2WGzJzEki7nUSW29u9fGYQ8THzhxajbyBwFh1dCWobL6/s320/LingDang_Stage.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>On a very chilly November evening not so long ago, I had the good fortune to speak with Yu Mi Ti (玉米提), arguably the top male <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uyghur_people">Uighur</a> dancer in China, after a stunning performance at the <a href="http://www.chncpa.org/ens/">National Theatre</a>. I'd first discovered him after watching countless solo and group performances in the China Central Television (CCTV) National Dance Competition from 2005 (I was behind on the times; I'd bought the multi-disc collection on a business trip to Beijing). <br />
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I was riveted. Until that moment, I'd been half-heartedly watching, sewing ballet slippers or reading. China's multitudes afford talent scouts the ability to pick the best of the best for their training academies, and every single dancer was technically wonderful. However, nothing truly caught my attention until a curly-haired youth named Yu Mi Ti burst onto the stage, cradling a Central Asian <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dombura">dombura</a> lute in his arms and exuding boundless ardency. He did not merely dance; onstage was a youth in love and I could see into his heart, a heart brimming with tenderness and joie de vivre.<br />
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In person, Yu Mi Ti is serious and soft-spoken; the occasional swell of banked passion behind his voice when he speaks of his people and of his love of dance hint at the rapturous joy he exudes onstage. I wished to understand his motivations, to steal a glimpse of the person behind the dancer. <br />
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To learn more about this extraordinary artist, please take a look at the <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B7qkv8877vAeNjNhNjkzNDktNDdlMy00MWVmLTljMWQtMjdkMjNmMzM0NGRl" target="_blank">profile</a> I wrote about him (also below). I hope to circulate this to greater audiences so that dance enthusiasts everywhere will learn of Yu Mi Ti and the fascinating Uighur culture. If you know of anyone who may be interested, please share this blogpost and article with them.<br />
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<div class="p1"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Yu Mi Ti - Bringing Uighur Dance to the Forefront</b></span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Susan R. Lin</span><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sky-high extensions and acrobatic feats are no rarity in the world of Chinese dance. In a culture that looks deeply into its own history even as it plows forward into modernity, dance in China honors many of the 55 ethnic styles while incorporating other nationally beloved art forms: martial arts and acrobatics. In the many professional academies countless dancers train with military-like discipline to achieve extraordinary flexibility and strength. Yet through it all, one dancer has captured the nation with not only impeccable technique, but with his infectious charm and rapturous stage presence. </span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His name is Yu Mi Ti, and he hails from Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region in western China. This was long considered the wild west that merchants of the Silk Road would brave as they traveled west to Central Asia to trade their wares. The native people of Xinjiang are the Uighurs, a Turkic people whose language is written in Arabic. Yu Mi Ti is a Mandarin transliteration of the first name ‘Umut’, in the Uighur language. </span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKgbs1yo7EAo5FuO6H4URcMQXsVv-5EoGpnZ2SLbICoINGIe8miqcKluiWT8yEad70q2_EaFtc6lLZE158g9ixcuqCwaDAEfwTgyr0Xv0dBSV6LcwZDtrB5jj4fJZZTzhovEdImdHHjf8/s1600/umutportrait.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKgbs1yo7EAo5FuO6H4URcMQXsVv-5EoGpnZ2SLbICoINGIe8miqcKluiWT8yEad70q2_EaFtc6lLZE158g9ixcuqCwaDAEfwTgyr0Xv0dBSV6LcwZDtrB5jj4fJZZTzhovEdImdHHjf8/s200/umutportrait.jpg" width="132" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Photo Courtesy Yu Mi Ti</span></i></td></tr>
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</span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unlike the fans and ribbons often associated with Chinese dance, Uighur dance is characterized by loose tunics and boots embroidered with intricate designs seen in Islamic art, hands and heads held proudly aloft not unlike that of the Hungarian Czardas, and jumps and whirls often seen in Russian and Georgian folk traditions. This heady mix of emotion and energy is accompanied to music drawn from Persian, Indian, and Chinese roots.</span></div><div class="p5"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Despite the fact that Uighur dance is regularly depicted on mainland Chinese media, an Uighur dancer had never won top honors at a national competition in the modern history of Chinese dance until Yu Mi Ti.</span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At 25, Yu Mi Ti is a hero of the Uighur community, an artistic and cultural ambassador of his people. In 2005, he took the top prize at the China Central Television (CCTV) National Dance Competition and became the first ethnic Uighur to win a country-wide dance competition. His star has only risen since then, having captured gold in the prestigious Peach and Plum Cup competition in 2006 and again at the CCTV competition in 2009, with other top accolades in between.</span></div><div class="p5"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One look at Yu Mi Ti shatters all preconceived notions of the very concept of what one normally considers Chinese: dark brown curls crown his head, his pale skin and aquiline profile enhance a naturally regal mien. His eyes are almost unfathomably large and deep-set. In other words, he looks strikingly different: most Chinese have black, straight hair, softer profiles and almond-shaped eyes. Perhaps it’s his unaffected good looks, but even in the rising international metropolis of Beijing he elicits unabashed stares wherever he goes.</span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3aOJmgEHOytHEkGJzbJ3O7qMvpOr02f4nsBhXP2avvIHoEilWzm6nMdp5bGuFOcN8rkFqBm6YfTscGIRkw-kgFSUwYJxiZVyPUa54WMZcl4PI6zsg6dtXotRnQQuBtKoCVFNDr74dNie-/s1600/YuMiTiRoseEnd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3aOJmgEHOytHEkGJzbJ3O7qMvpOr02f4nsBhXP2avvIHoEilWzm6nMdp5bGuFOcN8rkFqBm6YfTscGIRkw-kgFSUwYJxiZVyPUa54WMZcl4PI6zsg6dtXotRnQQuBtKoCVFNDr74dNie-/s320/YuMiTiRoseEnd.jpg" width="213" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>Photo: CCTV 2005, Yu Mi Ti in</i> Beautiful Rose</span></td></tr>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While Yu Mi Ti has impeccable technique - his explosive split jumps and trademark spinning knee jumps are eye-popping - it’s almost secondary: he brings down the house with one, smoldering glance. When he dances, you don’t see steps; he envelops the audience in energy and surging emotion imbued with a youthful haughtiness that is offset by disarming innocence. He tells a story with his body and his eyes, and for those moments he is onstage, you cannot tear your eyes away.</span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yu Mi Ti’s natural facility was evident at a young age; scouts from Beijing’s famous People’s Liberation Army Academy of Art’s dance division (in China, many performance disciplines are associated with the military) identified him when looking for promising talent in Urumqi. At age 12, he left his family to enter the rigorous dance program of the military academy. He told me, after a rousing performance at the famously egg-shaped National Theater, that he has no regrets coming to Beijing to start his new life. Even though he’d seriously considered leaving dance due to the harsh lifestyle of the military academy and the comparatively meager pay of his professional career, “Everything I have ever worked for is beginning to blossom,” he explained.</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When asked what he hopes to accomplish with his dancing, unlike many other dancers I’ve spoken to at prestigious performing companies in Beijing and Shanghai who simply said their lot in life was chosen for them, Yu Mi Ti answered without hesitation. “I want the world to know that we Uighurs exist ... I want to show them the beauty of our culture so that they may know us,” he stated with a quiet conviction. He already has plans to start an Uighur performing troupe that he hopes will tour internationally. </span><br />
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</span></div><div class="p5"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Throughout our conversation he spoke with a serious, insightful intelligence beyond his youthful years. This was coupled with a humility that showed an artist who is never satisfied with resting on his laurels. It was evident that he considered a great deal before expressing himself with words.</span><br />
<span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The honesty and humble strength of his dedication left a deep impression on me. He may have achieved a certain fame in China, but for the rest of the world, he has much work to do. </span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZMVV8wiNLQw6HYgdyohyHzapC1_T_5hE2uPJ_KvSWYOrYV5JoSLjgIJ5_-9cXp07FywTpYEMWGr6gWL3EW-_hrA4-lziMMMj3ti1zZ3fkQz56_scOE53RWuwpUMMIsXqG90mHF7SInvds/s1600/Yumi_Plate2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZMVV8wiNLQw6HYgdyohyHzapC1_T_5hE2uPJ_KvSWYOrYV5JoSLjgIJ5_-9cXp07FywTpYEMWGr6gWL3EW-_hrA4-lziMMMj3ti1zZ3fkQz56_scOE53RWuwpUMMIsXqG90mHF7SInvds/s320/Yumi_Plate2.jpeg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i>Photo: CCTV 2010, Yu Mi Ti in</i> Uighur Plate Dance</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="p2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However, perhaps what is most important goes back to dance itself: the desire to entertain, to connect people via movement, to inspire. Yu Mi Ti recounted a story that he says gave him the resolve to keep dancing when he seriously doubted his path: A young girl wrote him a letter, describing how she had been about to end her troubled life by jumping off her apartment balcony when he appeared on the television. She could not take her eyes off his image, and after his dance ended, she decided not to go through with her plan. Yu Mi Ti’s joyful performance had given her the will to live. “‘Seeing you dance showed me that life can be worth living,’ she’d written to me, and is this not the greatest reward of all?” he said with quiet reverence.<span class="s1"></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">W</span>hether he continues to inspire countless others or is able to realize his dream of introducing Uighur culture to the world as an ambassador of joy, one looks forward to what Yu Mi Ti will bring. For now, the happiness and hope he has created with his dancing is a triumph unto itself. </span></div><div class="p5"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p6"><span class="s1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="p2"><span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span></div><br />
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</div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-63679449618008211362011-10-27T22:25:00.000-07:002011-11-10T13:16:18.036-08:00Class as Sustenance<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AAB_G5PgplHGbv8uPR_v3l5qA1eMRM6xulhSTRcMLxw9DiRmB5bKH08k_qV-rlNqFg_WsLx9fBfHu1Nnu4d8OGsH95o4mON9oJOZ3QacsG6qSGgbGxnk0uCPoqgtIJH3FEEcm48j7z_-/s1600/SpringRainBack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AAB_G5PgplHGbv8uPR_v3l5qA1eMRM6xulhSTRcMLxw9DiRmB5bKH08k_qV-rlNqFg_WsLx9fBfHu1Nnu4d8OGsH95o4mON9oJOZ3QacsG6qSGgbGxnk0uCPoqgtIJH3FEEcm48j7z_-/s320/SpringRainBack.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
I've recently become acquainted a researcher named <a href="http://mikebarnesanth.wordpress.com/academic-bio/">Mike Barnes</a> who is, fascinatingly, focuses on dancers from an anthropological perspective. He poses thought-provoking questions on his <a href="http://mikebarnesanth.wordpress.com/">blog</a> and I've responded to a few of his posts, hoping to help in his research. One <a href="http://mikebarnesanth.wordpress.com/2011/10/22/a-blog-with-a-different-emphasis-and-an-identity-crisis/">post</a> got me thinking about the cycle of class, rehearsal, and performance.<br />
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Class is my constant; it is the food I live on as a dancer, and as a person. Class is my anchor; it gives me structure and I can rely on it to complete my day. The reality is, given the limitations of my schedule due to juggling a corporate job with dancing, I sometimes have to choose between class and rehearsal. The truth is, I never feel complete if I haven't had class. It doesn't even have to be dance class; it can be cross-training, but as long as it's class that makes me sweat bullets I am satisfied. <br />
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If I don't have a choice, I give myself class in my room. (I'm beginning to fear that I'm wearing a big divot into my carpet and floor.) When I was traveling abroad for work and living out of a suitcase, I got up at 6:00am each morning to give myself class before work, and ran on a treadmill for one hour after work. I'm not a fan of running, but it was the only way to maintain any kind of endurance. No matter how tired and beat up I felt, I was resolute in keeping this up. This served a psychological purpose, too: it was a way to establish a routine away from home, and fulfill me in some way when I couldn't dance like I wanted to. It definitely helped me sleep!<br />
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Still, even my strict regimen cannot replace class for any considerable period of time. Even though performance may be the end goal, class gives structure to the body and mind. Class makes the rhythm of my days. It's painful to go without. </div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-63975782582474093472011-10-11T22:06:00.000-07:002011-10-20T16:44:54.840-07:00Little Victories<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD_cEJCQOWH2LLPMVaOR73zW1JpA8J-rf3qXQBppnQ6qTbvgMzZxGpOaUZWW-hRN3Nw2dtCenPjSey4rxqFIrxRnOkVk7QbpLDlBRF6aLqGXokRnU2OG0TA2tSip_g0h_WvJ0vx9upYka-/s1600/bridge_taipei.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD_cEJCQOWH2LLPMVaOR73zW1JpA8J-rf3qXQBppnQ6qTbvgMzZxGpOaUZWW-hRN3Nw2dtCenPjSey4rxqFIrxRnOkVk7QbpLDlBRF6aLqGXokRnU2OG0TA2tSip_g0h_WvJ0vx9upYka-/s320/bridge_taipei.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>I've been bouncing around the globe so much that it's been a challenge to keep up the strength and endurance required for the dancing I am about to dive back into. Recently, I wanted to check my form while going through my 'travel workout' routine (warmup, modified center barre, jumps, sit-ups, stretch) in a hotel gym in Taipei. Upon seeing the photo, my first reaction was of dismay; my shoulders are quite inflexible, and so is my upper back. I am reminded by this visual check just how much my body does not echo the ideal. While I may never achieve that beautiful, rounded bridge shape - one can push one's natural limits only so far - if I can gain just a little more flexibility, it's a start. <br />
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It can be discouraging to see myself, whether in photos or in videos (the latter of which are indescribably more painful to watch) because all I see are faults, things I could have done better. Many fellow dancers have expressed that they share this experience. We constantly assess and reassess, with a highly critical eye, our bodies and the shapes - the "lines" - we make with them.<br />
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And just as suddenly I'll realize: Wait a moment! A year ago I didn't have the strength to hold my leg up while in a standing bridge, but at least I can do it, now! Progress is a wonderful thing. All the more motivation to get back into shape, now that I'm home, and work towards these little victories. </div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-69495805697292811312011-08-07T19:48:00.000-07:002011-10-15T18:01:36.596-07:00Dreams of Flamenco<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTqOOt7fQqdLJ99AkVGUKP3aEDeFsv2y4G0_0XNL1YoN1Ck8u2kd1grxkT8u0LED7vdXLLu6oScAuE-Y0K2d1KHm12llVZ3jEM-52Yc56sjD9AuyChgZRjSSlYghWtKBwhjjs7cirqo7hU/s1600/Susan_Red.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTqOOt7fQqdLJ99AkVGUKP3aEDeFsv2y4G0_0XNL1YoN1Ck8u2kd1grxkT8u0LED7vdXLLu6oScAuE-Y0K2d1KHm12llVZ3jEM-52Yc56sjD9AuyChgZRjSSlYghWtKBwhjjs7cirqo7hU/s320/Susan_Red.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
While in Beijing not long ago I went, on a whim, to a Spanish tapas restaurant and bar in the lively <a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=sanlitun&hl=en&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=y0w_Ts-UGdGy0AG9s43PAw&ved=0CDsQsAQ&biw=1279&bih=607">Sanlitun</a> (三里屯) district. There was a special performance by the instructors and students of a local flamenco dance studio, and the evening stirred up a long-ago desire to live the dream myself.<br />
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Flamenco is a percussive and passionate music and dance style from the <a href="http://www.andalucia.com/history/home.htm">Andalucia</a> region of Spain (read its <a href="http://www.tierra-flamenca.com/flamenco-history">history</a>!). It's difficult not to be entranced by the proud carriage of the dancers, from their sculpted back muscles to their intricate footwork. And there is, of course, the seduction of the music itself.<br />
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I've never studied flamenco dance, but it's one of my goals to do so. I grew up watching the classical perennials <a href="http://www.classical.net/music/comp.lst/bizet.php">Bizet's</a> opera '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmen">Carmen</a>' and the oft-maligned ballet '<a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=don+quixote+ballet&hl=en&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=E0w_Tv2aMuTs0gG9-In4Aw&ved=0CDMQsAQ&biw=1279&bih=607">Don Quixote</a>', which introduced me to the first flavors of Spanish dance and music as a small child. I am promising myself now that I will take a flamenco class before the year is out! In the meantime, I can always dream and play - the springboard leading to the realization of passions. </div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-51677314450752215792011-03-18T01:47:00.000-07:002011-03-22T21:30:52.049-07:00Yi Feisty Girl!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0bM8u6R8mIjS96mXxzCjOSi9TniTpvJbAHCnq0pkTq0uodMbIc9S2OLirfXfbM6lulistm98uCemom4z8tsmCU9yOxy1E5w6JNZtT2zOJYI96YJBfRFQq2sRIt6BlJlrhAofPwJqO-IvI/s1600/Picture+2.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0bM8u6R8mIjS96mXxzCjOSi9TniTpvJbAHCnq0pkTq0uodMbIc9S2OLirfXfbM6lulistm98uCemom4z8tsmCU9yOxy1E5w6JNZtT2zOJYI96YJBfRFQq2sRIt6BlJlrhAofPwJqO-IvI/s320/Picture+2.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5585341624032019154" /></a><br /><div>My most recent performance was a non-stop, head-bobbing, turning and leaping <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yi_people">Yi</a> dance called 麼舍咯 (Mo-She-Ge). This curious title is a transliteration of Yi language and one day I will ask someone from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yunnan">Yunnan</a> province what it means (Chinese dictionaries offer scant help). However, it was clear that this Yi girl is at a festival, dogs barking and afoot, and she is living it up! And, she's got her eye on someone, whom she teases with relish.</div><div><br /></div><div>As soon as I heard the music - it splashes in with a dog yowling - and took in the playful, peek-a-boo skirting, rambunctious flight of fancy, I dubbed it 'Yi Feisty Girl' - the 'Yi' being not only the ethnic group, it's also a terrible play on 'Ye' as in 'Ye Olde English'. Talk about bad cultural crossovers, but I rather like it.<div><br /></div><div>I wish I'd had more time to rehearse this dance, but I admit I enjoyed it immensely! The wonderful thing about performance is that it gives you a tremendous burst of adrenaline; normally, rehearsing this dance twice, full out, finds me wheezing and lying on my back on the floor afterwards. I felt so full of life, so happy to be out there, playing with the dogs and teasing some poor young man! I want to feel like this every day - Go get 'em, Yi Feisty Girl!</div></div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4327778596766133211.post-80307322134544037322011-03-08T17:36:00.001-08:002011-03-22T20:40:25.539-07:00Rediscovering Nutcracker<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSrag6IvC2ep5bQm1WfWZ24hjSi6QTvVlQ5Zo9gA5Zf6gYOkgU2R_s_4Lhe6GeftgtutxhiI3O-PaYmh_bQucaQEki2Zsj4iElg6Z00-0_Yh-9Ke-ukIq72YAgZ6adaEDk7QpBahoaAiaU/s1600/Arabian.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSrag6IvC2ep5bQm1WfWZ24hjSi6QTvVlQ5Zo9gA5Zf6gYOkgU2R_s_4Lhe6GeftgtutxhiI3O-PaYmh_bQucaQEki2Zsj4iElg6Z00-0_Yh-9Ke-ukIq72YAgZ6adaEDk7QpBahoaAiaU/s320/Arabian.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5581898308931454610" /></a><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13.3333px; ">I recently watched the <a href="http://www.ballet.org.cn/">National Ballet of China</a> perform the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nutcracker">Nutcracker</a>, that beloved ballet classic of the US - despite its European origins, it is more popular in the "New World". It was a marvelous <a href="http://www.chncpa.org/n457779/n457834/n516566/5063092.html">appropriation</a> of this Western classic to Chinese traditions - instead of Christmas, it's Chinese New Year, and instead of the heroine and prince transported to the Land of Sweets, they find themselves in the Land of Ceramics. The giant Golden Pig of Prosperity, not Mother Ginger, opened to reveal adorable children dressed as gold ingots. The audience went wild. </span></div><br />I enjoyed it, but found myself longing for the more traditional, European version, with choreography I'd grown up with - I like both <a href="http://www.nycballet.com/nutcracker/nutcracker.html">New York City Ballet</a> and <a href="http://www.sfballet.org/performancestickets/nutcracker.asp">San Francisco Ballet</a> versions, but my absolute favorite is the <a href="http://www.pnb.org/Season/10-11/Nutcracker/#Details-Story">Stowell-Sendak version</a> for Pacific Northwest Ballet. I watched the PNB <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091658/usercomments">version</a> (it's on <a href="http://www.apple.com/itunes/charts/movie-rentals/nutcracker-the-motion-picture/">iTunes</a>!) and despite it being way past Christmas, I suddenly found myself falling in love with this classic fairytale through new eyes.<br /><br />One thing hasn't changed, though; I feel an immense emotional swell every time the Nutcracker sheds his bulky toy's head and becomes Himself. It's something truly magical: He's been freed from his wooden confines through the heroine's valor and can now truly be. It's a stunningly beautiful moment.<br /><br />I've somehow made my way through a couple of Nutcracker productions before ('Arabian' in the photo), and I suddenly find myself wanting to dance it - for those of you ballet dancers who have performed countless Nutcrackers, you can believe that I never thought I'd say that. <div><br /></div><div>I'm not a ballerina, but I find myself a little girl once more, wanting to experience the magic all over again.</div>Susan R Linhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212125861847049699noreply@blogger.com2