Two articles from the first half of the month thrown up from teh Evening Standard Search engine about different aspects of ballet:<P><BR><B>Bring on the ballerinas</B><BR>by Laura Craik in the Evening Standard<P><BR>Do girls still want to be ballerinas? Not likely. The lure of the ballet shoe has been usurped by the lure of the bellyring. Pliès and pirouettes have glided off the radar, leaving the bald invitation of disco gyrations in their wake. The rustle of tulle is now a squeak-squeak of leather, as nubile thighs in trousers run rings around boys. For who would want to be Darcey Bussell when she could be Britney Spears instead? <P>I am perfectly aware that I sound like Mary Whitehouse, but really - have you seen what the kids are wearing these days? School's out - you need only look down your nearest high street to see all the jailbait running around, their midriffs exposed and their cleavages pushed up and out like Barbie's or Britney's. <P><A HREF="http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/lifestyle/fashion/article.html?in_review_id=542745&in_review_text_id=508388" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A><P>**********************************<P>Brendan on ballet.co.uk spotted this one:<P><B>If the shoe fits...</B><BR>by Deborah King in The Evening Standard<P><BR>Money may make the world go round but financial rewards were not enough for Sophie Simpson. She left a well-paid job in the City three years ago to pursue a career fitting ballet shoes.<P>As senior assistant to Michele Attfield, the director of Freed of London, Simpson, 25, is passionate about her work. "It's difficult to determine where the job ends and where my love of dance begins, but I wouldn't be here unless I adored dance," she says. <P>Freed, the UK's top supplier of ballet shoes worldwide, is acknowledged as the best in the business and, although its success depends on meeting the demands of its customers, visitors to the shop in St Martin's Lane often remark how little it has changed over the years. Its individuality set the company apart from competitors when the shop opened in the Thirties, for Mr Freed, an innovative shoemaker, was the first person to introduce different shoe widths.<BR> <A HREF="http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/jobs/search/story.html?in_review_id=548490&in_review_text_id=514665" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A> <P> <P><p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited April 15, 2002).]

Fascinating article although what I find more fascinating is what the young woman did with her dance degree when working in the City for the Kuwaiti Government? That seems to be somewhat glossed over.

I really enjoyed both articles! Do you think you can post those in the ballet forum?<P>Britney Spears has nothing on Darcy!