blbrown04 wrote:
I just think it comes down to the simple fact that it is not 1960 anymore and the level of technique has dramatically increased. It's a whole new world. And there is nothing wrong with it. Dancer's put their bodies through so much in training, and are then scorned when they get on stage and use it.
You have a point, it is not 1960 anymore and I don't think anyone here is critisizing dancers for what they are doing on the stage. For me the problem lies within the people who are creating and presenting the repertoire of this last 15-20 years. If a dancer is told to do 32 fouette's on stage or go and jump around trying to imitate a gymnast then that is what they have to go an stage and do. However for me, the bigger question is should they be consistantly asked to do this? The very fundamentals of ballet do not lie within being able to execute multiple pirrouettes, or jump the highest, or have the best extension, they never have and never will. Additionally, there is nothing wrong with wanting and striving to achieve those types of feats, however, when choreographers and artistic directors rely too much on those "feats", that is where I have the problem. Reason being, your entire post on this message board. It influences younger generation(s) into thinking that what they are now seeing is the "ONLY" form of ballet worth watching and puts emphasis solely on technical achievements rather than individual influence, interpretation and artistry. If every ballet dancer and choreographer was putting emphasis on the same technical feats then there wouldn't be too much variety now would there. The very backbone of any art form including ballet is individual influences that help to shape individual artistry. I promise you that dancers who execute 3 pirrouettes as opposed to 8 or 10 are just as jaw dropping, all you have to do is open your eyes to see it. You seem so hypnotized by bravura technique that you have forgotten about the fact that something like a triple pirrouette to most people including many dancers IS an amazing beautiful thing.
blbrown04 wrote:
Personally, I couldn't care less about how believable Paloma H. or Sofiane S. are as princesses, likely because my generation is so far removed from it.
Once again folks, here is the problem.
blbrown04 wrote:
and Carreno's perect pirouettes,
uumm, I hate to break it to you and YOUR generation but nothing in an art form is perfect.
blbrown04 wrote:
Is it ever okay to be simply a dancer, and not a sylph or a swan?
Sure, when you are in a company that does not perform that type of repertoire.
blbrown04 wrote:
My generation is simply coming from another side of the spectrum. If the "exciting" and visually pleasing aspect isnt recognized and utilized, then where will the ballet audience come from in the future?
China

! Where the visually pleasing and exciting aspects of ballet are TRULY realized by putting a ballerina on your head in arabesque and doing a promenade. Maybe next year, there will be a ballerina who pushes the bar even further and does multiple pirrouettes on someones head. After all, it would be boring to just stand on someones head over and over again, right?
