My creative morning ritual, the details of which I shared in last week’s blog and Podcast 081, keeps me present to my Essence and Purpose and that which is most important to me to lead a fulfilled and joyful life. The whole process helps me to clear mental clutter, judgment, fear, and concerns whether they be petty or profound.
While writing about the elements my morning ritual, I realized that the sacred time I spend preparing for my day is as much about what I avoid doing as the actions that I choose to take. That is, in order for me to focus and get into the head space I require, there are platforms and activities that I save for when my ritual is complete, for later in the day, or that I skip altogether.
Of course, not having a regular 9-5 job at this point in my career, being self-employed/freelance certainly helps with flexibility at the beginning of my day. Back when I was first working after college, I didn’t have a morning ritual and barely managed to include cross-training in my weeks, then as a student coach in a corporate environment, I got up in the dark to squeeze in Pilates and aerobics workouts.
In more recent years as a coach I developed increasingly healthy habits, though being in graduate school full-time and teaching in multiple locations was tough to juggle. However, once my daily yoga habit was established I realized that I would require certain habits and rituals to get me though my demanding schedule. They then carried me through a difficult divorce and beyond, and I’ve had the freedom to elaborate on my morning ritual since moving to Cologne and weathering COVID-19.
They key is focusing on what’s important to me, and eliminating the rest. Consider what you can remove from your own morning to make space to add something more important to you. I bet you can find just a bit more room to be present to yourself and your highest priorities each day!
Podcast 082 is the audio version of these 6 things to consider omitting in the morning
Skip these for a better morning:
The following are some of the things that I avoid early in the day to make space for a meaningful ritual. Of course what works for me isn’t meant for everyone, so take what works for you and leave the rest.
No snoozing! Ok, very infrequent snoozing. I remove as much friction as possible from the waking up and getting ready process in order to have a calm and collected start to my day. No alarm clock torture, just jumping up, fixing myself a coffee, and getting started.
NO notifications, social media, computer, email, news, or input from sources not carefully curated by me, as few interruptions as possible. Of course I am often interrupted by the cat, occasionally by my partner and others, but the idea is to save such distractions as much as possible for after my ritual is complete. My ritual does include limited cell phone use for Apps such as Duolingo, Bible App, Gratitude App, Today Habit Tracking App, Tide timer used for meditation and morning pages etc., but I am careful not to linger on my cell phone.
No complicated grooming or dressing routines. I don’t have to worry about my hair, as it always looks the same unless it’s time for a buzz, and the rest of my grooming process is also streamlined. On a daily basis, almost no decision-making is required as far as washing up, I have a fiercely edited collection of natural personal care products that I follow in the same order every day. I wear the same three cosmetics every day and only for occasions do I add anything. Same goes for jewelry and wardrobe, of which I have a limited selection (for example, all my shoes are black), and is easily coordinated, minimizing decision fatigue early in the day.
No running around to gather what I will wear/use/bring. If I’m going somewhere that day, I will have packed my bag the night before, and my yoga mat and morning ritual supplies are always at the ready.
No participating in diet culture, weighing myself, restricted eating, or using exercise in a punitive way. I eat what is available and what I desire, when I am hungry. I move because it brings me joy and makes me feel good! I don’t do anything without a good reason and each practice needs to support my well being in body, mind, and spirit. It needs to be a part of my personal identity and my dream life and not something that’s about judgement, shame, or guilt.
Along those lines, I do my best to limit negative self-talk and beating myself up about things I have no control over such as what I did or did not do the day before or skipping a day on one of my habits or ritual practices. I just start again the next day and part of my morning ritual is to write and move and meditate to clear negative emotions, worries, fears, thoughts, and concerns.
Blissful Morning Boundaries
Avoiding these six distractions supports well-being. My nervous system thanks me, as I tend toward nervous energy and anxiety (the positive part of this is motivation, enthusiasm, and action), and I can easily be derailed from my intention, so it’s important that I have firm boundaries at the beginning of my day to set the stage for success.
By making conscious choices about what to include and what to omit in our waking hours, we can impact our entire day! My work requires concentration, coming up with and executing ideas and being fully present with people, but I am a bit on the introverted side, so it is critical that I have enough “me time” to prepare to show up fully for my clients, students, and beloveds.
Questions for Reflection
What do your days require of you?
What will you omit from your morning to make space for your own creative ritual?
Let’s connect by email or on Instagram @ablythecoach, I would love to hear your perspective!
Blythe Stephens, MFA, Bliss Catalyst she/her or they/them Creator of A Blythe Coach: dance through your difficulties and take leaps of faith into a joyful, fulfilling life
If you’re as much of a personal growth nerd as I am, you are already well-familiarized with the ins and outs of morning routines. There’s a kind of voyeuristic thrill that comes from learning about others’ personal habits, and I often glean insights into my own habits by reading, watching, or listening about how others shape their daily lives.
It can also be fun to see how our own rituals have developed over time, and how in different seasons of life they can evolve.
Yep, so here I discuss one of the keys to my own life of creativity and fulfillment, my morning ritual, which I have developed over my whole life, but in particular the past few years. It all started with a daily yoga practice that I thankfully put in place before my second divorce, which helped keep me afloat through that and as I have continued to grow as an educator, creative, business owner, and human being.
My daily ritual has grown to include practices that facilitate physical, mental, and spiritual well being and abundant creativity. When I complete these actions on a daily basis, I develop clarity and momentum, feel inspired and strong, experience less pain, and am able to coach, dance, teach, write, and engage with ideas and people in a well-grounded and present way.
Welcome to my morning ritual altar, where I discuss this topic on YouTube
Or you can also listen to the audio on Spotify or wherever you enjoy your podcasts
Where the Magic Happens
I have set up a little altar in my living room, which is compact but equipped with a meditation cushion, yoga mat, candle, incense, crystals, mala, singing bowl, notebooks, and creative supplies for my Bullet Journal and Artist’s Dates.
Elements of the Ritual
Moving & Breathing – Yoga
The habit that started it all, helps me be able to move and teach, mitigating pain, providing part of the maintenance that constitutes my physical therapy regimen, as well as anchoring in the present moment.
Sitting in Stillness – Meditation
After establishing my daily yoga habit, I stacked just a little meditation on, allowing me to clear my mind, marinate in the comfortable state created by my yoga practice. Since then, I’ve continued to study different methods and expand my practice, but it all started with five minutes per day.
I keep a Bullet Journal (inspired by creators on YouTube and informed by The Bullet Journal Method by Ryder Caroll) for Annual/Monthly/Weekly planning, special projects and collections. Mixing up digital and analog helps me process information and come up with ideas.
For portability in my daily notetaking, including dreams, spontaneous ideas, my most important tasks, appointments, and habits, I have a pocket-sized journal.
Thanks to Julia Cameron’s “The Artist’s Way” program, I currently freewrite 3 “Morning Pages” every weekday, a wonderful venting session, palette cleanser, and frequent source of breakthrough ideas. In my coaching work, I also use a Clearing Exercise to help process through emotions and move powerfully forward. Whatever format it takes, writing can be a powerful practice for all creative people!
Focusing on the richness around me and my blessings has become an important component of my daily writing, in the form of thanksgiving in the Gratitude App in the morning, and abundance in my daily journal in the evenings.
Language Study
I practice my language skills every single day, and for the last few years that has been German. Having taken intensive courses in person in Cologne and then moved online during pandemic, I continue to build vocabulary and grammar skills through daily Duolingo.
Inspirational Reading
This varies from year-to-year and sometimes day-to- day and may include devotionals, scripture, inspirational nonfiction & prayers. In 2021 I read prayers from around the world in Light the Flame, and I also read from the Bible, Quran, meditation and spiritual teachings.
Spiritual growth, wisdom, and perspective are part and parcel of my practices and impact my choices and habits from morning ritual to business.
Inspiring Listening
This year I’ve added classical music appreciation, with the help of the book Year of Wonder and companion playlist.
Morning Manifesto
Inspired by Seana Barbes, this is also a new piece this year, combining some of my existing practices that are meant to keep me present to my purpose and priorities, as well as future visioning, alignment with sources of identity and inspiration, and tuning into subconscious programming.
Breakfast
It’s very important to me, and depending on the day will fall somewhere in the middle or end of my morning ritual.
Rituals are Personal
Just because these are the activities that feed my creative spirit doesn’t mean they are right for everybody, and I understand that taking this amount of time in the morning is a privilege, but I intend this exploration an invitation for you to tweak or design your own ritual, even if it’s just 5 minutes to be with yourself and prepare for the day.
Resources for further morning fun
Julia Cameron The Artist’s Way book, program to unlock creativity
Sharon Salzberg Real Happiness book, program to learn Lovingkindness meditation
Clemency Burton-Hill Year of Wonder: Classical Music for Every Day book and playlist
Andrew Harvey Light the Flame: 365 Days of Prayer book
What can you remove from your morning ritual to help you feel more present and focused?
What small habit could you add to inspire your days?
Blythe Stephens, MFA, Bliss Catalyst she/her or they/them Creator of A Blythe Coach: dance through your difficulties and take leaps of faith into a joyful, fulfilling life @ablythecoach
Do you ever feel distracted, floaty, overwhelmed, or disconnected? Creating a stable, grounded, foundation is the first step in building a supportive yoga practice, dancing posture, and well-designed yet flexible life.
Whether I am teaching yoga, ballet, or dance, working with coaching clients, or setting up for success in my own day, week, or year, the first step is to create a solid foundation for all knowledge and skills to build upon. In fact, getting grounded was the topic of my very first podcast, even before I started this blog:
I find that yoga and meditation are key to my own sense of grounding and presence, and I have collected many practices, resources, and other sources of support.
Well-being is critical to the work of learning and growth, so please utilize all your resources of support to your physical and mental health. You ultimately determine which practices are right for you, so keep in mind that what I’m sharing here are just examples of practices that I enjoy in my work with my own coaches, clients, and students.
I am on this journey too and would love to hear about what you do to develop a grounded state of being on which you build a life you love!
Start on a Strong Foundation
My coaching & teaching process goes through stages, but like life it is not truly linear. Rather, the framework is more a step-by-step opening up of territory that then can be traversed freely, all stages benefiting from being regularly revisited whenever needed in the future.
In order to build a solid foundation, stage one in my process involves situating ourselves in a stable, rooted way, using those tools which help us as individuals to sense our connection to the earth, in the body (somatically), mind, and spirit. In this blog I suggest some ideas about fostering groundedness and stability, and I will be sure to offer others in the future as my own practice develops. My hope is that you will be inspired to explore what works best for you personally.
Once we reach this solid ground, we can build further structures of support for our creative journey, including centering around our purpose, orienting toward our vision, designing projects around our mission, and connecting with others in community.
Root Chakra & Correspondences
I personally enjoy working with correspondences, making connections between desired states and how to foster them. In terms of grounding, in yoga philosophy we speak about facilitating functioning of the Muladara or Root Chakra, associated with the legs and lower body, stability, survival, the element of earth, and the color red.
“When the root chakra is functioning optimally and is in healthy alignment, we have an inner sense of security, which manifests as clear thinking and good concentration, which allows us to set goals and prioritize and carry out tasks in order to achieve those goals. A healthy, balanced root chakra lends to a calm, steady, and graceful energy that we can harness to remain grounded yet flexible during transitional periods, and to be resourceful and courageous during more challenging times.” (_Chakras and Self Care_ p.30)
Grounding Stones to play with if you enjoy such things and have access: Bloodstone, Hematite, Smoky Quartz, Red Tiger’s Eye, Garnet (_Chakras and Self Care_ p.31)
Grounding Oils to play with if you like: Lavender, Frankincense, Sandalwood, Vetiver, Patchouli
Affirmations: “I am,” “I am my Essence,” “I trust in the process,” “I nurture myself and life nurtures me”
Grounding Meditation
This brief meditation is a repeatable practice to bring a sense of stability, mindfulness, and relaxation into your life, developing a solid foundation for better performance and enjoyment of the present moment.
Here are instructions for a grounding meditation, also available in audio format as Podcast 080 above, and video on YouTube, below:
Get situated as comfortably as possible sitting on the floor, a cushion, or chair. Creating a strong sense of foundation (you may also practice standing if you prefer, and focus on contact between your feet and the floor), close or softly focus your eyes.
Bring your attention to your seat (or feet), your sit-bones as they reach toward the surface below you and the stable triangle of contact between your pelvis, legs, feet and the earth. Feel your connection and how gravity is drawing you near to the mass of the earth.
Feel yourself sending energetic roots down, and the earth pressing up, sending your head up and creating length and space in your spine with as little effort as possible. Allow your palms to root down onto your thighs or knees, arms hanging loosely from the shoulders, head resting level on the neck.
Take any mindful, organic movements that you need in the moment, such as gentle head, shoulder, ribcage, or wrist circles or easy stretches. Align your body so your natural architecture rests onto the foundation below.
Once you are in an easy, stable, well-rooted position, bring your attention to the flow of your breath. Visualize your breath as coming up from the center of the Earth, through your roots beneath the surface of the ground you are on, and finally entering through your body as you inhale.
As you exhale, visualize your breath flooding your body and then going down to your seat or the soles of your feet, into the roots beneath the ground, and deep into Earth’s core.
Continue to visualize your connection to the Earth below, your breath traveling through you and your support, and silently affirm, “I am grounded, I am stable, I am safe.”
Repeat for as many breath cycles as desired or you have time for, then gently re-enter your space, open your eyes, and bring this sense of earthy, stable groundedness into the rest of your day or evening.
In my coaching work, we build a foundation in many ways, one of which is our timeless, unconditional Essence, which we distinguish through the Essence Exercise. This helps us know what we can be counted on to “bring to the party of life” in every moment and it fuels all of our work.
Other foundational coaching tools we may use include identifying the functioning of our Survival Mechanism, tracking healthy habits, developing Self-Care and Leader-Care Checklists, and Acknowledgement amongst others.
Curious to see what this looks like in a coaching context and how it might benefit you as you navigate the current changes in your life? Then schedule a Discovery Call with me and experience the process firsthand!
Reflecting on Rootedness
How’s your own sense of stability and grounding? It may be instructive to talk with a coach or confidante or write in your journal about these or other Questions for Reflection:
What are the foundations of your life? How stable are they?
How secure do you feel about your home life, work life, and finances?
How do you deal with change?
Do you feel you deserve what you want in life?
Do you feel supported in manifesting your goals? By whom/what?
Sources
Accomplishment Coaching Coaches Training Program Teacher Training with yogaloft Teaching People Not Poses: 12 Principles for Teaching Yoga with Integrity by Jay Fields Chakras & Self-Care: Activate the Healing Power of Chakras with Everyday Rituals by Ambi Kavanagh and Poppy Jamie
Blythe Stephens, MFA & Bliss Catalyst she/her or they/them Creator of A Blythe Coach @ablythecoach helping multi-passionate creatives dance through their difficulties, taking leaps of faith into fulfillment through coaching, yoga & dance education
DISCLAIMER: A Blythe Coach recommends that you consult your physician regarding the applicability of any recommendations and follow all safety instructions before beginning any exercise program. When participating in any exercise or exercise program, there is the possibility of physical injury. If you engage in this exercise or exercise program, you agree that you do so at your own risk, are voluntarily participating in these activities, assume all risk of injury to yourself.
I’m so excited to introduce you to one of my most influential yoga teachers and friend Agi Fry, creator of Agi Ageless Living! I first came to Agi’s Gentle Yoga classes in Honolulu, Hawai’i while injured, and they included many senior citizens and folks with assorted injuries and physical limitations. What struck me was how she was able to provide many effective modifications and variations to yoga poses, meeting participants where they were while providing support and challenge for all.
I grew stronger and more balanced through Agi’s yoga classes, was able to keep dancing and teaching (and riding a motorcycle…), and was inspired to pursue my long-time desire to do a yoga teacher training once I moved to Germany in part due to Agi’s influence. She has an intuitive way of knowing what students need and also skill in seeing what they are capable of beyond their fear, current challenges, or perceived limitations.
A lifelong learner, Agi is always deepening her knowledge and experience and passing it along to students. Most recently her online hub is on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/agisagelessliving/ You can also direct questions, inquire about her Somatics Booklet, or get a link for a free class with Agi by email at info@agisagelessliving.com
On the podcast, linked below in audio and video formats, we talk about what brought Agi to yoga, her lineage of teachers and connection to yoga philosophy, using it as a tool to balance the nervous system, relax, and heal, student-centered pedagogy, bringing things forth from the inside rather than putting them “on”, recovering from pain and trauma, her flight from the Hungarian revolution as a child, balancing multiple responsibilities and interests, bucket lists, and more.
02:00 Agi started practicing yoga in the Napa Valley in 1978, at that time the poses were all taught in Sanskrit and she just had to try to follow along imitating the shapes the instructor made.
“After having stretched and then gotten to the relaxation, it was the relaxation that said to me, ‘you gotta do this,’ because for the first time in my life, there was just enough parasympathetic/sympathetic nervous system unity, that I could relax. That’s what brought me to yoga, that ability to balance the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous system and see the result of that in my mind… it was an aha moment.”
03:38 Yoga lineage: Iyengar Institute was leading force in yoga in the area (Pattabhi Jois came later), Angela Farmer and others provided new perspectives, 10-day silent retreat with Goenkaji from Burma (traditional Buddhist meditation) changed the whole relationship of the body and the breath, started working with teachers who were a little less strident, not ego-driven, many other teachers, month in an ashram in Fallsburg, Himalayan Institute. Danger of teaching postures rather than students, our shared value of student-centered instruction.
“In general, you do have to watch that. If you’re young and you’re able to do the postures, you think you’re doing yoga. […]There was breath training and there was some philosophy, but that really didn’t compensate for the over-emphasis on these postures well, or at least the American versions.”
8:20“It’s a lifetime journey and if you look at it that way it kind of changes your need to hurry.” (This is something I say to my own students again and again, because I know how frustrating it can be to try to “achieve” the poses and we can tend to forget it is about the process in this moment and not superficial outcomes).
Asana, Pranayama, Meditation & Philosophy
10:34Asana as preparation for breathwork and meditation:
“If you’re doing really good work with your asanas, if you don’t leave the breath out of it, then the pranayama already starts the purification, because every time you’re inhaling and exhaling and connecting it to the body and watching, and you know watch where the breath is, watch where the breath is. Then already when you sit down to do pranayama you already have a little understanding that the pranic body is huge, it’s bigger than the physical body, right? You can feel that. And then the body with the physical yoga (or even somatic yoga) you to let go of those tensions so that the body cleanses naturally.”
Person-Centered Teaching & Learning
11:17Observing & bringing things forth from the inside, focusing, rather than “putting things on:”
“It isn’t a force thing. We always want to put everything on ourselves, right?, instead of watching what happens: ‘What happened when I did that, trying a pose? My whole chest opened, what happened there? I had the capacity to breath from the base of my spine to the top of my chest…I couldn’t do that when I came into class…’”
11:46“Then when you sit down for meditation, you are prepared because your body–we are not meditating per se, we are getting our body ready for that–we are growing that field. You know, we’re doing what the Bhagavad Gita [classic yogic philosophy text] did: you have the body as the field and you cultivate it, cultivating the body to do the opening, to do the meditation, to do the release. It’s not the other way around. In the west we think we can control it, we’re going to put it on our body, and we’re going to just do it.”
“It’s that idea that we’re cultivating this field, which is our body, for all of these practices which then bring us home. And then we have creativity… we’re not locked down, we’re flow, we have confidence, we have things that we can’t get other ways.”
Sustainable & Sustaining Practices
14:11Cultural ideas about aging, sustainable practice:
“Coming to a place when you’re 72 and feeling like, ‘ok, I’m really not aging in ways that I thought I would be’–because we all hold that aging concept, right? The culture looks at old people and they’re leaning over, and they have a cane, and they can barely walk, and they’re shuffling their feet–you know that aging concept is all over the world and nobody gets free of that–but if you can stop that then you will see what the power of the yoga stuff is, yoga the breathing stuff, the meditation.”
Moderation: ”It doesn’t have to be this massive amount like people think, even if you just do it for 20 minutes a day. People think ‘ugh, I gotta do it for two hours… The beautiful thing that I love about the philosophy is: the body wasn’t meant for that, it was meant for nice stretches, and detoxifying and breathing, it was meant to eat the right food, it was meant to meditate… it wasn’t meant to like (panting) ‘I am the yoga marathon.”
Ideas about aging, expectations, approaches to yoga sequencing – exhaust the body and then rest at the end, or pauses between poses, relaxing without exhaustion, keeping focus on the breath.
“Exhaustion is not the same as conscious relaxation. And savasana is meant for conscious relaxation, you know it’s part of the yoga nidra kind of concept where you’re still awake, but you’re going deeper and deeper and deeper.”
21:39Incorporating yin and restorative yoga styles, feeling good:
“You want to feel good and you want to feel free! The whole concept of yoga is to create freedom in the body and in the mind and in the whole experience.”
Aging Successfully through Yoga & Somatics
22:42Yin Yoga & Somatics, Aging and Pain: even though Agi’s been teaching and practicing for decades, as she got older her body felt more limited, but she has since discovered solutions.
23:23 “I’ve always felt very committed to the physical aspect because it leads so well intothe wisdom, you know in my mind there’s no separation. So the somatic work, I started that because I really couldn’t get relief for my neck. I had seen yoga therapists, chiropractors, and everybody else … and I started working with a somatic teacher and instantly it changed.”
24:23Thomas Hanna’s theories on trauma, stress; difference between yoga and somatics: in yoga you’re stretching and in somatics you go to the source, you contract that source, and then you let it go, which lengthens it.
26:35“The promise of somatics is that you will wake up the amnesia in your body, the Sensory Motor Amnesia, that has locked down just from natural living more than forty/forty-five. Those contractions happen all the time, we don’t even really notice them: the contractions in the neck from at the computer, the long muscles of the back when you’re sleeping… all of those contract, and the simple exercises are to release those, let the body know ‘ok, we’re still here, we need your attention.’ Now when you have a trauma or an injury, that solidifies and there is really this whole process (of very simple exercises) to calibrate: ‘ok, we’re going to make this sensory-motor loop, I need you to get some information here, we’re going to open it up and then we begin to be free.’”
Trauma Responses & Finding Inner Freedom
27:41“It starts to bring that lightness to your body, that same kind of inner freedom you feel like everything is flowing, because when you’re young it doesn’t make any difference how much you weigh, right? You just feel weightless and free, right? But we have a huge expectation that we’re going to get old and we’re going to be somehow crippled… its not successful aging.”
29:42 Traumatic responses: Agi remembers escaping from Hungary during the revolution (as a child she Flew to the US on one of Eisenhower’s planes!), can get triggered by experiences such as fleeing California wildfires, had never released that trauma, the Somatics Basic SEven provided relief.
32:52 “That’s the miracle of being with yourself in an attentive way and also then recognizing how trauma can really affect your body.”
Awakening Intuition & Inspiration
33:25 “As you progress in this work, you get inspired, and it’s not your thinking, you just get downloaded: ‘here, say this.’” (aha, she too gets intuitive hits!)
33:39 Her future website will be a platform for travel blogging, including posting about somatics stuff, family heritage, we talk about balancing all of our interests and passions, she feels better when working, giving to students, contributing to society.
36:58 “The beauty of it is, you know, sitting with yourself and this will help. The practice helps, because I’ve been doing meditation online with my students too and this has been really helpful, and doing that is really just to sit with yourself and know what is really important now.”
Current Projects
38:42What she’s up to now: in Tahoe, changing rental laws, bucket lists, renewing citizenship in Hungary, a small country of 10 million people, but a big culture, would like more experiences there and in Europe.
Reach out to Agi at info@agisagelessliving.com for a free class and discover what yoga and somatics can do for you!
Questions for Inquiry
Do you practice yoga? If so, what brought you to the practice and what keeps you going?
Have you experienced any somatic modalities?
What have you healed through yoga or other movement practices?
From what pain are you currently seeking relief?
I’d love to hear your answers by direct message on Instagram @ablythecoach
Blythe C. Stephens, MFA, Bliss Catalyst, she/they A Blythe Coach: helping multi-passionate creatives dance through their difficulties & take leaps of faith into fulfillment through coaching, yoga, & dance education
DISCLAIMER: A Blythe Coach recommends that you consult your physician regarding the applicability of any recommendations and follow all safety instructions before beginning any exercise program. When participating in any exercise or exercise program, there is the possibility of physical injury. If you engage in this exercise or exercise program, you agree that you do so at your own risk, are voluntarily participating in these activities, assume all risk of injury to yourself.
I’m so excited to introduce you to my recent podcast guest, good friend, fellow dance educator and UNCSA alumnus as well as super-talented and wonderful guy, Matthew Donnell!
We talk about the highs and lows of being a multi-passionate jack-of-all-trades, his highlights as a professional ballet dancer, how to fall down and get back up again, the importance of révérence, character dance, and technique variety in ballet training, developing character in dancers and human beings, serving our communities, helping dancers find their voice, and assert that all people are valuable!
Matthew C. Donnell, a native of Mt. Airy, North Carolina, received his formal dance training from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) and the Rock School. Matthew danced with the Kansas City Ballet, performing soloist and principal roles by the great ballet and contemporary masters. Critically acclaimed, the Kansas City Star named Matthew 30 under 30 artists to watch.
Dancing has taken him to stages all over the world: including the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, performing with Young Tanzsommer in Austria, and entertaining the troops at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan.
Additionally, Mr. Donnell is an actor, singer, film maker, physical comedian (clown), and licensed Minister. His theater credits include Kansas City Starlight Theatre, Kansas City New Theatre, Houston Theatre Under the Stars, and the New York Musical Festival.
With partner Alana Niehoff, he wrote, produced, and performed in his one-man clown/physical comedy show The Chapeau Show in NYC benefitting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. His short film series, The Adventures of Jim has been screened in film festivals on the East and West Coasts.
He is a former member of the board of governors for the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA), the union that represents ballet and opera performers, and current faculty at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet (Matthew talks about CPYB and Marcia Dale Weary’s dedication to the art of teaching at 3:44 of the video below).
What follows are my favorite gems from our conversation, which I believe you will find valuable whether you are a dancer, performer, or creative in some other way.
Here is the video we captured talking on Zoom together during the holidays:
Matthew insists that he’s not a natural ballet dancer, but is instead guided by deep curiosity and desire to perform. He shared: “As a dancer I had to work really really hard. I have feet that were designed to be doorstops and I have the flexibility of a carrot.” (25:39)
He acknowledged the inherent difficulties of dancing, saying that “Everybody works hard as a dancer, from a recreational dance school to a professional-track dance school, there’s hard work, and I didn’t come by any of that easily, so every step was, ‘I want to see what’s the next thing, how much further can I get? Can I become a professional? … I knew I wanted to eat, because I like to eat, and I knew that you had to make money in order to do that, and I wanted to perform!” (26:20)
We have both learned to be persistent as well as open to the forms our careers take, pursuing childhood dreams but letting go of rigid expectations: “It might not look like, and it didn’t look like, the career that I had made up in my brain at age 13, but it far surpassed because I was given the chance to royally muck up and then make something of that.” (40:13)
Matthew’s successes seem to come from a combination of curiosity, hard work, luck, and privilege, which he fully acknowledges: “I think it’s sloooowly–it’ll never get there in my lifetime, but it’s slowly, with all the steps that we’ve taken … no, that we are taking, towards equality, that I hope to be a part of, that it may be getting, like a little tiny speck of light better, but it’s still very much a boy’s club in ballet. I was able to take full advantage of that and I don’t hide that. So I know when I’m sharing something that I was able to laugh at, because I fell, to a young lady who sees that as the end of her career and she’s going to get judged, there’s deep scars that have put that in her mind that I didn’t have to deal with.” (28:09)
“The” Fall, How to Get Back Up
Matthew’s infamous “Nutcracker” fall on video – the slow motion gets me every time!
Speaking of letting go of expectations and recovering from disappointment, getting up from falling (both literally and metaphorically) is a theme that I wanted to discuss, having witnessed Matthew’s ability to recover with grace. (24:50) I admire Matthew’s transparency, resiliency, and grace when falling or “failing,” but he demurs, saying “I don’t know any other way to be. Where you might so kindly refer to that as resilience, it’s just kind of survival.” (25:39) Add humility to the list of admirable traits!
Further, he’s made this amazing video into a teaching moment, asking “Why not show everybody that you fell on your butt in front of 2,000 people? Now, when my students fall on stage and it’s the worst moment of their life I can go, ‘careful, you should just be happy I didn’t catch that on video, you would’ve been famous!’ And then while they’re crying about their fall, they’re also laughing and learning that you can get up.” (27:13)
This experience allows him to coach younger dancers to also get back up, learn, and focus on the positive: “I told the dancer backstage, she was really upset because she had tripped or slipped or fallen or something, I said ‘You’re not going to remember that, you’re gonna remember the double pirouette that you nailed, and you’re going to remember how exciting that felt. You can remember that if you choose, you know, as a negative, or…” (27:39)
Although we enjoy making light of “the fall” that was captured on video, it’s important to acknowledge the very real fears of falling, failure, and injury for dancers: “It’s easy for me to laugh at that now, it happened in 2009 and I was even able to laugh about it right after because I was trying so hard to transition, but in the moment it was kind of scary and it took me a minute to get back on the horse in the subsequent shows. Because you’re always afraid you’re going to fall!” (32:11)
Matthew related: “I was doing Bugle Boy in Paul Taylor’s ‘Company B,’ which is the hardest variation I’ve ever done, as far as, it’s all jumping, and the very final moment I’m going straight downstage doing this snapping kicking movement … my knee bobbled and that was the moment where I remembered that I hadn’t eaten sufficiently that day–[I scolded myself:] ‘you just almost blew a knee because you were shaky!'” (33:18)
Performance memories together
In our discussion of fear and fearlessness in dancing, we enjoyed reminiscing about our experience performing in “The Merry Widow” Operetta with the Piedmont Opera, our first “paid gig” while still at UNCSA! That production was truly a favorite. (34:20)
Backstage with the other dancers ready for act III of “The Merry Widow” with the Piedmont Opera, Directed by Dotty Danner, Winston-Salem, NC 1999
Ballet Career Highlights
Speaking of his professional ballet career, Matthew summarized: “I love Kansas City Ballet and am so proud of some of the things that they have done… Two things in my career that I will loudly proclaim that I am proud of and one is that fall, and the other one is the successful unionization of Kansas City Ballet and making the call to get that ball rolling because now the dancers since 2007-8, we already had a good contract, but we ensured that they would have a great contract for the history of that company and that helped those dancers start learning to have a voice for themselves.” (48:45)
In particular, helping dancers find their voices and teaching students that they and their time are valuable resonated for me, and Matthew broke it down:
“Most people will have a conversation with you. Managers and directors want to have the best product. Dancers want to have the best product, where’s the disconnect? If you can put a mechanism in place that allows both parties to work together, that’s so important. (49:29)
I try to teach students that, too. That’s why my class doesn’t go over. I end my class on time. I want the dancers to learn I end my rehearsals on time, I want the dancers to learn that their time is valuable. Yes, I’ve gone over before, I’m not perfect, I’m not hating on anybody who goes over, but for me, for my choice, I want the dancers to know they are valued because we have value. We have value as non dancers!” (49:47)
Let’s reiterate that: Dancers have value. Our time is valuable. All people are valuable!
Speaking & the advantages of Media Training
Also related to dancers finding their voices and learning to speak well, we laughed over the difficulty of speaking eloquently on-the-spot, with my podcast recordings and subsequent editing a case in point. Matthew shared the benefits of Media/PR training, having been coached by his former-Rockette wife, Alana Niehoff in the skills: “Otherwise dancers don’t get this training, but fortunately there are people who are good at teaching such things.” (21:50)
I have seen the benefits of such training in action, having seen the Rockettes dance, and representatives speak on their behalf, for years. Last November, as they were returning to performing live again having cancelled the “Christmas Spectacular” the previous December for the first time in their history, the Rockettes performed on The Today Show, linked here.
Referring to the appearance and the “Christmas Spectacular” itself, Matthew shared: “This show definitely holds a special place in our family’s heart, and I’m so happy it’s back on. I also get a tingle of happiness seeing my friend (and one of my first students from my early teaching days) Melinda Moeller nail the interview! Alana has taught me what incredible PR training RC gives, and this is a prime example!”
Stagecraft & Artistry
Although we appreciate the importance of sound technique, both Matthew and I hold artistry in high regard, and one example of this is the importance of révérence in ballet class. Matthew stated (and I agree!), “Dancers get so stuck in the technical aspects of what we do. One of the things that I was really taught by a teacher or two was the art of taking the reverence at the end of ballet class. A lot of teachers don’t choose to do that in American schools. You’ll always see it in Russian schools at the beginning and at the end of class. I at least try to do it, I would say 99.9% of the time I will always make sure that there is 30 seconds for at least bowing to stage right, stage left, balcony, you know, and students and just finishing. That is my chance to teach a little bit of stagecraft, of the artistry.” (38:37)
I can so relate to this feeling, of wanting to ensure that your students learn that experience of practicing artistry and not getting hung up on their their technical successes or failures: “I catch myself, I’m like: ‘uh-oh, you’re giving maybe more monologue than you’re giving a combination right now…’ But when I know that a dancer is going to get pounded with technique, as they should, in another class, I need them to learn how to be a person, too. So that they don’t go home at the end of the day and go, ‘That sucked, I couldn’t do that pirouette, ugh, ugh, ugh…’ I want them to go, ‘You know what? Tomorrow is another day and that’s going to be better, but I am going to be a better person because I am learning how to persevere, I am learning how to be an artist.'” (40:31)
We share a teaching philosophy that includes the whole artist and person, as Matthew put it, “There are so many technicians out there, we need to make sure that we are training artists. And heck with that, let’s make sure that we’re training good people.” (40:31)
Character Dance and Developing Character
Training artists includes the stagecraft, history, and artistry discussed above, as well as versatility of dance styles. Matthew talks about the increased integration of ballet and modern dance at UNCSA, CPYB’s Hip Hop and Precision Jazz offerings (in addition to the core ballet syllabus), and character dance, saying we don’t want to create “One Trick Ponies.”
Some of Matthew’s most-loved roles have included characters such as Drosselmeier and Mother Ginger in “The Nutcracker.” This most recent holiday season, he appeared as Mother Ginger on stilts in the CPYB production. (11:45)
Matthew is also a proponent of character dance training for ballet dancers: “Character, that’s something that I’m very passionate about, and I have so much to learn, but I do teach character dance and I’m grateful that I get to teach it because that’s something that isn’t taught a lot in the current generation … and it’s so important, how it gets passed on because if we don’t do it, then it will die, and then most dancers are going to get into a ballet company and they’re not going to do Odette/Odile right out the gate, you know, they’re going to do character work!” (43:11)
As important as training well-rounded and employable dancers is to us, fostering good and interesting people is also a key goal. As Matthew put it: “Let our generation be the generation that made artists that people like. Not just as social media personalities and influencers, but I want to sit down and have a coffee with that person, you know, I want to know about them.” (41:16)
Multi-passionate Jack-of-all-Trades
I have admired Matthew’s apparent ability, from my vantage point, to pursue and somehow balance a variety of different passions and interests, so I asked him how he does it, and he explained that it has do do with “moments in time,” and being able to overcome a sense of insecurity or impostor syndrome that can come from dabbling in many different specialties. (7:10)
Matthew showed admirable vulnerability and perspective in his explanation of pursuing a multi-passionate life: “I used to joke around, in my clowning side of my life (that you witnessed, because you used to see me ride my unicycle all over campus) that I had all these toys, all of these juggling toys, that I could do a little bit with. So, that whole ‘jack of all trades, master of none,’ that’s kind of how I feel, and if I’m honest that’s a huge insecurity of mine. So I think that what I may project into the world, that’s where the balance is. It’s like, how do I try to be as good as I can at what I’m doing while at the same time I’m feeling like, ‘Gosh, I know there are so many people that are better teachers… I know that there are so many people that are better clowns… I know there are so many people that are better dancers…’ and then you can let yourself go [exploding sound]! So what I try to do, is I try to flip that around and go, ‘Chill out, you might not be able to juggle five, but you can juggle three. And it is a juggling act, you know, life.” (8:03)
The drive to learn such an array of skills has always been present for Matthew: “I’ve always had all of these things that I’ve wanted to do. I’ve always wanted to write a book, and in my lonely youth, I would write romantic poetry. I kept all of those things, because they’re so embarrassing.” (9:45)
Recently, Matthew is learning to juggle his love of performing, teaching, and fatherhood: “I love teaching, and I love and miss performing, and at the same time, I love my family. That’s the newest thing. That’s the hardest and most rewarding role I’ve ever played. And that is so cliché and everybody and their uncle says it, but it’s TRUE!” (9:14)
We can all learn the lesson of appreciating and enjoying what we can do and enjoy practicing, rather than comparing ourselves to others or focusing on what is still to learn and master. That said, we do feel a sense of urgency to do and learn what we can in our lives, as Matthew pointed out, midlife crises are real, and he’s trying to hone in on what is important at this stage. (10:40)
Published Author, Frustrated Actor & Philanthropist
I was curious about how Matthew’s book, _The Boy with the Patch_, came into being, and he explained that it had to do with a longtime desire to write a book combined with his dancing and acting experiences:
“Everything kind of goes back to ballet for me. When I was a little kid, my first ‘Nutcracker,’ I think I was twelve, and I fell in love with the role of Herr Drosselmeier and I wanted to be Drosselmeier and the people that played that role at the School of the Arts, I just looked up to them and one of them was an actor who had transitioned into ballet. And so I thought, ‘ooh, that’s cool, because I was a dancer that wanted to transition into acting someday, and I didn’t know that you could do both! So I would try to race around, with my cape around my legs like the Drosselmeier did in that production, and I just started imagining being Drosselmeier, and then the opportunity arose early in my career to take on that role, so I’d say for about 8-9 years of my 10 at Kansas City Ballet I played that part and I was coached by Todd Bolender, who was a legendary dancer for George Balanchine, and I was one of the last people he coached in that… it gave me these different visualizations.”
He continued, “I created backstory for myself of what this person was, and when I was living in New York after I had retired from dancing, I sat down, and I was getting really burned out from auditioning, you know because ballet is such that you can say, ‘hey, I can do five pirouettes,’ ‘yeah? Show me…okay, you got the job.’ Alright, a lot of times, especially as a guy… (It’s much more challenging now, because there are so many good dancers). Theatre, it was once explained to me, that if you’re a casting director and you have a vision of what Cinderella looks like in your mind, you can wait until she walks in the door. It doesn’t matter how many hundreds of thousands of people, you can wait until she walks in the door. So I wasn’t getting cast a lot in things and I couldn’t understand and I was getting really burnt out because I didn’t have a creative outlet, and I just sat down one day and wrote, ‘I wonder what Drosselmeier would be like as a little boy,’ based on the things that I had put into my character i created the story and I read it to a buddy of mine and he was like, ‘Matthew, you should turn this into a book!’ (14:24)
The writing process was one thing, publishing quite another, as Matthew recounted: “It took seven years, but I finally ended up in Carlisle Pennsylvania and saw on Facebook that there was a small–I had gotten rejected by every publisher, agent that you could–and I saw that there was this small (they’re not small to me) not-for profit organization that their mission is to support writers, artists, and musicians financially.” (17:23) So they raised the money to publish the book through Go Fund Me to help fund people who are struggling.
Matthew explained that he didn’t self-publish his first book for ego reasons and has since learned better: “For some reason in my mind, I didn’t know much about self-publishing, but I just knew that my first book, for my ego, I wanted somebody else to publish it, because to me that meant that somebody saw what I had done enough to take it on. And again, 100% ego, I have since learned that there’s NOTHING wrong with self-publishing! So in a month we over-raised and then it got published.” (18:25)
Matthew sums up: “It was kind of my labor of love, and I love that people have it in different corners of the world and in a small way it’s helped support people in need,” he summarized. (19:30) I find it admirable that the effort of publishing would up being not just an act of ego, but of philanthropic community service, another through-line of Matthew’s career, which includes The Chapeau Show that he described so: “My wife and I did a show before I left New York that was to help me like, put clown material out there… ‘I want to make some money on it, but I don’t want to keep it,’ so I donated that to Broadway Cares Equity Fights Aids and so it was sort of a win-win: I didn’t feel bad for having people come and give ten bucks, in case I sucked.” (19:47) Quite the contrary, folks seem to enjoy both the clowning and the writing in addition to his dancing performances.
Transitioning to teaching, learning from our education
Speaking of wanting to have his work be appreciated, Matthew realized, “I guess that’s what teaching is for me now. It’s a weird place to be as a performer, because I still very much feel like a performer even if I only do, you know, Mother Ginger for a couple performances or Drosselmeier a couple times in a season… You kind of feel like you’re holding on to your favorite toy and you don’t want to share it, but yet you know you need to.” (20:50)
We reflected on how our training during those days at UNCSA has impacted us in our current role as dance educators, still using some combinations we learned then, though we recently had to consider things deeply as accusations came to light about trusted teachers. Thankfully the training and history remain, they didn’t invent ballet and the knowledge taught us to become dancers. “It’s my job to pass down the perfect parts of imperfect people.” (37:00)
He stated, “What I bring to the studio from my training at NCSA is the joy that I had in just being there, surrounded by artists, and the teachers that I had that gave me the confidence that this unflexible, imperfect person could maybe have a career.” (38:37)
Several times during our chat, Matthew expressed his gratitude for the career and life he’s been blessed with: “I’ve been very lucky.” May we all have the chance to feel such curiosity, inspiration, generosity, courage, perseverance, personal expression, and thankfulness.
Questions for Inquiry
Where do you struggle with feeling like an amateur, imposter, or inferior when learning & practicing new skills?
What would you try if you weren’t afraid of failing?
What passions are waiting to be expressed?
How are you working to find and express your voice?
How can your artistry benefit others?
Thanks again to Matthew for taking the time to share his story with me! Definitely check out Matthew’s website matthewdonnell.com as well as his current teaching with the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, and come visit me on social media @ablythecoach!
Blythe C. Stephens, MFA, Bliss Catalyst, she/they, Creator A Blythe Coach: helping multi-passionate creatives dance through their difficulties & take leaps of faith into fulfillment through coaching, yoga, & dance education
This year has had its share of challenges and triumphs, both personal and collective. For me, it started with two funerals in January, continuing with ongoing pandemic and not being able to visit home, my girlfriend’s knee injury and surgery and more. Despite circumstances, it’s also been a joyful and accomplished year. I celebrated 40 years on Earth, was granted a 2-year work visa, and grew as an educator and person among other happy memories.
I think it’s important to look back and celebrate my wins, strategizing what’s missing, what I can let go, and what I will re-commit to creating in terms of my habits, action steps, plans and milestones to foster my success in designing a creative and bountiful 2022.
2021 Stand: Abundance & Contentment / Reichtum & Zufriedenheit; overall, my sense of satisfaction is high thanks to the strength of my mindfulness and gratitude practices, and I am so thankful that I have weathered the pandemic with my health and grown in the process. I am abundantly provided for and competent to take each next step. Purpose: Joy; Essence: Buoyant, Creative, Curious, Love, Leader Mission: to inspire and equip dancers and liberated citizens Vision: supporting students/clients/colleagues/community to live extraordinary lives through dance and yoga education and coaching
GLOWS: most proud of from 2021
Consistently creating new content, including my weekly blog, podcast, video, email newsletter, and social media (was inspired to do “Daily Dispatches” when I read Austin Kleon’s Show Your Work!)
Connecting with inspiring people online, particularly on IG and YouTube
Being a guest on Lisa Hylton’s “Brighten Your Day” Podcast
Appearing in HK Dance Magazine
Started producing podcasts where I interview guests: Virginia Holte, Jolynne Anderson, Fumi Somehara, Kai Iguchi (and more to come!)
Photo shoot with Marina Weigl
One year as a certified yoga teacher, deepened yoga and meditation practices, teaching in English and German
Helping Ela with her knee injury, surgery, and recovery
Creative work and care of my Artist Child: monthly altars, Artist Dates, sketching, blowing bubbles, crafting, experimenting with new media (watercolor pencils), stamps, BuJo, Pen Palling
Keeping up my 2021 Haiku Poetry Project, on track for 365 poems and 52 weekly blogs (may reflect on that experience in a future blog…)
My Yoga for Sleep, Energy, and Rest/Relaxation Blogs, “Cinderella,” “Hansel & Gretel,” “The Nutcracker,” Dancing Body Acceptance, Dancing Recovery from Eating Disorders, and other blogs
What is So: Project Results
Business and Finance Goal – Creator, Supporting Others and Myself in the Process
A Blythe Coach YouTube Channel: 69 Videos, over 200 Subscribers (229 as of December 20th- how cool would it be to reach 250 by the end of the year?), over 500 hours of Watchtime. That was a big breakthrough! On the way to 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours watchtime…
A Blythe Coach Blog: published 45 blogs (this is #45 of 2021), got started on SEO tracking and metrics to optimize
A Blythe Coach Podcast: Hit one year as a podcaster, produced 40 podcasts (#033-077) in 2021, 1,199 total plays as of December 20th.
A Blythe Coach Social Media: producing “Daily Dispatches” fairly consistently, enjoy creating an aesthetically attractive feed with photos and inspiring quotes, 315 Facebook page likes (this number has gone down slightly), 141 IG followers.
******** HUGE THANKS to those of you who have been following me on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, the Blog and/or the Podcast: it means a lot! ********
Slower growth in these areas than I had expected or hoped for, but nonetheless growing with time, especially on YouTube have started getting more comments, likes, and engagement.
Renewed my US Passport from abroad in May
Granted a 2-Year Arbeitsvisum (German work visa) in June
COVID-19 Vaccinated in June, booster in November
Turned 40!
One Year Teaching Yoga since my YTT ended October 2020, improved my teaching live, online, & recorded
Teaching Dance & Yoga online, live & hybrid
German B1.1 with Lingoda (started the year at A2.2), finished Duolingo German Tree (working on “Legendary” to keep in practice)
Reading Challenge – 51 books read out of my goal of 30 and I have so so many more that I want to read in the next year! If you use Goodreads, I’d love to be connected there and I also recommend Libby for borrowing digital library books and Bookbub for discounts on Kindle/electronic editions. A few favorites from this year in Fiction: revisited cozy mysteries such as _The Cat Who_ and continued the _Vampire Knitting Club_ series, _Less_, _People You Meet on Vacation_, _City of Girls_, and _The Signature of All Things_; Nonfiction: _The Bullet Journal Method_, _Real Happiness_, _Everything is Figureoutable_, _Show Your Work!_, _Steal Like an Artist_, _Keep Going_, _Creative Quest_, _Big Magic_, _Eat, Pray, Love_, _Intuitive Eating_, _Every Body Yoga, _Yoga Where You Are_, _The F*ck It! Diet_, _Intuitive Eating_.
Writing & Publishing – weekly A Blythe Coach Blog, Haiku Challenge & Blog on-track, pretty strong on writing daily (morning pages and content to share), but not moving ahead toward publishing anything as quickly as I’d like.
Yoga Practice & Study, Pranayama, Ayurveda, Adaptive Yoga, Chakras, Alchemy & Elements on-track, still working on arm balances and handstands in the New Year.
Fitness – consistent PT & mini-workout (1-2x/week), a little bit less workouts in cold/sick fall, have been playing with Handstands at the wall in the second half of the year, but no progress on Pull-Ups…
Meditation Challenges & Study – Deepak Chopra 21-Day Program completed in June- July, another one in October-November, did Sharon Salzberg’s Real Happiness 28-Day program, achieved 20 minutes daily, would like to work up to 30 in 2022. My meditation practice is different at different times- sometimes serene, others scattered, but I’m learning from it all. As one of Salzberg’s friends confessed: “‘I’ve been meditating for about three years now,’ he said, ‘and I’d have to say honestly that my experience when I’m sitting in meditation isn’t what I thought it would be or should be. I still have ups and downs; my mind wanders and I start over; I still have bouts of sleepiness or restlessness. But I’m like a completely different person now. I’m kinder and more patient with my family and friends, and with myself.’ […]” The effects are felt more broadly than while sitting in meditation.
Poetry – I am on track to write 365 Haiku Poems for my daily challenge this year, have kept a weekly blog of what I wrote, as well as learning about other poetic forms and reading new selections. Considering weekly Sonnets or Limericks or other playful poetry challenges for 2022.
Music – taught myself/created tabs for “Hawaiian Lullabye,” learned “Danny Boy” on Harmonica
Financial Plan – not meeting all targets, but tracking income and expenditures, re-read _Your Money or Your Life_, aware of Minimum Viable Income, targets, developing business strategy, student loan interest in deferment during COVID, some increase in teaching over the summer, kept up social media marketing, pursued opportunities as they presented themselves
Friendship (intentionally reaching out more) & Love Letters – have been letting correspondence slide, but some improvement in reaching out to friends for birthdays and at random, mostly electronic, still have a Pen Pal project goal, enjoyed wine weekend in Koblenz, art gallery openings, book readings, Pride/Christopher Street Day & Dyke March.
Fun, Festivity, Recipes & Food – strong in this area! Meals together, pick a new dish to try each month (salads, goulash, corn soup…), Feierabends, restaurants & cafes when open in June, epic birthday celebration, book reading, Fall Wine Weekend in November, Petra’s birthday, Adventsbrunch, bought tickets to “The Nutcracker,” and to visit home in early 2022!
Relationship – nursed Ela during her knee injury, surgery, and recovery July-December plus, enjoyed our weekend getaways, time at home together, new films, shows, music, playing with the cat, lots of laughter and fun
Spirit & Magic – the yoga and meditation practices above, purposeful work, reading the Bible and Quran (slowly, around 10%), prayer & mindfulness practice, weekly Tarot card pull for intuition development (uncanny synchronicity!), Full Moon crystal charging, monthly altar decoration
Artist Child (originally inspired by Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way): crafting fun, dates, adventure pack, bicycling, rose gardens, watercolor pencils, stamps, BuJo, cardmaking, letter-writing
Podcast listening: Soul + Wit, The Connected Yoga Teacher, Marketing Yoga with Confidence, Sandwich Universe, Dark Side of the Mat, Tarot for the Wild Soul, Limitless Life, Brighten Your Day, The Bohemian Blonde…
Cooking & Baking: Vitamix, nice jars for salads, new recipes (Blueberry Muffins, Summer Corn Soup, ) old favorites (Pumpkin Muffins, Ginger Snaps)
Physical Therapy, working out, started body image/acceptance and ditching diet culture work!, self-care, well-being
MONTHLY THEMES & Topics
January: Starting Strong This month was about visioning, starting new goals & consistent habits (meditation 1-minute increase monthly to reach 20 minutes daily, daily poetry, gratitude, yoga, spiritual practices, etc.)
February: Self-Love In February, I focused on Artist’s Dates, Creativity, and self-care including cookie-baking, face masks, indulgent mani-pedis, bath bombs and the like.
March: Minimalism We mourned Momi’s passing at a beautiful funeral. I played the Minsgame with my paper clutter, etc. in March.
April: Minimal Fitness and Move Your Body (+ Poetry +Letter-Writing) This month I focused on my cross-training and physical therapy as well as doing spring cleaning (windows, fridge…). Celebrated Easter, International Dance Day, and the coming of spring.
May: Healthy Eating In May, I made a lot of smoothies (so glad to have a Vitamix blender again!) and jar salads to maximize my intake of fresh fruits and veg to nutrients for energy and immunity and I also planned recipes to try in the coming months. Renewed my US Passport (which was necessary for my work visa in June). Also published my first podcast with a guest interview, with my mentor Virginia Holte.
June: Open back up for my 40th Birthday! Renewed German Work Visa (for 2 years!), celebrated my birthday in the Ahr Valley (Heppingen), reflective Practice, midyear check-in.
July: Adaptive Adult Summer Dance Intensive, Dyke March
August:Rest & Recovery Cologne Pride!, Marco’s Memorial, reading about finance and considering context around money, abundance, richness. Also collaborated with a magazine for the first time, in HK Dance Magazine’s “Tutus & Tapas” article.
September: Yoga for Energy, Dancer Pose, Ela’s surgery (and our 3rd anniversary!)
October: Body-Positive I learned so much through continued reading and inspiring podcast interviews with Dieticians Fumi Somehara and Kai Iguchi. This will be an ongoing subject of study and growth in 2022!
November: Thankful Reveled in gratitude, did another inspiring interview with Jolynne Anderson, thankful for Coaching, Dancing and Joyful Movement, Warming Up, Connecting Steps. I started releasing the Dancing Body Acceptance miniseries episodes recorded the previous month.
Was also a guest for the first time on another podcast: “Brighten Your Day” “Much Thanks” episode released on Thanksgiving 🙂
December: Celebrating Christmas and festivals of light, End-of-Year Reflections, “The Nutcracker”
GROWS: What’s Missing / to learn
Not meeting my financial and savings goals (ok fair, it’s been pandemic and I’ve been trying to get established in a new country, but still an important goal that will carry forward)
Publishing Book (writing itself is progressing)
German Driver’s License (keep working with the App to help with the theoretical part, schedule First Aid, Eye Exam, Theoretical, and Practical portions)
Letter-Writing (carry Pen Palling forward as a hobby project)
Being able to do a pull-up (continue training?)
What’s NEXT in 2022
Committed to working with a business coach!
Putting myself out there as a coach in order to make more of an impact with my collected skills and abilities
Reach out to experts on book publishing, learn more about marketing
Keep going creating content, value, and sharing my process!
Continue to grow through my yoga, meditation, writing, dancing, reading/learning and creative processes
In the coming days I will celebrate Christmas, declare my Stand for 2022, and set up my Bullet Journal for January and beyond! See you here on the blog again then 🙂
“Every holiday season, throughout the land, Mirlitons, Candy Canes, and other treats bounce briskly through The Nutcracker’s Kingdom of the Sweets.” (The Ballet Companion p.158)
“The Nutcracker” ballet is such an epic part of Christmastime, though I know that everyone isn’t in love with the classic tale. It’s true that some find the first act’s formal dances and party traditions boring, and sometimes the second act’s character variations can veer into the racist and orientalist, but whatever legitimate complaints there may be, the ballet is now entrenched in winter culture nearly worldwide.
I can’t possibly provide an exhaustive account of such a dancing phenomenon, but I’d like to share some of the history and my own fascination with the music, dancing, costumes, and magical story. Hopefully it sparks a bit of your own childlike wonder, dreams, and fantasies as well as your grown-up appreciation of music, storytelling, and the art of dance.
Back at the time Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets was published in 1977, he said of The Nutcracker:
“It is another sign of how popular ballet has become that today many companies perform The Nutcracker. It has almost become a kind of annual Christmas ritual in many American and Canadian cities. Of course this was not always so. We used to rely on a touring company to give us a truncated version of this full-length work, a ballet people used to call Nutcracker Suite because they knew the music better than the ballet. Now that is all different. I have heard that more than fifty groups do this ballet. The one we do in New York every Christmas was first presented in 1954 and we have been doing it every year since.” (p.387)
More recently in A Child’s Introduction to Ballet, Laura Lee describes how the ballet has taken off: “The Nutcracker is a Christmas holiday favorite and the most popular ballet in America. There are more than 2,000 performances of it every year around the country. You will probably have a chance to see it someday–and maybe even dance in it yourself, since it has a lot of roles for young dancers.” (p.47)
In the introduction to The Story of the Nutcracker by E.T.A. Hoffmann, Adapted by Bob Blaisdell there is a little biographical information on Hoffmann:
“Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann (1776-1822) was one of the most prominent figures of nineteenth-century German literature and music. After studying law at the University of Koenigsberg, Hoffman held a number of civil-service posts, but his true vocation was artistic. During his civil-service career, Hoffman also made a name for himself in intellectual and artistic circles. His surviving musical works (many of his compositions have been lost) include ten operas, two symphonies, two masses, piano and chamber music, incidental music for plays and more.
Despite such prolific output, Hoffman is best known for his literary endeavors. His most famous works include stories such as ‘The Golden Flower Pot,’ ‘A New Year’s Eve Adventure’ and, of course, ‘Nutcracker and the King of Mice,’ upon which The Story of the Nutcracker is based. The original story, completed in 1816, first appeared in a collection of children’s Christmas stories, Kindermaerchen von C. W. Contessa, Friedrich Baron de la Motte Fouquer und E. T. A. Hoffmann. Though Hoffmann did not consider it a technical success–he felt it contained too many adult elements for a true children’s story–it has become a perennial favorite with young and old alike.” (The Story of the Nutcracker p.v)
I also learned about E.T.A. Hoffmann, Alexandre Dumas, Tchaikovsky and the gang in this “The History of the Nutcracker Ballet” video from The Dance Channel on YouTube. Nutcracker and the King of Mice/The Story of the Nutcracker by E.T.A. Hoffmann was published in 1816 and The Story of the Hazelnut Cracker by Alexandre Dumas in 1844, this version being proposed to Tchaikovsky in 1891.
Although I wasn’t willing to go all the way down the psychological rabbit hole, there was some interesting commentary on Hoffman in the reviewer’s description of Baryshnikov’s version of The Nutcracker in Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets: “Baryshnikov sees Hoffmann as a benevolent story teller, a giver of dreams like the Drosselmeyer this Nutcracker celebrates. ‘His tales,’ says Baryshnikov, ‘are full of his own cartoons and full of his own incredible feeling about being an artist.’ In fact, Hoffmann was a frustrated artist, misunderstood by his public and unhappy in his personal life. His stories are riddled with the grotesque and the violent, and they end, more often than not, in merciless imaginative revenges upon fictionalized enemies. The benevolence of Nutcracker comes partly from the lyric strain in Hoffmann, partly from Aledandre Dumas, who rewrote the original tale and changed its ending, and partly, of course, from Baryshnikov’s own fertile imagination. The revenge motif remains, giving this Nutcracker its most significant difference from all previous American productions, and bringing it a step closer to Hoffmann. Clara does dream of getting back at the adults who have hurt and frustrated her. Also the psychoanalytic meaning of the work’s title has been clarified by the changes Baryshnikov has made. But the grand difference is that for Clara, unlike Hoffmann, living well, or at least dreaming of living well, is the best revenge.” (p.394)
More recently, Matthew Donnell’s Boy with the Patch Children’s book telling Drosselmeier’s story
Nutcracker Ballet History
“1892 Petipa’s The Nutcracker premieres with Antonietta Dell’Era as the Sugar Plum Fairy.” (The Ballet Companion p.295)
The Dance Channel “The History of the Nutcracker Ballet” video
shares additional insights on the creation of the ballet: Petipa created Sugarplum and Cavalier roles (not in the Hoffmann or Dumas stories) to dance the grand pas, 1892 Petipa fell ill and had to quit the production, Lev Ivanov stepped in to complete the choreographic staging. On December 17, 1892 it debuted, San Francisco Ballet debuted the first American performance in 1944, Balanchine’s version in 1954 influenced many modern productions.
Eliza Gaynor Minden explains Petipa & Tchaikovsky’s important roles in creating the ballet, in her The Ballet Companion: “For Petipa the dance came first; he used plot and drama in the service of pure dance rather than the reverse. He was a master of the classical set piece: the grand pas, the divertissement, and the ballet blanc. He championed Tchaikovsky’s music–then considered too symphonic and not sufficiently ‘dansant’ for ballet. His works–Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, La Bayadère, Raymonda–are beloved and for many the very definition of the word ‘ballet.’” (The Ballet Companion p.127)
Of course, George Balanchine and Francis Mason have a lot more to say about the history of and adaptations to The Nutcracker in Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets, but I will just include a few notes here:
“The three scenes of the ballet are arranged in two acts. In the first act, we are in the real world but begin a journey to the magical kingdom of the second.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.387-8)
Balanchine credits Ivanov for the choreography and doesn’t delve into why he had to take over from Petipa, but does describe subsequent productions: “Classic Ballet in two acts. Music by Tchaikovsky. Choreography by Lev Ivanov. Book by Lev Ivanov. Scenery by M. I. Botcharov. First presented at the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, December 17, 1892, […] First presented in Western Europe by the Sadler’s Wells Ballet at the Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London, January 30, 1934, with Alicia Markova and Harold Turner. This version was staged by Nicholas Sergyev, after Ivanov. First presented in the United States in an abbreviated form by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo at the Fifty-first Street Theatre, New York, October 17, 1940, with Alicia Markova and Andre Eglevsky […] First presented in the United States in complete form by the San Francisco Ballet, 1944, with choreography by William Christensen. Presented by the New York City Ballet, with choreography by George Balanchine, February 2, 1954, … (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.387)
Of his personal experience with The Nutcracker ballet, Balanchine reminisces: “I have liked this ballet from the first time I danced in it as a boy, when I did small roles in the Maryinsky Theatre production. When I was fifteen, I danced the Nutcracker Prince. Years later in New York, when our company decided to do an evening-long ballet, I preferred to turn to The Nutcracker, with which American audiences were not sufficiently familiar. I accordingly went back to the original score, restored cuts that had been made, and in the development of the story chose to use the original story by E.T.A. Hoffmann, although keeping the outlines of the dances as given at the Maryinsky. A prologue was added and the dances restaged.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.387)
In the Nutcracker Ballet Coloring Book that I love to use for sources of imagery in my children’s ballet classes, Brenda Sneathen Mattox adds:
“It has become extremely popular, especially during the Christmas season, when many dance companies present it to the delight of children everywhere! Who wouldn’t like to see a ballet with a trip to the Land of Sweets in a walnut boat, or a battle between a Nutcracker doll and a Mouse King! In some versions of The Nutcracker, the little girl’s name is Marie, rather than Clara–Marie was the name of the character in E.T.A. Hoffmann’s tale ‘The Nutcracker and the Mouse King,’ upon which the original ballet was based.” (Nutcracker Ballet Coloring Book)
Me as Clara, with Drosselmeier with West Hawai’i Dance Theatre
My History with “The Nutcracker”
My first Nutcracker performance was at the age of about eight in the role of Tin Soldier at the Aloha Theatre in Kainaliu, Hawai’i. I hope I can find photographic evidence of this while I am back home visiting next month, but meanwhile you can imagine me with red-circle-sticker cheeks and a plywood rifle spray-painted silver 🙂 I remember growing as a dancer, subsequently performing Party Girl, Clara, Snowflake, Flower, Arabian, and Mirliton (my favorite) in productions with West Hawai’i Dance Theatre. My teacher, Virginia Holte, danced Sugarplum for many years, and guest dancers would perform as her Cavalier and other leading roles.
At North Carolina School of the Arts I also played a Flower and Arabian Dancer and I remember the fresh new costumes we danced in (some of which I see are still in use!). The live music was a treat!
In costume for Arabian at North Carolina School of the Arts
As an audience member, I have also been fortunate to see a productions at the Pacific Northwest Ballet and Ballet Hawai’i (before the Septime Webre-directed revamp).
I was hoping to be able to include a new version of the Nutcracker this year, as we were scheduled to see the Russian Classical City Ballet perform here in Cologne this month. However, the performance has been postponed until January, will let you know what I think then!
Themes from Nutcracker & other Fairytales
Birds and Supernatural Creatures are common ideas in many fairytales, including in “Cinderella,” “Hansel and Gretel,” and “The Nutcracker.” “The Nutcracker” features the owl at the top of the grandfather clock come-to-life as Drosselmeier, the animated toy soldiers, fighting rats, snowflake and flower dancers, and all the magical inhabitants of the Land of Sweets.
“Hansel and Gretel” and “The Nutcracker” also share houses or entire lands made up of sweet treats. “The Nutcracker” also has themes related to dreaming, kindness, and bravery as in “Cinderella,” “Hansel and Gretel,” & “Sleeping Beauty,” and all three have courageous female protagonists.
Tchaikovsky’s Music
I can sing or whistle the music of The Nutcracker from start to finish and feel that each of the musical compositions creates an evocative experience that moves the story forward while celebrating each of the lands traverse in their grand adventure. A few pieces of music in particular are my favorites, including the Waltzes of the Snowflakes and Flowers, and both the Snow and Sugar Plum Pas de Deux.
“Next time you hear Tchaikovsky’s ‘Waltz of the Flowers’ from The Nutcracker, listen for the ‘one two three one two three’ rhythm that makes it a waltz.” (The Ballet Companion p.184)
I found this story of Tchaikovsky’s composition of the music for the ballet, “The Dark Side of the Nutcracker,” to be a beautiful exposition in particular of the music of the Sugarplum Pas de Deux in relationship to a difficult time for the composer:
I also find the level of innovation present in this classical ballet fascinating, for on example in the music instrumentation: “Marius Petipa asked Tchaikovsky to make the music for the Sugar Plum Fairy sound like the sprays of a fountain. To do this Tchaikovsky used a brand-new instrument, the celesta. It is played like a piano but when the keys are struck, the hammers inside hit metal bars instead of strings.” (A Child’s Introduction to Ballet p.48)
Telling the Nutcracker Story through Music & Dance
Here are the selected music tracks that I use in telling the tale with small children who are not yet ready for the full production and for creative and improvisational retellings with dancers of all ages, ‘Nutcracker’ Story for Creative Dance playlist on Spotify:
The brief synopsis of the story from The Usborne Book of Ballet and Dance by Annabel Thomas may suffice to set the tone: “Clara is given a Nutcracker for Christmas. At night all her gifts come to life. Clara rescues the Nutcracker from a fight between toy soldiers and some mice. He takes her to the Kingdom of the Sweets, where fairytale characters entertain her.” (The Usborne Book of Ballet and Dance p.42)
Or this slightly different take (interesting which versions chalk it up to a dream and which assume the realness of the magical worlds): “It’s Christmas, and young Clara is given a nutcracker doll. She dreams that it comes to life, turns into a prince, and leads the toy soldiers under the Christmas tree into battle against the rats. AFter Clara helps the nutcracker Prince win the battle, she goes on a magical journey with him through the land of snow to the Kingdom of Sweets. Snowflakes, flowers, and candy canes dance for her, but most beautiful of all is the Sugar Plum Fairy.” (How to… Ballet p.54)
Then we can explore the story with improvisations for six major scenes:
1. Scene One: Preparations for the party, Guests arrive & dance
“The overture of the ballet is bright and delicate. Pizzicato strings and tinkling triangles create a light, intimate atmosphere that sets the stage for the action.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.388)
“The story of The Nutcracker starts out on Christmas Eve at the home of the Stahlbaums. The family is holding a lavish party. The ladies dance in their colorful dresses and the gentlemen in their finest jackets, but young Marie is waiting for one guest in particular, her godfather, Drosselmeier. Some people are frightened of Drosselmeier, but not Marie. She thinks he is clever and mysterious, and oh, what magical gifts he brings! Handcrafted wind-up toys, trains, soldiers, and spinning dolls. This year, he brings the most wonderful gift of all, a wooden nutcracker. Marie skips off to bed that night with the nutcracker tucked safely under her arm. But just as she is drifting off to sleep she hears a sound.” (A Child’s Introduction to Ballet p.46)
“Herr Drosselmeyer, an old family friend who is also Marie’s godfather. He wears a patch over one eye. He is a mysterious man, a marvelous inventor of moving toys, and he has brought with him three large boxes and also his handsome young nephew. […] The gifts in the huge boxes delight everyone–a Harlequin and Columbine and a Toy Soldier who dance to jolly tunes. Then Drosselmeyer brings out a large Nutcracker, a soldier, for Marie.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.388)
“Peeking over the top of her blanket, Marie sees a giant mouse rising out of the floor with an entire mouse army behind him. Just then, the nutcracker sits upright, throws off his blanket and leaps from the bed. He draws his wooden sword and raises it above his head. [..] The nutcracker and a battalion of toy soldiers battle the Mouse King. Although the nutcracker fights bravely, the mouse knocks him down. Marie takes off her slipper and throws it at the mouse, who is startled long enough for the nutcracker to recover and win the battle. While Marie is catching her breath, Drosselmeier appears and reveals the secret of his Christmas present. The nutcracker is actually a handsome prince, and Marie’s love for him has broken the spell.” (A Child’s Introduction to Ballet p.47-8)
“The tree grows taller and taller, to a huge height. The mice are big too, and it is good that the soldiers are there to protect her. They battle the mice, but the mice, led by their fierce king, seem to be winning. Then the Nutcracker, grown to life size, rises from his bed and leads the soldiers. […] Marie throws her slipper, which hits the king of the mice by surprise. The Nutcracker runs him through with his sword, and the battle is won.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.389)
“She arrives at the Kingdom of Snow and is met by the Nutcracker, who before her very eyes suddenly turns into a handsome young prince. He bows to Marie, gives her the crown taken from the king of the mice and leads her away on a magic journey. In a snowy forest, snowflakes dance.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.389)
“The prince takes Marie on a journey through the snow, to a magical kingdom where people from all nations take turns showing off their own special dances.” (A Child’s Introduction to Ballet p.48)
5. Scene Five: Land of Sweets
“The Sugarplum Fairy, who rules over this Kingdom of Sweets, makes a regal entry. She dances a charming variation to the tinkling celesta.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.389)
“We now watch a series of dances by the creatures of the candy kingdom. When they are finished, the Sugarplum Fairy and her cavalier perform the grandest dance of all, a pas de deux to climax the occasion. This is exactly the kind of dance that Marie would like to do, too, one day, and she and the prince rejoice in the splendid tenderness of the royal couple.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.389-90)
As Eliza Gaynor Minden teaches: “The court of King Louis XIV in France was not the sole source of ballet’s character and form. Story ballets, in particular, have often borrowed from folk-dancing traditions. Folk-dancing steps and styles enrich the drama and add to the authenticity of such story ballets as Don Quixote, Raymonda, and Paquita. Elements of folk dancing appear frequently in divertissements–the stylized finger-pointing of the Chinese variation in The Nutcracker or the squat thrusts often seen in Russian variations.” (The Ballet Companion p.223)
“All of the candies then come back in as the Sugarplum Fairy and her cavalier bid the young couple farewell. Marie and her prince step into a royal sleigh drawn by reindeer and before our very eyes the sleigh rises right into the sky and away.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets)
“It is all so perfect…but even the most beautiful dream must end. The next morning Marie wakes up with her wooden nutcracker beside her.” (A Child’s Introduction to Ballet p.48)
If you’re interested in using the music for a full ballet or dance class, I have arranged tracks from the ballet in my “Nutcracker” Ballet Class playlist.
Imagery for Teaching
A few favorite texts to share pictures as part of our storytelling are the Nutcracker Ballet Coloring Book by Brenda Sneathen Mattox, A Child’s Introduction to Ballet by Laura Lee, and How to… Ballet by Jane Hakett.
Would love to see an updated coloring book and children’s books with more inclusive images (race, disability, body size diversity representation). I am also on the lookout for a German language children’s book about the Nutcracker 🙂
Other Ballet Adaptations
As Eliza Gaynor Minden points out, “There are as many versions of The Nutcracker as there are companies. This holiday classic tells the story of a young girl, her magical Christmas present, and her incredible journey to the Kingdom of the Sweets. For millions of children, it is their introduction to ballet.” (The Ballet Companion p.273) While there are similarities between Nutcracker productions, there are also myriad diverse perspectives on the tale.
Each culture impacts their interpretation, from language to costume to choreography. Names of characters and dances vary: “In the original Nutcracker story the little girl is called Marie. Sometimes she goes by the Russian name Masha or the more American-sounding Clara.” (A Child’s Introduction to Ballet p.47)
Balanchine and Mason describe a few adaptations of the original, including the 1968 Nureyev production by the Royal Swedish Ballet, and the 1976 Barishnikov production by American Ballet Theatre.
Of Nureyev’s choreography, Balanchine and Mason comment: “Clara is a girl of an age between child and woman, and consequently her dreams are both childish and tinged with an erotic element. Nureyev has omitted the visit to the Kingdom of Sweets and has built the divertissement entirely on dreams in which Claras’ family and Drosselmeyer appear in different shapes. The same dancer is seen as Drosselmeyer, the Rat King, and the Prince. Clara is herself all through the ballet, dancing the usual Sugarplum Fairy pas de deux with the Prince as though it were a dream of herself as a princess.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.391)
With regard to Barishnikov’s choreography, Balanchine and Mason detail his innovations: “The Nutcracker is not child’s play, though it is about a young girl growing up. It is different from other productions of this ballet in its focus on the two men who are central to the life of young Clara–Drosselmeyer, her godfather in real life, and the Nutcracker-Prince, the dream figure who is created by Drosselmeyer’s magic. Here the child Clara is on the point of growing up. Aided by her godfather, a dream of love materializes only to cause later doubts. This psychological drama is set within the conventional fram of The Nutcracker: the names are the same but the action of the ballet varies dramatically.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.391)
Critic of the Washington Star, Anne Marie Welsh: “Baryshnikov’s most significant and stunning departure from productions which have become standard is to turn the second act pas de deux into a pas de trois for Clara, the Prince and Drosselmeyer. The melody is one of Tchaikovsky’s simplest and most haunting–just the G major scale played top to bottom–and the new dance for three is perfectly attuned to its musical impulse.” (Balanchine’s Complete Stories of the Great Ballets p.393)
UNCSA: My alma mater UNCSA released this abbreviated “The Nutcracker” Original Film last year, and I think watching it might become an annual tradition for me! (32 minutes)
Mark Morris’ “The Hard Nut,” which Eliza Gaynor Minden writes about: “Mark Morris’s contemporary choreography shows balletic origins and employs formal groupings while at the same time breaking away from a strict ballet vocabulary and often–in his own company–a traditional ballet body type. L’Allegro il Penseroso ed il Moderato is one of his best-known works. Morris can be hilariously satirical and campy; his spoof of The Nutcracker, The Hard Nut, provides comic relief at the holidays.” (The Ballet Companion p. 284)
Disney’s “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms:” I avoided seeing this film when it came out, despite curiosity about Misty Copeland’s performance, because I was worried that I would be disappointed that it isn’t the full-length ballet. Finally watched it this month as part of my research for this blog and due to a student’s recent recommendation. Don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but it is more of a sequel than a reproduction, and though I thought some moments fell flat, some sequences were magical and the dancing and effects were lovely. Interesting use of the original story and one or two surprises.
Questions for Reflection
What versions of “The Nutcracker” have you seen? Which is your favorite?
Have you performed in “The Nutcracker” ballet or other wintertime productions?
What holiday traditions will you enjoy this year?
What music fills you with the spirit of the season?
Blythe Stephens, MFA she/her or they/them A Blythe Coach: ablythecoach.com move through life with balance, grace, & power
I was so pleased to welcome Mona Kia’ikai “Kai” Iguchi to my podcast for the second installment in my mini-series on Dancing Body Acceptance! They have connected me with a wealth of wonderful resources when it comes to dancing nutrition, eating disorder treatment, equity and access and I’m so grateful for their knowledge.
Kai is a Dietician working in eating disorder recovery, an adult ballet dancer, and nonbinary (they/them pronouns). They were also a ballet student of mine at the University of Hawai’i!
TW: Trigger Warning due to talk of disordered eating behaviors, treatment protocols, & symptoms
“Especially in the mental health field, I feel like people have to be able to feel safe in this treatment environment to be able to make any progress at all. If you’re constantly worrying about being misgendered or whatever in the treatment setting, how would you be able to make any progress or build any trust with the treatment team members?” -Kia’ikai Iguchi
Passionate about providing high-quality care to trans and gender-nonconforming folks
MSc: Eating Disorders and Clinical Nutrition (University College London)
MS: Dietetics (University of Illinois at Chicago)
Eating Disorders/Mental Health Translator (“Eating in the Light of the Moon”, “Nutrition Counseling in the Treatment of Eating Disorders”, “Sick Enough”
In our recorded conversation, available above as a YouTube Video and below as an audio Podcast, Kai tells about their journey to being a dancing dietician, including dancing and growing up in Japan and studying in Hawai’i, the UK, and on the US Mainland.
Having begun as an undergraduate in marine biology at the University of Hawai’i, Kai realized that they weren’t really cut out for the field while on an oceanic field trip. I can relate to loving dolphins, but not really wanting to be swimming and diving all the time for work! We agree to admire dolphins from afar, and I just love talking with multi-passionate people about their career adventures.
After having personal experience as a dance student with an eating disorder and receiving treatment in Hawai’i, Kai then explored possible professions as a physical therapist, therapist, and dietician before going on to a specialized master’s degree in eating disorder at University College in London.
Kai’s current work is with adults 18-76 in a residential setting. I appreciated their explanation of inpatient, residential, day, and intensive outpatient levels of eating disorder care & recovery as well as discussion of who can access such care (those with really good insurance and/or a lot of money).
Ultimately, Kai would like to continue with work in inpatient or residential setting in a structured program or collaborate with other professionals to create a respite center specific to the trans and LGBT community.
Kai has personal experience of dancing with an eating disorder, as well as attempting to recover from injury while undernourished. Kai tore their ACL while living with eating disorder and didn’t recover well from the injury at that time.
Then once they recovered from eating disorder, they tore ACL again and the second time around saw distinctly better recovery! Usually with such a re-injury, recovery is much worse, but in Kai’s case the improved results point to the nutritional link in our ability to heal.
Current Issues in Dance, Nutrition, & ED Care
Kai identified a number of issues that we are currently facing in the ballet world and in society at large with regard to eating disorder care and nutritional support. Ballet culture has historically included normalization of disordered eating behaviors, fostering negative relationship to food and bodies. We want to facilitate culture change in these areas.
Messages about Food & Bodies
Starting as ballet students, our teachers’ language use can be triggering, especially for younger dancers. Negative narratives towards food (i.e. that specific foods are “bad” or inappropriate) and bodies (that one impossible physical “ideal” is necessary in dance) are harmful and can lead to disordered eating behaviors.
Ballet, Injury, & Disordered Eating
When dancers get hurt, the injury recovery process can trigger eating disorder behaviors, as when they are less active (having to rest and heal before returning to dance), dancers might eat less to compensate for lack of movement. Undereating in turn negatively affects the outcome of physical therapy, as Kai pointed out, you can’t get stronger while malnourished.
Access for Students & Professionals
Kai has had the pleasure of studying at at Ballet Hawai’i, the Joffrey Ballet, and Milwaukee Ballet, none of which have dieticians as part of their medical team (maybe sports or physical therapists if they’re lucky). Further, they can’t name any companies (nor can I) who do have a dietician on staff, though they might invite them to guest speak and educate the dancers. Still, students are prone to picking up eating disorder behaviors.
Professionals get injured frequently and their injuries, for example stress fractures, are often blamed on poor technique and/or “overuse.” Such injuries could also be due to undereating or malnutrition. Professional dancers need nutritional support to prevent injury and in their injury recovery process.
Dancers and athletes in sports that value certain bodies or physiques have difficulty accessing eating disorder treatment due to the need to continue their professional practices/responsibilities (no time off for treatment) and limited income/insurance (no money for treatment). Dancers are statistically shown to be more likely to have eating disorders, but are underrepresented in treatment.
Marginalized Identities & Finding an LGBT-Friendly Dietician
Sadly, Kai finds it very difficult to recommend an eating disorder treatment center for trans folks, since such clinical settings are often an unsafe environment (due to misgendering, pronoun misuse, etc.). In particular, medical clinics need more consideration of language and better policies.
Kai also spoke about the prevalence of eating disorders among people with marginalized identities. While the disordered eating behavior is sometimes blamed on individuals identifying with marginalized groups, Kai argues that the eating disorder can actually have to do with the treatment such individuals experience, in society as well as in a clinical environment.
Additionally, what medical practitioners sometimes claim to be “noncompliance” on the part of patients from marginalized communities can actually be dismissal of patient’s need to feel safe. Administrations have room to grow in the area of affirming policies for LGBT and other marginalized identities. In making such policies it is important to listen to the concerns of the community, avoid virtue signaling and involve affected people.
Ballet Difficult for Nonbinary Dancers
Due to a lack of body and gender diversity in the field of ballet, it can be very hard for trans dancers to fit in. Traditionally, ballet features very gendered roles and steps, as well as a lot of “girls” and “boys” language. Kai pointed out if there’s one boy in the class, teachers will say “dancers” or something neutral, but if the students all appear to be feminine, the tendency will be to call them all “girls” or “ladies,” leaving no room for people who do not identify in those ways. There is pressure to choose a narrowly-defined and clear gender expression that may not align with the dancer’s own identity.
“Why can’t they be just ‘dancers?'” – Kia’ikai Iguchi
Gendered, racist, transphobic dance uniforms were also a topic of conversation, along with assumptions on the part of teachers and administrators about how students identify, gendered pointework, changing/locker rooms and bathrooms. All with “tradition” as an excuse.
Adult/recreational ballet classes are more inclusive of diverse bodies than in a children’s, pre-professional or professional setting, more focused on strength, balance, enjoyment and technique
Kai finds that to this day, ballet variations work is difficult to navigate as a trans or nonbinary dancer, as such choreographies tend to be very gendered and often skew to the “feminine” in classes with apparently mostly females. We are navigating a space where a few companies are trying to question traditionally gendered assumptions about ballet, but they are more fringe projects than mainstream, large, or prestigious companies.
So what can we do to make it better? We need to keep asking ourselves how we can make things better for all bodies, listening to stories from people with lived experiences, not tokenizing marginalized voices, making real changes, working to make things better continuously.
Kai spoke to the difficulty of creating change in big institutions (like large clinics or hospitals), ensuring that standards and policies are met in multiple locations, and sees these as challenges that the medical field needs to actively address
As teachers or role models, we can avoid negative narratives towards food (i.e. that specific foods are “bad” or inappropriate) and bodies, instead supporting a neutral relationship to body and encouraging nourishment and thriving.
It’s helpful to focus on the whole picture of dancers’ technique rather than fixating on body size or build. Since taking ballet classes in the states, Kai reports that things have been pretty smooth and non-triggering due to the overall holistic approach of the teachers they has been lucky to have. (Japan was another story). Even so, they had a recent triggering experience of having a substitute ballet teacher who displayed alarming signs of malnutrition/disordered eating.
We also recommend that you follow and support diverse dancers and companies, in terms of racial, gender, and body-size representation, to get a fuller picture of what is possible, beautiful, and healthy.
Kai, Fumi Somehara, and dancer and therapist Colleen Werner will also participate in a panel in January for the Royal Academy of Dance, Australia conference (virtual):
Kai currently only knows a couple dieticians that specialize in ballet/dance that they would be willing to refer to (i.e. no “get in shape for the audition/performance” weight loss language), and feels it is still a hard-to-find specialty. Here are a few, and hopefully we can find more in the future!
Thanks again to Kai for their time in speaking with me and referring myself and my students to excellent resources for further learning (including Dietician Fumi Somehara in last week’s Dancing Body Acceptance Blog!)!
Questions for Reflection
Have you ever worked with a Dietician? Taken nutritional advice from other sources?
What is your experience with body image in dance or other areas of your life?
What is your current relationship to weight loss and diet culture?
What do you want to know about body acceptance, diverse representation, and intersectionality in ballet or in dance?
What would you like to reinvent about your relationship to your body and eating?
I am committed to continuing to learn more about body neutrality, positive relationships to food and body, eating disorder prevention and treatment, and supporting marginalized communities including LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC.
More about cultivating healthy body image, intuitive eating, and the joy of movement to come!
Blythe Stephens, MFA & Bliss Catalyst she/her or they/them A Blythe Coach: move through life with balance, grace, & power
“You’re not the problem, it’s the culture of dance that you have grown up in, it’s also society and the world we live in; your body is not the one to blame.” – Fumi Somehara
Welcome to Part 1 of my mini-series on Dancing Body Acceptance! I had the great pleasure, during my personal “Body-Positive October” celebration research, to talk with Dietician Fumi Sumehara, who is based in Australia. Fumi took time out of her busy day at the DDD Clinic to talk with me about diet culture in ballet and society and ways to promote nourishment and a healthy relationship with eating and body image as dancers, teachers, companies and schools, and others.
A dietician working with dancers & performing artists, dance nutrition and eating disorders treatment, Fumi comes from the ballet world, with a Pilates diploma and experience with body conditioning and body image work. As a student, she experienced an old-school approach of “pure” classical ballet, dancing in Japan and Australia. Fumi describes a lifelong process of body acceptance, with so much to learn and un-learn.
Fumi struck me as a kind, compassionate, and gentle professional as well as a strong advocate for body acceptance in dance and in modern society at large.
This topic is so broad that it’s difficult to tackle in such a brief conversation, but we have collected valuable resources for further learning that I highly encourage you also peruse at your convenience.
My key takeaways from our conversation were that there are indeed clear steps that educators, dance companies and schools, dancers, and others can do to promote body acceptance and a healthy relationship with body and food. Although cultural and dance-specific diet culture and body-shaming norms are strong, we can also empower change.
B.Sc (Nutrition)(Hons) / B.App.Sc (Exercise and Sports Science)
Fumi is the founder and principal dietitian of DDD Centre for Recovery. Her expertise is in Dance Nutrition and Eating Disorders Treatment. She is passionate about supporting individuals to nurture respectful and compassionate relationships with their food and body.
Fumi started ballet when she was five. Throughout her years of training, she experienced first-hand the body shaming and disordered eating practices that were prevalent in the industry. She’s seen the consequences of poor nutrition and body image, including physical injuries, eating disorders, depression, and loss of career. This is why she’s doing the work – to help and support dancers to achieve their best through nourishment.
In addition to her individual work with clients, Fumi lectures Dance Nutrition at Academy of Music and Performing Arts, and is a member of the Eating Disorders Interest Group Leadership Committee at Dietitians Australia, where she supports other dietitians working in this field. She also provides training for nutritional rehabilitation and care in eating disorders treatment for health professionals in Japan.
“We need education on how to talk about bodies and nourishment.” – Fumi Somehara
Fumi shared that she is in awe of the influence, positive or negative, that teachers can have on their students’ body image and health choices, saying that “good teachers are a treasure you can keep for a lifetime.” She provided practical ideas that educators can apply in their studios or other spheres of influence. Ultimately, says Fumi, this is teamwork between educators, leaders, clinicians, and dancers.
What Teachers Can Do
Educate ourselves on how to talk about bodies and nourishment in order to create safe spaces in our classes
Create a positive culture, i.e. say something along the lines of, “My class is a body-shaming free class; we don’t talk about diets or dieting in my class.”
Use specific feedback for students (rather than “get fit” or “tone up”), such as how to use specific muscle groups properly to improve technique in order to provide clarity to dancers without developing negative body image
Provide Trigger Warnings: when sharing physical training or other content from creators who have weight loss or other potentially-damaging messaging, give students the option to avoid
Advocate for body acceptance as smaller-bodied or any-size dancers, intersectional allyship
Have at least one dietician you can reach out to when you have questions so you don’t have to feel like you’re doing everything yourself, get another professional’s perspective
How to find a compassionate dietician
Look at their social media, blog posts, website
Mention or support of weight loss is a no!
What sorts of images do they share? Inclusive of diverse bodies?
We expect more of ballet companies and schools, and there is a lot that such institutions can do to create a more nurturing environment conducive to healthy body image, eating disorder prevention and recovery.
What Companies/Schools Can Do
Don’t have clauses in dancer contracts around weight
Have policies around eating disorders care
Provide flexibility to attend treatment for eating disorder care, just like any other injury
Fumi greatly admires the courage of dancers she knows who have thoughtfully selected companies to audition for who have good policies on eating disorder recovery and body acceptance.
What Dancers Can Do
Look for companies that have policies around eating disorders care as they do for injuries
Read resources on accurate, non weight-loss focused dance nutrition. For those who wonder, “How do I even tell if nutrition information is correct?” (for example, on social media), there are a lot of free dance nutrition resources available on the DDD website.
Be mindful about Social Media: unfollow accounts that make you feel bad about or question your body, accounts that actively promote the thin ideal. Find more diverse bodies and representation.
Know your dance history: dance was never about one particular unchanging body size, “ideal” is not timeless.
Dieticians/Nutritionists/Clinicians have a responsibility to use evidence-based information and expand their awareness and there is a lot of work to do in this area
What Clinicians Can Do
Experience with dancers, eating disorders, trauma-informed care
Expand your perspective: white-centric clinicians can do more harm than good
There are a few such (anti-diet, body accepting, dance aware) clinicians around the world, connect with the network
Maybe you’re not a dancer or dance educator yourself, but instead a parent, dance-lover, or audience member. There are still things you can do to promote body acceptance and diversity and to counter diet culture and destructive attitudes toward body image and eating.
What Our Community Can Do
Support body-inclusive dance companies and schools
Follow people online who encourage body acceptance
Become more aware about body image issues: intersectional issue, not just about big or small
One such “beginner” resource is the “Poodle Science” video about body diversity using a dog analogy
Learn about nutrition for dancers & athletes, nourish yourself
Recognize the strength of fatphobia in dance culture and larger society, as if gaining weight is the worst thing that could happen to you. Work to deconstruct your own fatphobia.
Fumi is also developing a social media resource collecting accounts that nurture positive body image and nourishing ourselves, trying to assure intersectionality. No one can cover all the issues, but they’re including coding for different considerations to help make the resource useful to all. The social media resource will be available on DDD’s Resource page soon!
Ultimately Fumi and I agree that the main goal of dance is to be a joyful, life-giving activity. We will continue to work to elevate the conversation when it comes to liberating from diet culture and negative body image in dance and in our communities.
Questions for Reflection
Have you ever worked with a Dietician? Taken nutritional advice from other sources?
What is your experience with body image in dance or other areas of your life?
What is your current relationship to diet culture?
What do you want to know about body acceptance, diverse representation, and intersectionality in ballet or in dance?
What would you like to reinvent about your relationship to your body and eating?
Blythe Stephens, MFA & Bliss Catalyst she/her or they/them A Blythe Coach: move through life with balance, grace, & power
DISCLAIMER: A Blythe Coach recommends that you consult your physician regarding the applicability of any recommendations and follow all safety instructions before beginning any exercise program. When participating in any exercise or exercise program, there is the possibility of physical injury. If you engage in this exercise or exercise program, you agree that you do so at your own risk, are voluntarily participating in these activities, assume all risk of injury to yourself.
“Anticipation–or apprehension–of a challenging featured step can make it easy to overlook the simpler step leading into it. Glissade, coupé, pas de bourré, chassé, balancé, failli, pas couru, and tombé often precede something flashier. Done neatly and correctly, connecting steps add elegance to your dancing and provide the preparation you need to launch what comes next; done carelessly they dull your polish and undermine the propulsion needed for elevation and ballon. Imagine trying to perform grand jeté from a stationary position. The successful timing and coordination of grand jeté or any difficult jump depends on the rhythm, the momentum, and especially the final plié of the connecting step that comes first.” – Eliza Gaynor Minden (The Ballet Companion p.169)
Rory Foster concurs with Gaynor Minden that auxiliary and preparatory movements deserve a great deal of attention in ballet technique: “Too little attention is paid to the importance of connecting steps such as glissade, pas de bourrée, soutenu, balancé, etc., which link primary steps. Connecting steps must be danced with the same purity and accuracy as primary steps. Also, students don’t pay attention to, or are not taught, the rhythmical dynamics of connecting steps, along with the full articulation of their feet, use of the floor, and the accuracy of the five positions.” (Ballet Pedagogy p.2)
In fact, quality in such transitions is an indication of mastery, in addition to the more notable or showy movements for which they prepare us: “How connecting steps such as pas de bourrée, coupe, and précipité connect multiple steps into movement phrases is important to explain and incorporate into your teaching as students become more advanced.” (Ballet Pedagogy p.102-3) I do my best to share the importance of these steps and their rhythmic nature in my teaching, and that’s part of why I’m writing this today.
Here’s a healthy half-dozen ballet connecting steps to practice as you develop your dancing over the years, so many fun ways to get from one place to another!
Once students understand the basic ballet steps and can start practicing them in combination, connecting steps and transitions become important to segue from one step or shape into another with grace and poise. They can be easy to overlook, so ballet teachers bemoan a rough transition. Foster asserts that, “Much more attention needs to be given to the articulation and strength of the feet. Too often they look lazy. Using the resistance of the floor when the foot is required to brush in and out during certain barre exercises and allegro steps will make the foot strong and supple.” (Ballet Pedagogy p.2-3)
Certainly a big part of mastery is practice, but we need to make sure that we’re enforcing the right knowledge and skills. As Foster explains, “Repetition is undoubtedly essential in all ballet training, but it should be done with full comprehension. Students also have a much better chance to develop into good technicians and artists when they can learn from teachers who are knowledgeable of anatomy and the kinesthetic and artistic elements of ballet movement and who are musical enough to know how to use tempo, meter, and rhythm. These teachers know the importance of how connecting steps along with the use of dynamics (force and time) turns ballet exercises into artistic movement.” (Ballet Pedagogy p.96)
Clean positions, connections, and musicality can take our dancing to the next level wherever we are in our ballet journey. To truly become an advanced ballet dancer, there are many factors at play, as Foster points out:
“The ability to move musically with grace, aplomb, and dynamism as well as with great speed and accuracy–these are the goals of the advanced dancer. To be successful at this, you need an appropriately chosen meter and tempo in order for your students to have time to perfect all aspects of their technique. This includes getting into and out of precise and clean positions, using the feet correctly, using the demi plié, coordinating connecting steps with primary steps in movement phrases, developing good elevation, and incorporating the use of epaulement and port de bras.” (Ballet Pedagogy p.113)
It all starts with the basics, like Plié, Tendu, Dégagé , Prances & Sautés, etc. and I believe that one of the beautiful things about practicing ballet is that we can delight in performing and continuing to improve at the fundamentals during out whole dancing life. We can continue to develop our artistry forever, including our rhythmic and musical phrasing, as Foster discussed and as I further explore in my Arts of Allegro and Developing Rhythm & Musicality for Dance blogs and Podcast 045:
I also wrote a blog about basic movements that move us from place to place in dance technique generally, called Do the Locomotion.
Each of the videos I share below for today’s 7 Connecting Steps are included in my Satisfying Connecting Steps in Ballet Technique YouTube Playlist, and like my other playlists, I’ll keep adding new videos as I release them!
In her Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet Gail Grant defines Glissade in this way: “Glide. A traveling step executed by gliding the working foot from the fifth position in the required direction, the other foot closing to it. Glissade is a terre à terre step and is used to link other steps. After a demi-plié in the fifth position the working leg glides along the floor to a strong point a few inches from the floor. The other foot then pushes away from the floor so that both knees are straight and both feet strongly pointed for a moment; then the weight is shifted to the working foot with a fondu. The other foot, which is pointed a few inches from the floor, slides into the fifth position in demi-plié. When a glissade is used as an auxiliary step for small or big jumps, it is done with a quick movement on the upbeat. Glissades are done with or without change of feet, and all begin and end with demi-plié. There are six glissades: devant, derrière, dessous, dessus, en avant, en arrière, the difference between them depending on the starting and finishing positions as well as the direction.” (p.59-60)
Vaganova distinguishes between a polished glissade and simply taking a couple of steps to transition from one movement into another: “A properly executed glissade helps the leap, while a running start, with the legs thrown to this side and the other, tends to offset the whole body from the proper manner of doing the leap, and the leap loses its beauty and force. Glissade may be done with or without a change of feet. At the beginning glissade is practiced without a change of feet.” (Basic Principles of Classical Ballet p.97)
2. Coupé
I do not have a video by the name of coupé up on YouTube, at least yet, but I will describe the movement below and can in the meantime share a couple of useful related “cutting” skills in the Plucky Petit Battement and Frothy Frappé & Jeté movements:
Gail Grant defines the coupé connecting step like this: “Cut, cutting. A small intermediary step done as a preparation or impetus for some other step. It takes its name from the fact that one foot cuts the other away and takes its place. Coupé may also be done in a series from one foot to the other. It may be performed sauté or as a terre à terre step, croisé or effacé.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.34)
Vaganova describes the step similarly in Basic Principles of Classical Ballet: “This small intermediary step is a movement facilitating the beginning of some other step. Coupé is done as a preparation, as an impetus for some other step, and is usually done in the final up-beat of a bar (pick-up). Suppose you have to do pas ballonné forward, while you are standing on right foot in a pose croisé back. You must first do a demi-plié on the right leg, and chance to a plié on the left leg, with a short movement as if stamping with the left foot. This brings the right foot sur le cou-de-pied forward, and from there continue the step. Coupé back is done in the same manner. Coupé can be done in other forms as may be required by the particular movement to be executed.” (p.64)
The Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet defines tombé simply: “Falling. This is a movement in which the dancer, with the working leg raised in the air, falls forward, backward, or sideways into a fondu on the working leg.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.119)
In the Tender Tombé Pas de Bourrée video above, I compare a couple types of grapevine and pas de bourrée steps, teach the distinctions between bourrée, pas de bourrée (and variations thereon, see #4, next), tombé pas de bourrée dessous & traveling tombé pas de bourrée, and we practice with lovely ballet piano music from Hawai’i.
Here I show variations of the Pas de Bourrée movement in space and foot positioning, instruct on the basic pattern, and practice with music. At first it is a lot to think about, but with practice it becomes automatic and an indispensable part of class combinations and performance choreography!
Grant describes pas de bourrée simply as, “Bourrée step. Pas de bourrée is done dessous, dessus, devant, derrière, en avant, en arrière and en tournant en dedans and en dehors, on the point or demi-pointe.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.75) I do have more guidance to add, as I find pas de bourrée is closely related to grapevine step we see in jazz, hip hop dance, and contemporary dance.
Once you are familiar with this type of footwork, you’ll recognize the universal principle everywhere! Like grapevine, pas de bourrée is in three parts, which in we can remember as linguistically as, for example, “back, side, front” or “up, up, down.”
In Vaganova’s Basic Principles of Classical Ballet section on Connecting & Auxiliary Movements, she elaborates on the distinction between the pas de bourrée of different schools of ballet and the influence of others techniques on the Russian approach:
“In classical ballet, to move from one spot to another, a dance step is used and not an ordinary walking one. One of the most widely used for this purpose is pas de bourrée. Pas de bourrée has several variations, and it is done in all possible directions. For a long time we used the soft, unemphasized pas de bourrée of the French school. With the strengthening influence of the Italian school in the nineteenth century, pas de bourrée changed its character. Now the foot is lifted sharply, the entire movement is defined in higher relief. I accepted this style after having tried it out in practice. One must be careful that the foot leaves the ground smartly, both in the early stages of study on half-toe, and later on pointe.” (p.59)
All of these key connecting steps “glue” together our more featured dance movements (jumps, turns, and so forth) and in particular, tombé, pas de bourrée and tombé pas de bourrée are important skills in basic ballet technique. All three of these, as well as jeté pas de bourrée, appear in the “Winter Fairy” variation from the ballet “Cinderella” that I’ve been teaching in live classes recently.
A close relative of pas de bourrée, Vaganova explains that Pas Couru means “Running step. Pas couru is a run in any direction and is composed of three or five running steps on the demi-pointes to gain momentum for such steps as grand jeté en avant, grand jeté pas de chat, etc. The demi-plié at the end of the pas couru is emphasized, followed by the step for which it serves as a springboard. The term is also used for a run on point in an unturned-out first position.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.73) “When many pas de bourrée are done consecutively, we get pas couru. Usually it is done in fast tempo. It is often used to gain momentum for big jumps, such as jeté, for instance, and is found abundantly in masculine dances. It is also done frequently by women on pointes, moving in a straight line, diagonally, or in a circle around the entire stage.” (Basic Principles of Classical Ballet p.63-4)
According to Gail Grant, chassé means “Chased. A step in which one foot literally chases the other foot out of its position; done in a series.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.31)
Chassé is another transitional ballet step that can gracefully connect jumps, turns, and shapes. The chasing action is that a cat-and-mouse game between the two feet, one getting away and then the other coming after it either through a slide or a slide with a jump, as Grant continues to detail:
“In the Cecchetti method a chassé is a glide into an open position and is finished in demi-plié. This movement can be executed in all the directions, making seven chassés […] The step may be finished by holding the open position or closing the extended foot to the fifth position.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.31)
For her part, Vaganova teaches chassé like this: “Usually it is done several times in succession. Stand in 5th position, right foot front, demi-plié, jump up, right leg opens into 2nd position at 45 degrees (sissonne tombée to the right), but with a more passing movement than usual, the left leg is drawn in a gliding movement to the right one, the legs join during the jump in the air, very straight, in 5th position, with the toes extended and touching. At this moment the jump must be as high as possible. Immediately, the right leg opens again, and the movement continues. Pas chassé is done to all sides in required poses.” (Basic Principles of Classical Ballet p.96)
In the video above I practice the two types of chassé in ballet technique: Chassé À Terre, which slides along the floor through plié in a “U” or scalloped pathway (down, across, up) to an open shape (4th or 2nd), then closes again to 3rd or 5th position, transferring the weight and stretching the legs in the new position and Chassé with a Sauté or jump “en l’aire,” which slides along the floor to an open shape, then closes again with a spring also sometimes called a gallop.
Balancé, Grant clarifies, is a “Rocking step. This step is much like a pas de valse and is an alternation of balance, shifting the weight from one foot to the other. Balancé may be done crossing the foot either in front or back. Fifth position R foot front. Demi-plié, degage the R foot to the second position and jump on it lightly in demi-plié, crossing the L foot behind the R ankle and inclining the head and body to the right. Step on the L demi-pointe behind the R foot, slightly lifting the R foot off the ground; then fall on the R foot again in demi-plié with the L foot raised sur le cou-de-pied derrière. The next balancé will be to the left side. Balancé may also be done en avant or en arrière facing croisé or effacé and en tournant.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.11)
My balancé blog and video above relate a short history of the Waltz in society and in ballet, its relation to familiar contemporary and popular dance steps such as triplets and “The Pony,” the musicality of waltz rhythm or 3/4 Time with an emphasis on the first beat, and instruction on practicing one of my very favorite steps.
You can also try out balancé and its friend soutenu, #7 below, in this video when you’re ready to try out a more complex combination of steps:
Ballet Port de Bras, Balancé, and both in combination with Soutenu
Soutenu, Grant tells us, means “Sustained. As, for example, in assemblé soutenu.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.113)
Thankfully, Grant elaborates on how one performs assemblé soutenu de face: “Assemblé sustained and facing the audience. This assemblé is not a jumping step. It is done on the pointes or demi-pointes and may be performed dessus, dessous, derrière, devant, en avant and en arrière. For assemblé soutenu dessus, stand in the fifth position R foot back. Demi-plié, sliding the R foot to the second position pointe tendue à terre; draw the R leg into the fifth position front, springing on the pointes or demi-pointes, then lower the heels in demi-plié in the fifth position.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.8)
Bonus Ballet Transitions: Failli & Friends
I don’t yet have videos for these yet, but there are a few other connecting steps that can link our movements as we advance in ballet, including failli, précipité, flic-flac, passé, and temps relevé.
To conclude, let’s look at failli according to Grant and Vaganova. Grant says failli means: “Giving away. A fleeting movement done in one count. Fifth position croisé, R foot front. Demi-plié, spring into the air with the feet held close together and, while in the air, turn the body effacé so that the L shoulder comes forward and the head turns toward the L shoulder. Land on the R foot in demi-plié with the L foot opened in effacé derrière at 45 degrees; immediately slide the L foot through the first position to the fourth position croisé in demi-plié with the weight on the L foot, L knee bent and body inclined to the left.” (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet p.51-2)
Vaganova also describes the correct accompaniment of the arms and more, look forward to more transitional movements as well as the fireworks for which they prepare us, still to come…
Questions for Reflection
Which ballet connecting steps are you familiar with?
What transitions do you find particularly challenging?
What is the next step for your footwork and dancing artistry?
Thanks for reading. Please tell me about your experience and challenges with connecting steps and what you’d like to see more of in the future!
Blythe Stephens, MFA she/her or they/them A Blythe Coach: ablythecoach.com move through life with balance, grace, & power
DISCLAIMER: A Blythe Coach recommends that you consult your physician regarding the applicability of any recommendations and follow all safety instructions before beginning any exercise program. When participating in any exercise or exercise program, there is the possibility of physical injury. If you engage in this exercise or exercise program, you agree that you do so at your own risk, are voluntarily participating in these activities, assume all risk of injury to yourself.
