How Ballet Changed My Life

Words: 577
Pages: 3
Open Document
I pressed my ear up against my bedroom door to make sure no one was downstairs. Once I knew the coast was clear, I delicately placed the gel covers on my toes and then slipped on the expensive, satin shoes. The ribbons were not stitched on yet, so I could not properly wear them. I stared in awe at these magical slippers. I had been dreaming of my first pair of pointe shoes for my whole life, and they were finally right in front of me. At this moment in time, I had no idea of the pain and sacrifice that these shoes would bring. In fact, I would grow to loathe those ballet shoes. My whole life revolved around ballet until I started becoming uninterested with its rigid quality. I switched course towards the ever-changing contemporary dance, but …show more content…
Even though I trained in jazz, hip-hop, acrobatics, and lyrical, ballet was my main focus. I dedicated countless hours in the studio and spent summer vacations at intensives in New York, California, and Pennsylvania. My yearly schedule resulted in countless hours of ballet. Of course, having these opportunities was incredible, but after awhile it became monotonous. In August of 2014, a former member of the Royal Ballet School revamped the ballet program at my studio. He also introduced our studio to the Royal Academy of Dance, or RAD, ballet exams. Students leaped for joy at the chance to take the exceptional RAD exams, but I was the only one who chose not to participate. People frequently questioned the reasoning behind my decision. I answered that I simply did not have time, but it was actually because I felt that I needed to distance myself from ballet. By creating a space between me and ballet, I transitioned my focus to contemporary dance. I was intrigued by this form of dance because of its freedom with movement. It’s also less demanding in terms of proper technique and placement. At this point, I knew my dream of becoming a ballerina was withering away. It was a strange feeling saying farewell to my original
Show More

Related Documents: How Ballet Changed My Life

How Did George Balanchine Influence The World

George Balanchine is one of the most well-known dancers and choreographers in the world. He is known as one of the leading classical contemporary choreographers in the world (“George Balanchine”). He headed the USA’s first ballet school and created a ballet company which is still one of the best in the world. His works were very prominent during the 1950s and 1960s. Although George Balanchine had a great influence on dance in the 20th century, he was also very controversial. Balanchine was…

Words 1215 - Pages 5

Narrative: Dance and Ballet Step Pli Essay

Oashaja Dobie Comp 1 11/18/2012 Life of a ballet dancer When I first stepped into the dance studio, little did I know it would become my second home. Learning something new can be very scary, nerve racking, and fun. For me learning ballet was all of the above scary, nerve racking, and fun. When I first started dancing I had no clue what I was doing, I was always afraid of the way people would look at me if I didn’t know how to do the steps right or danced weird. I was five years old and I…

Words 808 - Pages 4

Billy Elliot Analysis

Billy Elliot, directed by Stephen Daldry, focuses on the life of eleven year old Billy Elliot and his struggle to become a ballet dancer. The social problems surrounding Billy when he is living at home are labor strikes and especially gender norms. His father and older brother were on job strike and the film depicts how hard it had already been for his father to pay for Billy’s boxing classes, yet alone “waste” that money on ballet. Ballet was considered to be feminine, not because females were…

Words 1398 - Pages 6

Reflective Essay On Billy Elliot

which encourage his son to be at least good at something. This book changed my life in many different ways, changed my view of life. Life is full of struggles and problems. Every problem has a solution, I have learned that nothing is hard in this life, and I have learned that reading books helps Read and recommend I give this book 9 out of 10.The reason why I picked up this book is that billy elliot is one of my all time favorite films and I was really intrigued by the fact that…

Words 731 - Pages 3

Name Mohammed AlkhaledClass 40E8 Read reflect Essay

which encourage his son to be at least good at something. This book changed my life in many different ways, changed my view of life. Life is full of struggles and problems. Every problem has a solution, I have learned that nothing is hard in this life, and I have learned that reading books helps Read and recommend I give this book 9 out of 10.The reason why I picked up this book is that billy elliot is one of my all time favorite films and I was really intrigued by the fact that…

Words 754 - Pages 4

Billy Elliot Identity

is more successful. Billy Elliot is a film that follows the life of an 11-year-old boy, who is the son of a coal miner in Northern England. His life is forever changed when he notices a ballet class during boxing. This curiosity developed into a participation in classes, a love for the dance and a natural talent. Billy Elliot reflects adolescence, firstly in the opening scene, where Billy is found jumping on a bed. This highlighted how at the beginning of adolescence, individuals still possess traits…

Words 1417 - Pages 6

What Are The Elements Of A Hero's Journey

slip?” Technique: Through the use of second person “you” and repetition of “one”, the persona demonstrates the same motivation and determination as Billy in exploring an transition that will foreshadow as to whether he will become a successful ballet dancer in the long run because this opportunity only comes once in a lifetime. Analysis: In order for Billy to take advantage of his opportunity, Billy needs the motivation and determination to withstand the pressure and challenges of exploring…

Words 747 - Pages 3

Isadora Duncan Essay

three popular forms of dance, Burlesque, Ballet and Ballroom with her dance company. Isadora Duncan became quite the globetrotter at a young age, mostly traveling around Europe, which exposed her to great cultures and experiences that greatly impacted her dancing. Isadora’s eccentric (at the time) styles were a hit in Europe. Isadora’s dancing career overlapped with the First World War. During the time when money dried up, she fled to Russia. At this time ballet was still a major form of dance so her…

Words 905 - Pages 4

Frankenstein: Learning and Time Essay

Lakshmi Alban Mr. Sarkisian English 4 Pr.4 04/26/13 Frankenstein Trying to think of how one learns certain skills from the past is a little challenging. Even though many of us have memories from the time we were young kids; it’s hard to recall how we learned how to walk, brush our hair, eat, drink, etc. Unlike Frankenstein’s monster, which was fully developed and conscious of what he was learning, we start the world with zero knowledge. As children learn they are molded into the person they…

Words 2537 - Pages 11

World Dance Ensemble

in working on my own senior choreography Israel Club Co-President Junior Year 2. Which activity is most important to you? Why? Being on the World Dance Ensemble was the most important activity to me because I was push out of my comfort zone and was taught how to work in an environment similar to a professional company. My entire life I had been a “contemporary dancer” so I originally wasn't that excited about being on World, but by being on World I was able to push myself out of my comfort zone…

Words 734 - Pages 3