Inside Ballet Technique

The more knowledge the dancer - and the dancer's parents and teachers - has about the body as an instrument of artistic expression, the better the dancer. Inside Ballet Technique introduces the reader to the natural anatomical laws governing human movement and body mechanics, and relates them directly to the dancer's acquisition of technique in the daily ballet class. Easy to read, simply and clearly illustrated, Inside Ballet Technique provides a fresh perspective on the basic tenets of classical ballet, answering many questions that commonly persist in the minds of career-track students and dancers.

Aimed at advanced dancers, this book discusses classical ballet's basic concepts, techniques, and movements

From adagio to voyage, over 800 steps, movements, poses, and concepts are fully defined. A pronunciation guide and cross-references to alternate names for similar steps and positions also included.

Long-listed for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize An Amazon Best Book of the Month A Buzzfeed Most Exciting Book of the Year A The Millions Most Anticipated Book of the Year & Bestseller Selected as a Skimm Read A Refinery 29 Best Book of the Year Chosen as a Rumpus Book Club Selection Chosen as a Bustle Best Literary Debut Novel Written By Women in the Last 5 Years An enthralling literary debut that tells the story of a young girl’s coming of age in the cutthroat world of New York City ballet—a story of obsession and the quest for perfection, trust and betrayal, beauty and lost innocence. In the roiling summer of 1977, eleven-year-old Mira is an aspiring ballerina in the romantic, highly competitive world of New York City ballet. Enduring the mess of her parent’s divorce, she finds escape in dance—the rigorous hours of practice, the exquisite beauty, the precision of movement, the obsessive perfectionism. Ballet offers her control, power, and the promise of glory. It also introduces her to forty-seven-year-old Maurice DuPont, a reclusive, charismatic balletomane who becomes her mentor. Over the course of three years, Mira is accepted into the prestigious School of American Ballet run by the legendary George Balanchine, and eventually becomes one of “Mr. B’s girls”—a dancer of rare talent chosen for greatness. As she ascends higher in the ballet world, her relationship with Maurice intensifies, touching dark places within herself and sparking unexpected desires that will upend both their lives. In the present day, Kate, a professor of dance at a Midwestern college, embarks on a risky affair with a student that threatens to obliterate her career and capsizes the new life she has painstakingly created for her reinvented self. When she receives a letter from a man she’s long thought dead, Kate is hurled back into the dramas of a past she thought she had left behind. Told in interweaving narratives that move between past and present, Girl Through Glass illuminates the costs of ambition, secrets, and the desire for beauty, and reveals how the sacrifices we make for an ideal can destroy—or save—us.

Discusses all basic principles of ballet, grouping movement by fundamental types. Diagrams show clearly the exact foot, leg, arm, and body positions for the proper execution of many steps and movements. 118 illustrations.

What elements define the shapes of dance? With over 50 poses to contemplate and/or recreate, readers develop an eye for detail and explore concepts such as pointed/flexed, tilted, weight, and straight/bent/curved. Dancers increase body awareness, spatial perception and balance, as well as practice ballet technique. Ballet vocabulary is highlighted, along with the value of practice and healthy choices. Spectacular photos of dancing shapes found in nature, creative fantasy, and ballet movements, positions, and forms offer a glimpse into one dancer's ballet journey. A wonderful resource and inspiration for young dance fans.

"Autobiography of a Romanian-born American impresario, now in her 90s, whose love for ballet led her to become, for more than four decades, one of the first successful 20th century female theatrical producers of the performing arts in Asia and Europe, especially in Germany"--Provided by publisher.