Kristen Gillette August 7, 2013

Thoughts on Breaking Pointe’s New Season

There has been a lot of controversy over Breaking Pointe this season, partnered with a lot of disappointment when the first episode aired–a lot of the ballet community was upset over how little ballet there actually was. I think Rebecca King captured how a lot of how I felt on Tendus Under a Palm Tree (she’s a professional dancer, too) after the first episode.

Now that we’re three episodes in, I’ve decided to share my opinions, too.

Ballet Becomes More Widespread

I think one of the most important segments of the first episode was of Adam explaining each part of the ballet company in relation to high school classes. At first, I thought, “blah, blah, blah. If you know anything about ballet already, you’d know this.” Thinking back on this, that’s not the point. As King quotes Allison DeBona as saying: “We originally set out on this endeavor to help rejuvenate the public’s interest in ballet and it feels like we are serving our purpose.” I think the show is definitely serving it’s purpose, although it’s doing it in a way not all of us are happy with.

People are learning more about how a ballet company operates because of Breaking Pointe, and the pain that goes into producing a ballet. Take Rex Tilton and Ronnie Underwood’s injuries and Joshua Whitehead’s disappointment of not getting the role of Napoleon(which he desperately wanted) for example. Both injuries and disappointment’s are a huge part of the real ballet world. I love learning more and more about what company life is like.

…but it’s still “reality TV”

I’ve seen a lot of people get upset over how Beckanne Sisk has gone from being the polite, new young dancer to the evil villain of this show and the bitchy girlfriend (taking over DeBona’s role, essentially). We realized last season that DeBona isn’t exactly the evil queen she was played out to be (and in fact, they haven’ shown that angle at all this season). There’s also the apparent “extreme tension” we’re apparently going to get to see between Christiana Bennet and Christopher Ruud in future episodes, which I believe they’re obviously over-dramatizing as well.

Producers feel they need to create drama in order to appeal to the reality TV masses…but I’m okay with that. As a ballet fan outside of the world of Breaking Pointe, I’ve accepted that the CW needs to add the unneeded drama and partying–as long as it means I still get to see quality ballet as well.

Are you happy with the new season of Breaking Pointe so far?

Filed Under: Ballet, Blog Tagged With: allison debona, ballet, beckanne sisk, breaking pointe, christiana bennet, reality TV 5 Comments

Caysie August 5, 2013

Can you be TOO flexible as a ballet dancer?

OY VEY! I am so sorry that I’ve sort of “slacked off” on my stretching series. I’ve been sick for the past week and then I just sprained ankle on top of it. Apparently I can dance better than I can walk. 🙂 So while I’m taking a little hiatus from dance and intense stretching to let my body heal from the illness and injury, I figured I’d bring up a topic that seems to be controversial at the moment- can you become TOO flexible or overstretch when it comes to ballet?? I found an article about how the positions of ballet have changed over the years and how they require a different level of flexibility and it raises interesting questions about the pressure it puts on dancers to be crazy flexible. I’ll fess up… one of my guilty pleasures is following a ton of little ballet Instagrams that are likely run by 12 year old girls (not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I’m “old” in comparison so it makes me feel a little silly haha). So my Instagram feed is overrun with pictures of girls doing tilts, oversplits, and various other insane in the membrane stretches.

One of the first pictures on google image search of “oversplits”

Part of me is blown away at the awesomeness of the stretches. It’s really amazing to see what the human body is capable of when you stretch it out and push its limits. The other part of me is really curious as to the concerns and dangers associated with stretching to extremes. I am, of course, a huge advocate of stretching as I find it’s very important to keeping a healthy body as well as progressing in ballet. I am also very cautious and try to make sure to weigh the costs with the benefits before I do anything. For me, the biggest concern that I have with these extreme stretches are the dangers involved. Could you imagine if one of the chairs in the above pictures slipped out during the process of getting in this position?! Holy pain, Batman. Or when I see people stretching their arches by sticking their foot under a couch and forcing it down I can’t help but wonder how much potentially “unnecessary” strain they are putting on their joints, tendons, ligaments and muscles that could later lead to serious injury.

When trying to do research on the topic I found some really weird mixed messages. A lot of sources say that you can’t really be too flexible and that you should try and push and push until you can get further. A lot of other sources say that being overly flexible is neither necessary nor helpful in ballet because it actually makes you need to work harder to maintain the classic lines that make ballet seem graceful rather than looking contorted. Although I found a lot of opinions of parents of dancers, adult dancers, and teen dancers, there aren’t a whole lot of easily accessible resources based from more reliable “official” sources. So, because I am no expert and definitely cannot give you advice on the matter, I advise that you weight the pros and cons yourself before attempting any stretches of that magnitude and always recommend caution. But I figured it could be an interesting point of conversation. Do you feel that these extreme forms of stretching can help or hinder ballet? How do you feel about the ever increasing flexibility requirements of ballet and how it changes the way the lines of the body look?

On a more fun note, I also decided to do the ABC survey Kristen posted to tell you a little more about myself after the jump 🙂

Filed Under: Ballet, Ballet Class, Info, Outside Class Tagged With: adult ballet, ballet, oversplits, overstretching, stretching 7 Comments

Kristen Gillette July 24, 2013

National Dance Day, July 28th: Philadelphia Dance Day

This Saturday, July 27th, is National Dance Day and Philadelphia Dance Day. Here in Philadelphia, Philly Dance Fitness (as well as other studios and dance organizations) is sponsoring a day of free dance classes as well as a $5 dance party afterwards. While you won’t find me at the social dance party afterwards (I’ve got a huge day of moving on Sunday)–I’ll be checking out many of the workshops throughout the day, including modern dance, jazz, and maybe even some tango. Check out the full schedule for a full list of workshops and classes throughout the day (as well as their locations), but here’s some of my favorites from the list:

10 am: Kids Ballet at Major Moment

I wish I could crash this class because my ordinary Saturday ballet class has been cancelled so that the rest of the this fabulous dance day could happen. But if you have kids between the ages of 5-7, make sure you take them to this awesome, free taste of ballet! Beverly is an awesome ballet instructor.

11 am: Advanced Beginner Modern Dance

Although this class would probably clash with the rest of my day’s schedule, I definitely would recommend it if you’ve wanted to try out modern dance or are looking for a free class to take on a Saturday. They’re located in Old City too, a great area to grab some lunch afterwards.

1 pm: Co-Ed Pole Dance Fitness

Pole dancing isn’t just for strippers–it can be a great way to increase your flexibility and strength. Not sure what you need? Check out this recent guest post I wrote: What You Need to Start Pole Dancing Classes. Make sure you grab your yoga mat for ab work for this class if you’ve got one.

2 pm: JazzTech

Another class taught by my wonderful instructor, Beverly. While I haven’t gotten a chance to check out this jazz technique class, I hear it’s going really well!

3 pm: BalletEXTREME

This class combines ballet moves with upbeat pop music to help you sculpt a ballerina’s body outside of the normal structure of ballet class. No experience is required!

4:15 Argentine Tango

I’ve been dying to try out Argentine Tango, but I haven’t gotten a chance yet because the classes are either too late (I’m an early sleeper!) or not at a convenient location. This class is perfect if you’re looking for a great introduction to tango–no partner needed!

What are your plans for National Dance Day?

Filed Under: Ballet, Blog Tagged With: ballet, Hip Hop, Jazz, Major Moment Studio, National Dance Day, Philadelphia Dance Day, Tango Leave a Comment

Kristen Gillette July 22, 2013

Some ABCs and the week ahead!

Moving + HTML/CSS class + Internship = one stressed out Kristen. I know I haven’t been the best blogger lately, but as I work to pack everything up (not to mention the stress of the past week of helping my boyfriend actually find a place for him (and me to crash) has been crazy, so I’ve spent a lot of my free time.

But, everything seems to be working itself out and after the next two weeks are over, everything should be in place. And although my shins haven’t been reacting well to running (well, I was stupid and ran a mile a week ago in 10 minutes–super fast for me)–I’m super excited for a Color Me Rad race with my sister in about two weeks. It’s just going to be crazy in the meantime.

Since my brain’s kind of too stressed out to function to come up with a more substantial post (I’ve got to work on defining real goals for myself for August and seriously get myself back on track–but more on that later), I’ve stolen this introductory ABC post from Amanda at Adventure Year since it’s been awhile since I’ve talked a lot about myself:

A. Attached or Single?

From a wedding over a year and a half ago now. He blogs over at The Active Gamer .

B. Best Friend?

This girl. Although we haven’t seen each other in months, we text each other nearly every day. Pic is from the Color Me Rad in Philly last year.

C. Cake or Pie?

Cake. Preferably ice cream cake.

D. Day of Choice?

Thursday. Favorite ballet class of the week because it kicks off my weekend.

E. Essential Item?

Ballet slippers and running sneakers. Don’t make me pick!

F. Favorite Color?

Pink and periwinkle.

G. Gummy Bears or worms?

Sour watermelon. Close enough, right?

H. Hometown?

A little town near Allentown, Pennsylvania no one’s ever heard of.

I. Favorite Induldence?

Cheese dip. I love it, and it seems to be the one thing I can’t give up. That and mac and cheese.

J. January or July?

July. Although this heat wave’s been murder, the cold is not my friend.

K. Kids

They’re pretty awesome. Sometimes I miss working at the pool and my camp buddies.

Life isn’t complete without?

Running and dance.

Marriage date?

Don’t have one. What kind of survey question is that?

N. Number of brothers/sisters?

Just one sister. At her graduation two years ago. Clearly I need to get better at taking up-to-date photos.

O. Oranges or Apples?

Oranges are yummier, although I do enjoy apples, too.

P. Phobias?

Needles. And shots. I cried the last time I needed shots. And I was 18.

Q. Quotes?

I’ve got a lot of favorites, but here’s one:

It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all – in which case, you fail by default.

J.K. Rowling

R. Reason to Smile?

There’s a lot. A great family, best friends, a loving boyfriend, the best dance teacher. I’m lucky to have them all.

S. Season of Choice?

Summer, even if I haven’t gotten to the beach yet.

T. Tag 5 people.

Not going to, but fill out this survey if you like. Or leave me an answer in the comments with an answer to a letter question of your choice.

U. Unknown Fact about me.

I’ve did pretty much ever sport/extracurricular activity when I was little, and failed at most of them.

V. Vegetable?

Potatoes.

W. Worst Habit?

Breaking good habits. I’ve yet to be able to stick to a routine and keep falling behind in trying to establish one. Maybe one day I’ll find one that sticks. Like a stretching routine. Or running routine.

X. Xray or Ultrasound?

Never had an ultrasound, but Xrays are relatively quick and painless and I’ve had quite a few in the past year.

Y. Your favorite food?

Right now? Mac and cheese. Can’t. Stop. Eating. It.

Z. Zodiac Sign?

Gemini, but it’s been ages since I’ve followed astrology.

Pick one question to answer in the comments so I can get to know my readers better!

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: ABCs, ballet, blogging, running 3 Comments

Caysie July 17, 2013

Stretching Series: Stretching Tips and The Back

In my previous posts, as well as on the Adult Ballerina Project Facebook, I mentioned that I would be doing a post on stretching. I got some good requests and feedback on what type of stretches you’d like to see and I decided that rather than squeeze it all into a horrible 5 page long post or a short one without pictures that I’d do a series instead. So this will be the first of my stretching series and I’m starting with my favorite part of the body to stretch: The back!

Before we begin with that, I’d like to give some of my general tips on stretching.

1. Bundle up. Ok, this may sound really unpleasant. Especially because it’s summer. But this has been a huge help in increasing my flexibility. When I stretch I typically wear tights, legwarmers, shorts, sweatpants, a leotard, and a sweater. As I heat up, I strip layers but I tend to leave my legwarmers and shorts on to keep my legs and hips nice and toasty. One word of caution if you do decide that this tip is something you’d like to try… don’t overdo it. Make sure you’re hydrated and that you’re not pouring sweat. It should serve to help get and keep your muscles warm, not to make you pass out from heat stroke.

2. Warm up for your warm up. This may sound silly but when I stretch I like to walk around the room fast for a few minutes, do a few jumping jacks, or something similar. Getting your blood flowing just a little bit will help your muscles warm up and be more flexible.

3. Use Therabands to help add some resistance or to help you grab your leg when your arms cant quite reach yet.

4. Make good use of fences, counters, doorways, couches. I love to stretch my legs out by just resting one on my counter like its a barre. When I’m at hotels I use the door frame to help me stretch my back out. Be creative and use whatever is safe that you can use to help aid you in stretching.

5. Don’t push yourself too far. Stretch just enough for a little discomfort and hold for 15 seconds. Then next time hold for 20, then 30 and so on. When it becomes “easy”, then push yourself a little farther and repeat the process. This will keep you from torn muscles.

6. If you’re having a stiff day, stretch after a warm bath.

7. You might not look like the hot babes in the yoga pictures you found online- and that’s ok! I get annoyed with this all the time. I imagine myself doing a stretch I see online and when I do it it looks TOTALLY different (and much less cute) than the pictures I saw. But lets get real- that’s what the person in the picture does for a living and they usually have also sat through hair and makeup (and get touched up) and are taking a full day to take like five pictures. Stretching isn’t about the visual product as much as it is making sure that your body is flexible and ready for dancin’.

Ok so now I’ll start with my favorite back stretches. I do these almost daily, if not twice daily. I have found that my posture has totally changed with these stretches and that my arabesque and port de bras have also improved as well.

1. (Left to right) I start with a cobra pose focusing on keeping my shoulders down and pushing up with my sternum rather than my lower back.

2. Once I’ve reached that pose and have held it for about 30 seconds or longer, I bring my feet up as close to my head as I can get them. It’s ok if you can’t get them to your head yet, just keep trying by bringing them up as high as you can.

3. I always like to reverse my stretches. When I stretch one muscle group, I stretch the opposing muscle group. I find that this helps me avoid soreness and keeps me from having any part of my body from being more flexible one way than the other. Soooo, to reverse these back stretches I do a cat pose, remembering to pull up from the back as well as pushing up from the core.

4. From there I turn over and do a back bend, feet and hands flat on the floor. After holding as long as you’re able between 15 and 30 seconds.

5. Slowly go down onto your elbows one at a time. I like to put my hands together in the center but you can also put them parallel to each other on the ground. Start by staying on flat feet and holding for a few seconds, then go up on demi pointe. Hold.

6. Walk your feet outward as far as you can to see if you can straighten your legs. I’m still unable to straighten completely but I’m getting there. I find that the easiest way to get out of this pose is to just keep sliding until you’re laying on your back.

7. Last I like to lay on my back and sort of just wiggle around, loosening everything back up. It seems super counter intuitive that stretching would make you tight, right? But I’ve noticed that sometimes with back stretches, your back wants to revert back to it’s previous happy place right away after you’ve pushed it so I just roll out my back, twist around, and try to loosen it back up before I go about my business.

This is also a great video that can be really helpful. Click here.

What stretches do you do to increase your back flexibility/strength? Also, what parts of the body do you want to see stretches for in this series? (I know that we got one request for knee stretching and I will be certain to get that done!)

Happy Stretching!

**Keep in mind, these are just MY favorite stretches and you definitely need to make sure are careful trying anything new.

Filed Under: Ballet, Info Tagged With: Adult ballerina, adult ballet, back stretchiing, ballet, stretch, stretching 3 Comments