Dancing with the teacher

The instructor for this morning's class was in a better mood than last week. It could be that more people showed up for class (apparently there is a minimum number of students, and if attendance falls below a certain level the class gets canceled and the instructor loses money). It could be that she was feeling better physically, as I didn't hear any rasping when she breathed, though I still suspect she has asthma. Regardless of why, she was definitely better than last week.

She provided constructive criticism, and did it with a reassuring tone of voice. For example, while I was doing one combination across the floor I got through the first fine, then botched the second. In a light-hearted tone she commented, "You got it right the first time, then you tried to think about it!", which is pretty much on target. She still teased the one student she was really rude to last week, but it came across more as familiar teasing than nasty.

Several of the new students are really new. One woman has excellent turn-out, but said it's all from yoga (she's an yoga instructor) and this was only her fifth ballet lesson. Another new one was a guy I'd place in his late 20s (my friend thinks he's much younger) and it looks like he's also very new. Sometimes I feel really inept, but when I have true newbies to compare myself to I don't feel so bad.

We're doing this combo of two ballet steps and an odd dip/brush through/step. As she explains it, this is how a couple enters a ball, resplendent in their finery. She walked over to the huddle of students, picked me out and asked me to demonstrate with her. Starting on opposite feet, we alternately turned to or away from each other on each brush-step. It was kinda fun.

After class my friend and I hung around a little while watching the kids practice for the upcoming Nutcracker performances. It was fun to see, though watching a 15 year-old demonstrating mastery of steps that I can't even dream of attempting yet is a bit frustrating.