Less is more

I've taken two classes since I was told I was putting too much energy into my pirouettes.  You know what? She was right. Funny, that.

Not that I ever really doubted her. The question in my mind was more one of how to implement her suggestion. I started by just practicing the motion of rising from a plié to passé relevé with no rotation, with the goal of getting as upright as I could, and balancing there as long as I could. Then I added just a hint of rotational energy. It works for both en dehor and en dedans turns. The turn isn't rapid, but it's fast enough for class and it's stable.

No place to hide

I've received emails from the studio advertising open job positions, and I've noticed some new faces popping up recently. When I arrived the check in before class today, the person behind the desk was someone I'm used to seeing in the halls preparing to take a class. Apparently she's been hired; congrats to her on the new job!

I don't believe we've ever been in the same class -- she's much more advanced than I am -- and I don't know her name. But as I walked up to the desk she immediately greeted me with a cheery "Hi Reece! I'll check you in."

I'm sure the folk at the desk have a list of those registered for the day's classes in front of them. And it's welcoming to be greeted by name. But it's also a bit spooky to be recognized that quickly. As a man in a ballet studio, there simply isn't a crowd I can blend into, even while wearing a hat and a surgical mask.

Feeling like a pincushion

I'd only been able to get to a couple classes this month, and hadn't been to one in over two weeks. A few hours ago I looked up at the clock and realized that if I rushed I could make it to this evening's class.

By the end of barre I was feeling really tired. We get a short break between barre and centre, which helped some, but by the second centre exercise I felt exhausted. I sat on the side until I felt better, then packed up and excused myself.

Maybe it wasn't a good idea to go to class two days after receiving flu and pneumonia vaccinations? And barely 10 days after receiving a bivalent booster against the current plague? Yeah, that might not have been the smartest idea.

Turning like a rusty nut

After a break for the US Labor Day holidays, I was able to schedule a session with Jacob to work on my turns. 

In the interim I'd recovered a bit of confidence in several variations of pirouette, but it as if I'd developed a complete mental block on pirouettes en dedans to the right. The first one I attempted during my session with Jacob felt as if I'd never done one before After a bit of work I managed one or two weak turns, but nothing like I'd been doing only a few weeks before. 

Near the end of the session, he asked if there was anything else I wanted to work on, and I suggested pique turns. I had no real trouble turning to the left, but could barely do one to the right. As if a light bulb suddenly turned on, it occurred to me that a pique turn is very similar to a pirouette en dedans, with the working foot in a different position. Jacob suggested working through the motion without the rotation, which isolated the problem: I'm having trouble rising to demi-pointe on my right leg. We spent the rest of the session working on this.

I'm still wobbly on my right leg, but I have something to work on.