What's your nemesis?

 Every dancer has something that they constantly struggle with. For me, it's petit allegro.

Asking for it

After having a brief moment of success with double pirouettes,  I had several weeks of difficulty landing clean singles. Each time I've fallen backwards out of the turn, a problem that gets worse as I tire. But I may have figured out the problem.

Just prior to my successes, the instructor had made a general observation that some weren't getting our working foot all the way up to the standing leg's knee, and we'd do better if we did. I think one of the things this did for me was cause me to get higher on my standing foot too. This causes a tiny weight shift forward, which appears to be just enough to make me balanced in the turn.

I've started making an effort to really get up on my standing foot during turns. I'm still not doing double pirouettes, but my singles are getting cleaner. I've also gotten some corrections on my spotting technique, which are helping too.

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Speaking of corrections... The consequence of asking my instructors not to hold back is that I'm now getting a lot more corrections. This is good for me, but it's hard on the ego.

Last week one of the other instructors got in on the act. It's pretty common for off-duty instructors to take classes they're not teaching -- it's a job perquisite for them. We were doing a centre exercise that included a sissonne from fifth to first arabesque, and this instructor happened to be standing just to my right and a bit behind me. At the end of the exercise I heard her say "No, don't do that." I didn't know who she was speaking to or about, so I turned to see. She looked at me, rolled her shoulders, and said, "Don't raise your shoulders when you jump."

At first I didn't understand what she meant, so my first reaction was to try to understand what she was saying. I didn't realize I was raising my shoulders during the jump, which is why we need corrections from instructors. My second reaction was a bit of annoyance: I felt blind-sided, as this was not someone I'd asked for corrections from. It can be hard enough to be told you're doing something wrong by the class instructor.  Then I realized that her suggestion was offered in good faith, and it would be to my benefit to take advantage of whatever help is offered. 

It's tough on the ego to get corrections. No one likes being told they're doing something wrong, even when it's true. Sometimes it feels unfair, like when I get a correction regarding arm position while I'm focused on remembering where my feet are supposed to be going. My recent experience of being on stage with professional dancers has left me with a touch of imposter syndrome, so I'm a bit more sensitive than usual. Then I remind myself that instructors generally do not offer corrections to students who do not make use of them, and I feel a little better.