I have been suffering from writer's block lately. I have so many things I 'could' say...as most people do, but can't seem to put all the words together.
I've been away for my annual work trip to San Diego for most of January. Typically, this trip leaves me worn down - physically, emotionally and mentally - but I do some of my most creative choreographies and movements there. This year was different. I wasn't emotionally and mentally drained. I had creative outlets that diffused my stress and anxiety.
By accident I missed my first opportunity to go back to Ballet class. I couldn't remember which time it started (there have been some time changes over the year and half I've been taking it) so I got there 25 minutes late....I really really wanted to jump in, but I didn't want to break the rhythm of class or displace people from their barre location.
So last night was my first night back to ballet in over three weeks. I wasn't hestiant, afraid, undecided. I was prepped and ready to go at 6:30pm. First company and second company members were there as well as a few un-nicknamed regulars. We start in with our plies - two demis, one grande, port de bra, releve, plie in first, second and fifth position. I felt my breathing slow, my mind grow quiet and a smile on my face.
We move through our plies and into our tendus when someone new (to me) comes into class, drops her stuff and then squeezes in right in front of me. In my mind, I reach forward, grab her by her long black ponytail and fling her out the door and calmly continue my tendu combination on the other side. In reality, I grab my water bottle and relocated to a barre location with MORE space!
Menty: So rude!
Side Bar: It's ok. We know most people were born in caves and raised by wolves...that forgot to eat their young....
We finish our tendus and do our degage combination with MDB saying she wants stretching, buoyancy, and the combination....to which I ask which one does she want. We laugh, she smiles - do the stretching :)
We make it through our degages before another girl runs in late up to the center barre on the floor. Again, someone without class ettiquette or even barre ettiquette. (If three people are at the barre, it should be two on one side and one of other, staggered, so people don't bump into each other....DUH!) She also lines up almost perfectly with someone else on the wall barre....(the overwhelming urge to kick her during battements almost gets the best of me)
MDB gives us a simple frappe combination with comments about chocolate...and mostly all I hear is chocolate and we manage to remain standing while thinking about chocolate :) The rond de jamb combination includes rubbing my head and patting my belly while doing rond de jambs front to back and back to front....ok, not rubbing and patting exactly - something about an arm. At one point, I'm circling my toe on the floor while trying to get the arm thing in...ooops!!
We battement and I don't kick the last rudie newbie and we move into floorwork. Ok, I got close at least twice, but I didn't get her....
We do a third position adagio, followed by changements, and an interesting hop, chasse forward twice, with assemblage and jump. I kept screwing up first part of the combination really good, but I can assemblage without losing my mind :)
It's the little things really. It's the small things that say I'm making progress that give me encouragement. It's also the things MDB corrects and doesn't correct that encourage me too :). I'm going to Friday night barre class too! WHEEE!!!!
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