written by balletboy  on 20.12. at 22:28:33

You need to do what you need to do!  I wanted to start ballet when I was about 3 1/2 or 4, but my mother wouldn't let me take classes.  My brother and his friends started mocking me, calling me "balletboy."  I took it as my nick-name, and the hell with the backwards attitudes.

The "ballon" is learned.  Baryshnikov has perfect ballon.  It's the way to get that height.  Most of it is in the plie, as someone has advised.

The problem with turns is almost universal.  The "errors" can be many.  In my case, I buckle my knee when going into the second turn, and everything drops down, and the turn becomes a mess.  You need to maintain the body in an upward position, and not let it lower.  Keep the leg straight and don't let the knee buckle.

If that's not thew problem, tell us more, and we'll see what other advice you might need.

Keep dancing!

balletboy

>Hello all, I am a 17 year old male from Texas who is just starting his dance career and I have some questions for those of you who have more experience than I have. What must I do in order to get such amazing height on my jettes, leaps, and other such arial moves? What varieties of weight training and excercise are the best for me? I have a very difficult time with my double and tripple pirouettes, I keep losing my balance just as I am near the finish, what must I do? When did all of you start dancing? I am very curiouse, living here in Texas (the most conservative place on Earth) there are VERY few male dancers, and the public looks down on me for dancing. This can be very deterring at times, being constantly riddiculed by ignorant cretins who believe that dance is only for homosexuals or "wimps". It makes me sick, the blatant ignorance of the people who surround me. But I do not pay them any heed, because I love dancing, it's like pure freedom and happiness to me, so I cannot even hear them. Please, someone reply though, because there is nothing I want more than to become infinitely  better at ballet.>      Peace, Love, and Freedom>                                 a Dancing Fool