Personal Narrative: The Intricacies Of Ballet
1...2...3...4...5! Yes! I had just landed five pirouettes on pointe, and the feeling of elation and accomplishment flooded through my body. I was on a “dancer’s high”. The term “runner’s high” is used to describe the intense euphoria, bliss, and surge of energy after an intense workout. I’ve coined the term “dancer’s high” to describe what I feel after perfecting a ballet step or movement after weeks or months of hard work. Ballet is not forgiving; our bodies are pushed far past the bounds of reality. My back bends in ways it shouldn’t, my feet point in directions they shouldn’t, and my toes take pressure that can be more than ten times my bodyweight . So why do it? Why do I put my body through such rigor week after week, month after month,
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There is always another detail or movement to perfect. A dancer who is in a professional company can take a beginning level ballet class and still find things to work on. You should never be bored when you’re dancing, there’s always more to think about, more movements to perfect. When I was in middle school, I ran cross country. I was pretty good at it, not a standout, but fairly decent. However, running didn’t have the same allure as ballet. I started dancing seriously in seventh grade, and it began to consume so much time that I quickly phased out other aspects of my life, such as running. What ballet gave me, that others parts of my life didn’t, was something that could accommodate my constant pursuit of perfection and something that would constantly keep my mind moving and thinking. It keeps my mind active and alive and helps strengthen me not only physiologically, but psychologically as well. All forms of dance, and classical ballet especially, are composed of two parts: memorization and artistry. You must memorize all the steps and the individual complexities that accompany each one. On the opposite end of the spectrum, everything must appear effortless and you must add your own individuality to every movement you make. These two contrasting forces have enabled me to memorize formulas in calculus and lists of compounds in chemistry. I memorize something, and then I add something unique so it sticks and is even more memorable
There is always another detail or movement to perfect. A dancer who is in a professional company can take a beginning level ballet class and still find things to work on. You should never be bored when you’re dancing, there’s always more to think about, more movements to perfect. When I was in middle school, I ran cross country. I was pretty good at it, not a standout, but fairly decent. However, running didn’t have the same allure as ballet. I started dancing seriously in seventh grade, and it began to consume so much time that I quickly phased out other aspects of my life, such as running. What ballet gave me, that others parts of my life didn’t, was something that could accommodate my constant pursuit of perfection and something that would constantly keep my mind moving and thinking. It keeps my mind active and alive and helps strengthen me not only physiologically, but psychologically as well. All forms of dance, and classical ballet especially, are composed of two parts: memorization and artistry. You must memorize all the steps and the individual complexities that accompany each one. On the opposite end of the spectrum, everything must appear effortless and you must add your own individuality to every movement you make. These two contrasting forces have enabled me to memorize formulas in calculus and lists of compounds in chemistry. I memorize something, and then I add something unique so it sticks and is even more memorable