I am terrified of double pirouettes.
I can double pique turn but...double pirouette?
I am seriously terrified. That's why I halfheartedly wobble around as my teacher yells: "Hannah! It's a double! Hannah! Snap your head! Hannah! Spot! HANNAH!"
I worry that if I try, really try, to drill my leg into floor and whip my head around--snap! snap!--that I will fall flat on my face.
And I don't want to fall. I already fall way more than the average person. I currently have a bruise on my left knee, because I tripped over a rain gutter while carrying a big box of ribbons. Who does that?
Me. I do that.
And if double pirouettes terrify me, you can probably guess how I feel about fouettés, the whipping force during which ballet teachers yell, "Attack! Attack!"
Yet I find myself facing a moment of choreography in one of my recital dances that goes something like this: double! fouetté! double!
It's basically my worst nightmare.
And you know, I have always been under the impression that double pirouettes and fouettés take a lifetime to learn (or many years, at least).
My recital is in June.
Gulp.
In my mind I know I need to trust my teacher, get on my leg, and snap my head like a firecracker, but in a little corner tucked away deep inside of me, the corner where rationality completely fades, I feel small and sad and scared.
That being said, I'll probably spend the better part of today trying to coax my body into a double! fouetté! double!
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I'm the opposite of you. I can totally do a double pirouette but double pique turns I somehow can't get.
ReplyDeleteAnd don't even get me started on fouette's. My last ballet teacher had us practice them on the bar...I can't even tell you how many times I wacked my knee. *sigh*
I am all too familiar with the whacking of the leg at the barre. Good times. Ha.
DeleteI cannot get down any turns at the barre. They are miserable for me!
DeleteYikes, that is hard! I still can't even spot properly...I'm always preoccupied with my bun possibly falling apart or my glasses going flying across the room(which has happened)
ReplyDeleteI don't wear glasses to class but when practicing around the house my glasses have flown across the room many a time! And last week during class, my bun was getting looser and looser, and by the pique turns my hair was slapping me in the face with every spot, hehe! :) I love ballet, even the technical difficulties make me smile. :)
DeleteI miss ballet :(
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean. I missed it so much after I quit in high school. I hope you can take classes again soon!
DeleteI somehow managed to sign myself up for fouettes in a dance tonight... 7 fouettes ending in a double. Intense! And we have a spring showcase May 10th already!
ReplyDeleteWhoa, that is intense!
DeleteSingles are actually harder than doubles. If you spot, and balance for one extra second, you'll be fine :) I wear glasses to class and I just use a headband to keep them on my face. I can turn in them, but I have to adjust them all the time! Once, I was turning in contemporary and they flew off my face, but they were perfectly fine! I was so scared though.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the tips! Hehe, there seem to be a lot of flying glasses in the dance world. ;)
DeleteHave you done fouettes at the barre? So much less scary! Double turns are scary. But I know you can do it!
ReplyDeleteThank you! I'm going to start practicing turns at my kitchen counter. Hopefully it helps!
DeleteI have been terrified of double pirouettes since I was... 12. I don't think it's ever going away. So I totally sympathize~
ReplyDeleteGood luck! All you need is a little practice. I'm sure you'll get it in time.
ReplyDeleteDo you do fouettes en pointe or in ballet slippers? I would recommend trying in slippers first. Work on going upwards and not the actual turning part. Then your arms and head can easily do the trick. I am loving your blog. I just started reading it. I'm 13 (14 in two days!) and I love ballet, but I started too late to become professional (I started two years ago). I am in the highest level at my studio, though. In my class, I am with the two sweetest high school girls and no one else. It is so much fun and I adore ballet!
ReplyDeleteI do fouettes in slippers for now. I'm not quite ready for an advanced step like fouettes en pointe. Hopefully I will be one day! Thank you for the tip and for your kind words about my blog. It's always lovely to meet other people who are passionate about ballet, especially fellow late starters. Happy birthday!!!
DeleteThanks, Hannah! You are so sweet and charming. You have just become my new role model. I tried fouettes en pointe on Tuesday, but it was not pretty! There was quite a bit of flailing limbs involved! : )
DeleteHey Hannah!
ReplyDeleteI just got back from my first ballet competition!
I did a pointe trio. We were the only pointe dance and we won second place in teen duet/trio!
It was really fun but tiring!
DeleteWow, Cailyn, that is big news! Congratulations!!!