Month: October 2014

Turn Boards

Turn BoardsThe benefits of turn boards can be debated. There are many aids, products and remedies for dancers on the market which help their training, however the pros and cons of turn boards can be identified easily. Seen in the dance film documentary First Position, it seems turn boards help dancers to master their pirouettes, improve confidence in turning and correct their spotting, balance and posture.

A turn board is a slim rectangular board which works on the principle of reducing friction between the foot and the floor, allowing the dancer to spin fast. While it is clear a turn board delivers a multitude of turns for the dancer, this does not necessarily translate into a number of turns when a turn board is not used. It may however improve dancers’ spotting and allow them to get used to the sensation of performing multiple turns, as well as highlighting small adjustments to be made to improve turns on the floor.

Despite this, a turn board requires the dancer to turn on a flat foot which has potential for problems with technique: in classical ballet, a turn is performed with a releve to either demi or full point. Turn boards may then encourage dancers to turn on a low demi pointe rather than pulling up and turning on a high demi pointe as required. Turning on a flat foot means the foot is not in the same position and the weight distribution is different than for pirouettes in ballet.

Therefore the physicality of a turn, with an adjusted centre of gravity when on flat to demi or full point, is very different with and without the board. For beginners who are just learning turning technique it is likely that the turn board would complicate matters. It could make learning pirouettes harder or encourage bad habits.

Principal Casting For ENB’s Autumn UK Tour

ENB LogoPrincipal casting for English National Ballet’s autumn UK tour, and performances of the classic The Nutcracker, have recently been announced, with a multitude of pairings to watch once summer is over.

Joining English National Ballet from Boston Ballet, Alejandro Virelles will make his debut as Principal, performing the role of Prince Siegfried alongside Alina Cojocaru’s Odette/Odile in Derek Deane’s Swan Lake. We will also see lead roles from Ksenia Ovsyanick, who was recently promoted to Soloist, and her debut as Odette/Odile with Zdenek Konvalina; Tamara Rojo and the winner of Emerging Dancer 2014 Junor Souza; Fernanda Oliveira and Dmitri Gruzdyev; and Shiori Kase, who was promoted to First Soloist and her debut as Odette/Odile, with Yonah Acosta, who was promoted to Principal. Deane’s traditional production tours to Manchester in October, followed by Milton Keynes, Liverpool and the London Coliseum.

After a critically acclaimed run at the London Coliseum in July this year, Coppélia begins a UK tour to Southampton in October, also heading to Oxford and Bristol. Following their debut performance in the lead roles of Franz and Swanilda, Acosta will also perform alongside Kase on tour. Coppélia is the comic tale of an eccentric toymaker and his mechanical doll. Dr Coppélius, the toymaker, creates a lifelike Coppélia doll and wishes to bring her to life.

Nutcracker returns to the London Coliseum from 11 December 2014-4 January 2015. First performed in 2010 to celebrate English National Ballet’s 60th anniversary, Wayne Eagling’s version has since been seen by over 300,000 people. Principals for Nutcracker include Laurretta Summerscales with identical twins Guilherme Menezes and Vitor Menezes, both making their debuts as the Prince and Nutcracker.

This is English National Ballet’s 11th production of Nutcracker since it performed its first full length Nutcracker in 1950, its founding year. Since then, English National Ballet has established the tradition of performing Nutcracker at Christmas every year.

Rumours For Cats The Musical

Cats The MusicalIn news that may have surprised some musical theatre fans, it has been rumoured that former Pussycat Doll, solo artist and X Factor judge may be in the running to make her West End debut in Cats. It seems Nicole is in “very early discussions” to star in Cats as Grizabella the Glamour Cat, at the London Palladium for the show’s limited run later in the year.

Nicole majored in musical theatre at university, and has had small roles in various TV shows. Last year, she dedicated a fabulous rendition of “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina” from Evita on an ITV show to Andrew Lloyd Webber, so she has been on Lloyd Webber’s radar since 2011. He had planned for Nicole to join the judging panel of one of his reality TV casting shows such as Any Dream Will Do.

If Nicole is to join the uber-talented cast she will do so in the wake of musical theatre legends Elaine Paige and Ruthie Henshall who have also played the role. In addition to this, Lea Salonga (the original Miss Saigon) even portrayed the prominent cat in her native Philippines.

It has also been rumoured that Nicole has been itching to get onto the West End musical scene for some time, having already sung a rendition of the title song, “The Phantom of the Opera”, with Simon Bowman, Earl Carpenter, Ramin Karimloo and John Owen-Jones. 2012 also saw her rumoured to play the part of Mary Magdalene in the comeback Jesus Christ Superstar arena production, only to be offered a stint on X Factor, and be replaced by former Spice Girl Mel C.

Cats will run for a strictly limited twelve-week run from 6 December 2014 following its current UK tour.

Students’ Potential Is Within The Arts

Ballet Students

According to new research from University of Sydney academics, the arts are key to unlocking a child’s potential. While this may be the thought of many arts practitioners, especially of those in the education sector, it has not yet been formalised in findings. The study published in the Journal of Educational Psychology, tracked 643 primary and high school students from 15 Australian schools and assessed their academic outcomes and personal well-being over two years.

It was found that students who studied creative and performing arts were more motivated, more likely to complete homework, participate in class and enjoy school more than their peers who didn’t participate in the arts. These creative students also had a greater sense of purpose, self-esteem, life satisfaction and educational aspirations: dancing, singing, acting, playing music and so on all greatly benefit a child’s academic performance and overall creativity.

It is clear that the study provides compelling evidence that the arts should be central to education, rather than left to the outskirts of an apparently well-rounded curriculum. In short, the students who participate in the arts excel across the curriculum, so it is paramount that the arts are included in the education system. The research proves that arts education is not and should not be a bonus, but an essential part of a well-rounded education.

Teaching artistic creativity and encouraging children to participate should be mandatory from the off-set through to university, available to all students regardless of socio-economic background. Already, many Asian countries such as China, South Korea and Singapore are investing in improving their schools’ arts education to develop creativity and innovation. While these students rank highly in tests across the board, the Korean government has seen the need to increase their capacity in arts education too.

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.