SWAN magazine

23 June 2022

Swan Lake

How An Elite
Ballerina Eats

& Exercise
The Nutcracker

Classical Ballets
of all Time

www.swan.com

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“Even if you weren’t born with a
genetically perfect body, you can
take something like a hand, where
everyone has the same capabilities,

and you can make it speak.”
~ Sarah Lamb

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EDITOR LETTER

Start Thinking Ahead

Amy Brandt, Editor in Chief

1 December 2022

Injuries always come at the For me, a stress fracture If you’re not sure where to
most inconvenient time. Our sparked my motivation to start, check out our annual
cover guy, Derek Dunn, was start college part-time. For “How An Elite Dancer Eats
on the fast track towards a one thing, I had a lot of time & Exercise” in the back of
promotion when he faced a to kill during my recovery. But this issue. It’s specially
double whammy: two back- being off my feet also made curated just for bunheads,
to-back foot injuries that me realize how brief and and includes important
kept him out of commission delicate our dance careers diets information, too. And
for six months. Being unable are—and like many of today’s if you need more in-depth
to dance made him question working dancers, I wanted to coverage, visit us at www.
everything, and forced him be prepared. Now, it’s easier swan.com is an excellent
to explore life outside the than ever to balance college resource. It’s never too soon
ballet world. Find out more and career. In “Juggling Two to start thinking ahead!
about this prodigious Houston Worlds,” we look at how three
Ballet demi-soloist in our professionals are making
cover story. it work, whether through
night classes, online courses
or an accelerated degree
program created especially
for dancers.

The Royal Ballet’s
sumptuous reimagining
of Marius Petipa and
Lev Ivanov’s towering
masterpiece returns
to the Royal Opera
House stage.

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

SWA N L A K E

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STO R Y L I N E

Prince Siegfried chances upon a flock of swans
while out hunting. When one of the swans turns
into a beautiful woman, Odette, he is enraptured.
But she is under a spell that holds her captive,
allowing her to regain her human form only at
night.
Von Rothbart, arbiter of Odette’s curse, tricks the
Prince into declaring his love for the identical
Odile and thus breaking his vow to Odette.
Doomed to remain a swan forever, Odette has
but one way to break the sorcerer’s spell.

The Royal Ballet’s sumptuous production
of Swan Lake returns to the Royal Opera
House stage after its 2020 revival was
interrupted by the pandemic’s closure of
theatres. The reimagining of Marius Petipa
and Lev Ivanov’s towering masterpiece
by Liam Scarlett is testament to the
late choreographer’s abiding love of
classicism and innate musicality which
shine through the production.

BAC KG RO U N D

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ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

SWAN LAKE

With its fairytale spells, love-struck prince Swan Lake: special
and flock of enchanted maidens, Swan Lake performance for Ukraine
may seem an unlikely vehicle for rebellion, at the Royal Opera House
yet since its 1877 premiere this four-act tutu
classic has been entwined with Russia’s
turbulent history. In the 1920s, the Soviets
tinkered with its tragic ending to better
reflect communist values, while in 1991 it
became linked to the fall of the USSR after an
attempt to block news of an attempted coup
led to the ballet being beamed across state
TV for three solid days.

Four prima ballerinas and a
host of co-stars made this a
night to remember.

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Vadim Muntagirov
was electric

One of the joys of Swan Lake is seeing if
a ballerina can pull off two very different
parts: the lyricism of Odette versus the
seductive glamour of Odile. With that off
the cards, last night instead proved an
opportunity to compare very different
dancers. Act II was led by Lauren
Cuthbertson, who tackled the fluttering
lakeside pas de deux alongside William
Bracewell with a controlled serenity,
and Sarah Lamb finishing off its solo
and entrechat-strewn coda. Marianela
Nuñez made easy work of Act III’s bravura
displays and 32 fouettés, partnered by
an electric Vadim Muntagirov.

Act I’s Matthew Ball had little to do other
than look princely and handsome – a
major fault with Liam Scarlett’s staging,
which gives all the best steps to best
friend Benno.

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THE NUTCRACKER

English national ballet

The magical On a sparkling Christmas Eve in a
Christmas frost-dusted Edwardian London,
tradition for Clara receives an enchanted
all the family Nutcracker as a present. Together,
they discover a magical world where
she battles with the Mouse King
and meets a handsome stranger.
As the air grows colder, Clara and
her valiant Nutcracker take a hot
air balloon ride across London to
the glistening Land of Snow where
a puppet theatre comes to life with
dancers from around the world.

From the sound of the orchestra tuning up,
to the final bows and cheers, a trip to English
National Ballet’s Nutcracker in the splendour
of the London Coliseum is an unforgettable
Christmas treat.

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“A Christmas staple with its corps of
shimmering snowflakes, mischievous
rat army and a sprinkling of magic”

Over 100 dancers and musicians bring Nutcracker
to life with exquisite dancing, beautiful sets
and Tchaikovsky’s popular score played live by
English National Ballet Philharmonic.

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A Rojo deserves
perfect credit for pairing
Christmas Cojocaru, her most
treat senior ballerina,
with Cesar Corrales,
He still needs to make the who is – remarkably –
promenades look more elegant just three months’ past
but his care and security as his twentieth birthday. It
a partner, in presenting the is salutary to note that this
ballerina to the very best effect, was precisely the same age as
was a massive improvement on Vadim Muntagirov when he took
what I have seen before. this role at the premiere, in 2010; and
he, too, benefitted beyond measure from a
partnership with an experienced ballerina
(Daria Klimentová). In that year, Muntagirov
was nominated for the Outstanding Classical.

This young man does not need to convince
us of his ability to fly through a variation, full
of tricks, with huge jumps and furiously fast
spins. He is an exciting solo dancer, bound – I
feel – for a similar upwardly-mobile career
as Muntagirov; but to achieve greatness he
needs to master the less flashy requirements
of the adagio. And, this performance showed
that Corrales is a fast learner, no doubt
helped by Cojocaru.

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When juggling busy careers How An Elite Ballerina Eats
and lives, it’s not always easy And Exercises
to find the time to hit the gym
or prepare a healthy meal.
For inspiration, we’re asking
influential women in a variety
of fields to share a typical day
of eats and fitness, to see just
how they balance a healthy
lifestyle with their jam-packed
schedules. American Ballet
Theatre’s principal dancer
Isabella Boylston, whose
repertoire includes iconic roles
like Odette/Odile in Swan Lake
and the lead in Giselle, walks
us through a day in her life,
ahead.

“I started dancing when
I was about three years
old. I’m originally from
Sun Valley, Idaho, which
is a tiny little ski town,
No one in my family
knew anything about
ballet, but my mom just
signed me up for some
dance classes at the
local rec center.”

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I typically wake up around 9 a.m. and
I try to always eat a pretty hearty
breakfast whenever I have time. I love
eating any kind of eggs in the morning
with toast, that’s kind of my staple.
If I have time to have a sit-down
breakfast, I’ll really go for it with
eggs and pancakes. This really hearty
meal is from Grey Dog, which is one
of my favorite breakfast spots. So, if
I have time for a leisurely breakfast,
I’ll go there and get the Grey Dog’s
breakfast, which has a little bit of
everything—scrambled eggs, French
toast, fruit, and the chicken sausage
is really good. I know it’s probably not
what people expect ballerinas to eat.
I think people are usually surprised
when they see how much we do eat
in reality!

After breakfast, I also rehearse
every day–on an
I head to ballet average rehearsal
day I probably dance
class, which is how between six to nine
hours a day. It’s a lot.
we start our day. Definitely keeps you
in shape. Usually,
It’s an hour and a our rehearsals are
from 12 to 7 p.m. on
half and basically days we don’t have
a show. If I do have
for warming up a full-length, three-
act ballet show like
and conditioning Swan Lake that
day, then I’ll take
and working on class and maybe
do like a little bit
perfecting your of rehearsal, but
usually not more
technique. I do it than an hour or so.

every single day,

especially if I have a

show. It’s like a daily

meditation, it gets

you in touch with

your body and gets

your mind and body

focused and in tune.

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This salad is from Sweetgreen.
It’s so good: kale, arugula,
potatoes, mushroom, red
cabbage, and white cheddar
and apples with whole wheat
bread. I don’t eat a salad every
day for lunch, I’ll eat a sandwich
too, but I feel like a salad really
packs in the vitamins and
minerals so I try to eat salad at
least once every day either for
dinner or lunch.

I don’t work with a trainer. I do physical therapy basically
There’s a gym in ABT, so I just whenever I have free time,
go there and the exercises usually right after class. I have
that I have are usually given to a persistent knee problem
me by the physical therapist. that’s really annoying, but it’s
They’re an important part of really typical that dancers are
injury prevention. Planking is dancing through minor injuries,
a really good core exercise. unfortunately.Idoastimtreatment
You can just hold that plank and there’s an electrical charge
for 30 seconds or up to two so it gets circulation going and
minutes. If you do it correctly, also gets the [anti-inflammatory
it works your abs, your back, corticosteroid cream] to pass
your butt–it’s harder than it through your skin into the tendon.
looks! The other exercise that
I do a lot is the bridge where At ABT, we have massage
I’m laying on my back and my therapists in house so I get a
pelvis is lifted. That really gets massage once a week usually
my butt and lower back going. at the end of a day. Here, the
It’s a great stability exercise therapist was working on my
and helps you so that when hips, trying to get it relief.
you’re dancing, you use both
sides evenly.

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A Brief History of Ballet

ORIGIN OF BALLET

Ballet originated in the Italian By 1661, a dance academy
Renaissance courts of the
15th century. Noblemen had opened in Paris, and
and women were treated
to lavish events, especially in 1681 ballet moved from
wedding celebrations, where
dancing and music created the courts to the stage. The
an elaborate spectacle.
Dancing masters taught the French opera Le Triomphe
steps to the nobility, and
the court participated in the de l’Amour incorporated
performances. In the 16th
century, Catherine de Medici ballet elements, creating
— an Italian noblewoman,
wife of King Henry II of France a long-standing opera- King Louis XIV in Ballet de la nuit, 1653
and a great patron of the arts
— began to fund ballet in the ballet tradition in France.
French court. Her elaborate
festivals encouraged the By the mid-1700s French
growth of ballet de cour, a
program that included dance, ballet master Jean Georges
decor, costume, song, music
and poetry. A century later, Noverre rebelled against
King Louis XIV helped to
popularize and standardize the artifice of opera-ballet,
the art form. A passionate
dancer, he performed many believing that ballet could
roles himself, including that
of the Sun King in Ballet stand on its own as an
de la nuit. His love of ballet
fostered its elevation from art form. His notions —
a past time for amateurs
to an endeavor requiring that ballet should contain
professional training.
expressive, dramatic

movement that should reveal

the relationships between

characters — introduced the

ballet d’action, a dramatic

style of ballet that conveys a

narrative. Noverre’s work is

considered the precursor to

the narrative ballets of the

19th century.

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The 19th Century

Early classical ballets such as Giselle and La Sylphide were
created during the Romantic Movement in the first half of the
19th century. This movement influenced art, music and ballet.
It was concerned with the supernatural world of spirits and
magic and often showed women as passive and fragile. These
themes are reflected in the ballets of the time and are called
romantic ballets. This is also the period of time when dancing
on the tips of the toes, known as pointe work, became the norm
for the ballerina. The romantic tutu, a calf-length, full skirt
made of tulle, was introduced.

The popularity of ballet soared Carlotta Grisi, wearing a romantic
in Russia, and, during the tutu, as Giselle, 1841.
latter half of the 19th century,
Russian choreographers and
composers took it to new
heights. Marius Petipa’s The
Nutcracker, The Sleeping
Beauty and Swan Lake,
by Petipa and Lev Ivanov,
represent classical ballet
in its grandest form. The
main purpose was to display
classical technique — pointe
work, high extensions,
precision of movement and
turn-out (the outward rotation
of the legs from the hip)—
to the fullest. Complicated
sequences that show off
demanding steps, leaps and
turns were choreographed
into the story. The classical
tutu, much shorter and stiffer
than the romantic tutu, was
introduced at this time to
reveal a ballerina’s legs and
the difficulty of her movements
and footwork.

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BALLET EQUIPMENT

WHAT TO WEAR AS A DANCER

Ballet clothes are a key part of your
wardrobe for every dancer. You always want
your clothes to be comfortable, fitting and
flattering. It is just as important to FEEL good
in your clothes as LOOK good, so lets take a
closer look at the essential ballet clothes for
a dancer.
You will mostly always see the female ballet
dancers with their pink tights and ballet
leotards. This is traditional for the girls to wear
and for the male ballet dancers, it is a unitard
o ra leotard with a dance belt and tights.

Forget those glittering tutus and
sparkly dresses for now! Lets get
the basic essentials right first.
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If you walk into a room of BALLET CLOTHES
professional dancers, you
will see them all snug in their for training and student dancers.
warm up gear and wrapped young dancers to take off all the
up in their leg warmers. It is every muscle working in your
only until the very last minute
and curtain up on stage that professional dancers NEVER
they will take off their woolen clothes, because sometimes the
warmers to be bare in pink tidy look without warm ups on.
tights and a tutu. de deux or partnering, the male
without extra clothes.
Of course, it is very different
The teachers expect all the 16
‘baggies’ so they can see
tights and leotards.

This is not to say
take off their ballet
directors expect to see a
Or if there is a lot of pas
dancer needs to lift the girl

BALLET LEOTARDS

There are plenty of different leotards to buy
with elegant patterns, colours and materials.
When you are in school, you are most probably
expected to wear a standard leotard and colour
that is appropriate to the class.
Traditionally, the leotard leg cut is fairly
low on the hip but the modern versions
are growing to be more high cut, which
presumably makes the legs look longer.
The most common sleeve length for female
ballet dancers is thin straps, which is called
a camisole leotard. You can also get cap
sleeved and long sleeved.
The traditional neckline for a ballet leotard
is round and wide, but there are many other
styles such a V-necks and halter top necklines.

The great thing about most
modern leotards is that they
are fully lined. That makes
it not essential to feel the
need to wear a bra of any
sort underneath.

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WHAT TO WEAR AS A DANCER

BALLET TIGHTS

Tights provide light There are lots of different
compression of the muscles brands of ballet tights you
in the leg and foot which can buy such as Bloch, Plume
improves circulation and and Capezio.
helps dancers to “feel” their
legs and engage the correct The material is so fine and
muscles. They provide delicate, so you must really
unrestricted movement be careful. You can’t stop your
while providing good ballet tights from laddering,
coverage for the sake of but if they do it helps to put
discretion and modesty. some clear nail varnish on
the end of the ladder to stop
it from laddering any further.

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POINTE SHOES

Pointe shoes look dainty, but they really ar-
en’t. The tip of the shoe is a rigid box made of
densely packed layers of fabric, cardboard
and/or paper hardened by glue. The danc-
er depends on it to be extremely sturdy: The
entire weight of her body is balanced on a
small platform in that box! The rest of the
shoe is made of leather, cotton and satin.
Each shoe is custom made, and hand crafted
to fit each dancer’s unique specifications. No
two pairs of pointe shoes are identical!

Pointe shoes make ballet dancing look
magical and even daring. They create
an illusion of lightness and give a sense
that the ballerina is floating on air.

Pointe shoes are specially made shoes
worn by ballerinas to allow them to
dance on the tips of their toes.
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“Our pointe shoes are our
instruments. If something’s wrong

with my feet, all my mind goes
there. I usually have six pairs ready.
Soft shoes for one act, stiffer shoes

for another, stronger shoes for a
variation with a lot of turns.”

~ Nina Ananiashvili

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To integrate ballet into trend and PICKTSOP
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BALLET INTERVIEW
WITH JILIAN VANSTONE

BEING A BALLERINA

Hi, I’m Jillian Vanstone and I’m the first soloist
with the National Ballet of Canada.

The first soloist means that I do mostly
solo work in productions. I also get some
opportunities to do principal parts, which is
really exciting.

Generally, if there’s a solo, I’m going to be DANCING ON STAGE VS
involved in some way. IN THE STUDIO

What is great about my career actually is that It’s so different dancing in the studio to
every day is different. We get our schedules dancing on stage, with the lights and the
on Fridays for the coming week, but as a live orchestra music, which is really such
general rule, we start a ballet class at 10 am. a treat to have and you know, the costumes
and hair and the make-up and the common
DIFFICULTIES OF BEING goal of everyone and the energy of everybody
A BALLERINA wanting the show to go well.

One difficulty is the mental aspect of getting And the energy, of course, coming from the
up in front of many people and doing some audience. There’s really nothing like stepping
very difficult things. out there and you have the nerves going and
that can be hard sometimes, but it also helps
A lot of the time when things don’t work it’s you really push.
actually more of the head that prevents you
from doing it than technical ability or strength. Sometimes you can really lose yourself on
So it’s a lot of work to get past the jitters I stage. You just forget everything and become
suppose. And besides that, there’s just the the movement and the character.
physical aspect of it. I think a lot of people Those are just the most enjoyable times
don’t realize how physically demanding it can when everything kind of falls into place and
be because we have to go out on stage and it just works and you have a connection with
make it look like it’s easy! the audience, and with your partner and with
your colleagues. It can be really magical!
But to get to that point, there are so many
hours of rehearsal and I do a lot of cross- I think the greatest artists are the ones that
training, pilates, I swim, I jump ropes, to are really brave enough to lay themselves
get my endurance up. People don’t realize bare.
that because we have to smile and we can’t
show that we’re really dying at the end of a I just strive every day to become a better
variation, or at the end of a ballet. At the end artist and to become a better dancer.
of the day, I’m usually exhausted.

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www.swan.com

“Pointe shoes are
torture devices. I mean,
ballerinas get used to
it, but it was definitely
a new experience for
me. They feel medieval.
I was very happy to stop

wearing them.”

~ Natalie Portman

28 Holden Street, San
Diego, California,
92105
619-285-9642
619-634-7835

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