I’m a guy, but I have a desire to learn the female dances

I’m nervous that my instructor will judge, despite her being very kind and supportive. And my GF will think I’m weird.

Any tips?

So it’s been a couple years since I’ve taken a ballet class. I had been in 2 pre-professional companies previously, then had a gnarly ankle injury. And then another one.

I finally got brave enough to go back to class after a couple years of physical therapy and strengthening. It’s an adult beginner, and (not to sound like a total ass) but it’s much below the skill level I’m used to.

That said, I’m having a pickle of a time adjusting to the (significant) extra weight I have on me after having a baby. I can’t develope my leg high anymore. Like, it gets shaky at 90°. I can’t even find my balance in center (though part of me wonders if my old ballet shoes should be 86’ed because after a long period of physio for my ankles, they don’t feel quite right)

Do you have any advice to adjusting finding your balance after having such huge changes in your body?

TL;DR: I was pre pro but am kind of starting over after injury and pregnancy. How do I go about re-discovering my center of balance?

I'm an advanced level 21 year old student (en pointe for the last 8 months) looking for performance opportunities for adults, which I'm discovering are shockingly hard to find!

I danced for 6 years in my childhood, performing each of those years, and only had to stop because my single mom couldn't afford my studio's fees and the 30 minute drive to and from. I started consistently dancing again 2 years ago at age 19, and I'm so happy with the progress I've made thus far!

My biggest goal is to finally be in the Nutcracker, as well as any other productions that would take me. But, most companies/theaters in my area (San Diego CA) only let people under 18 perform, and the only one that I've found with open adult auditions is charging a $180 audition/commitment fee with no guarantee of casting (too much for me as a full time working student already on food stamps!)

Do you folks have any advice for finding adult performance opportunities, or perhaps even places in my area that cater to adult dancers? I've spent most of my childhood/adolescence on stage, whether dancing or in drama/theatre groups, and I miss so much being able to work towards a production together with my fellow dancers!

Hello Fellow Ballet Dancers,

I’m curious how different studios keep track of attendance. At my old place, the front desk person would come and take attendance via pen and paper at the start of class; however, at another studio I visited, they had a sign-in sheet at the front desk.

If you dance regularly, how does your studio handle role? Do teachers call out names? Does everyone swipe/sign in, or is it more relaxed?

I’d love to hear what’s worked (or not worked) in your experience, especially if your studio has a system that makes things easier for teachers and dancers alike.

I’m a geriatric millennial and I’ve only been doing ballet for 3 months. I’m a hands on learner who likes repetition but my teacher shows us the steps once or twice, then we do it once on each side and move on to a different sequence of steps. Every week is like this so people are supposed to remember from the week before but my brain doesn’t work this way and this doesn’t work for me. Is this the normal way of teaching?

I can’t even practice on my own because most of the time I don’t even remember the steps once we do it once.

I’m planning to watch the Royal Ballet’s Nutcracker at the end of the year and need help with choosing between seats.

I’m in a dilemma because while the balcony seats are a little closer to the stage distance-wise, they also have a restricted view. (Though on the website, it doesn’t really look like there’s anything physically blocking the view of the stage)

The amphitheatre seats are not marked as having a restricted view, but it is a little less central and also higher up.

Please help an indecisive girl out 🥀 Thank you in advance!!

Okay so I’ve been in grade 5 since February but I can no longer attend that class due to my class schedule, so my teacher has put me into a grade 7 class because she says I’ll be fine and manage it. But does this mean I will be able to do RAD grade 7 exam or will I have to go back and complete grade 5 first?

Never been to ballet. Never posted or thought I’d be posting on a ballet sub before.

I was blown away. Not just the talent, but the whole experience. Visuals, set, lighting, sound.

Pretty cool stuff. Had to share.

I'm an adult doing ballet for over 1.5 years, I take between 3-4 90 minute classes a week (as well as an additional pre-pointe). For the most part, I've been really enjoying the process, but I noticed that my teacher has been giving me a lot more corrections (and harsher ones) in the recent months. I know that 1) I'm better than I was 6 months ago, but didn't receive as many corrections then and 2) there are some other beginners in the classes who make the same mistakes but don't get call for it. I wear a mixture of gym clothes to class, and sometimes, a leotard with ballet tights. Most recently my teacher told me I needed to be wearing only a leotard and ballet tights, but I look around the class and at least half of the others are still in yoga wear / gym clothes. I'm trying to be optimistic and take it that my teacher wants me to progress, but can't help but feel puzzled by the recent turn of events. If anyone has any insights, I'm all ears!

My RAD advanced foundation exam is in 5 days and I just had classes straight for 4 days. All 4 days I could not complete a single of my pirouettes and I am at wit's end. I have been consistently trying to work on my pirouettes using tips I see online - Get into passe position quickly, use arms to guide you, pulling up my abdominal muscles to feel more lifted so I don't fall sideways, but I still cannot ever complete a turn. I'm feeling even more stressed out now because my exam is in 5 days. Any tips on how I can practise these 5 days so that I can get more confident in completing those turns during my exam? Or any feedback on how I can complete those turns? Any help is appreciated, thank you 🙏🏻 ps in the first two clips I'm the one at the back.

Hey everyone, Happy Dancewear Monday! Please feel free in posting a picture of your dancewear style, your new dancewear purchase, your cute warmups, etc. Just a reminder of the guidelines:

1) It is recommended to blur out your face if you want to keep some anonymity.

2) Please list what brands you are wearing in the comments in case other users want to know where you found stuff.

3) All Dancewear Mondays will be NO CRITICISM with regards to ballet. So if someone posts a picture of them in arabesque being like “look at my cute leg warmers” DO NOT comment “Looks great but you should turn out more”. We don’t care if your intentions are good and you are just trying to help, on this subreddit critique is only given when explicitly asked for. If you wouldn’t say it to someone in class don’t comment it on here. (And if you would tell a fellow dancer to turn out more, or something, randomly in class well that just reflects poorly on you).

4) New users who have low comment karma: your post will be filtered into a queue and need to be mod approved, so please be patient if your post does not appear right away.

5) Use the Dancewear Monday flair

Thanks :)

*English isn my first language, sorry if theres something wrong. I always loved dancing but i used to be more of an hiphop kid and now i wanted to start dancing ballet but since im a transgender man and my transition isnt complete i dont have the confidence to start dancing in a academy but i wanna start improving my flexibility. Can you give me tips or an workout for beginners to start being more flexible?

Edit: Answered! Shades entrance from La Bayadere. I completely forgot I had even seen this, so it was definitely a while ago. Thank you!!!

Ok I feel like I'm losing my MIND. I saw both Giselle and Swan Lake in the last few years, as well as Sleeping Beauty and a few others. I remember this really satisfying entrance in one of them; the corps de ballet was entering from a back wing down a ramp in a very slow motif, one at a time in line, then turned and went the other directions forming a bunch of super straight lines. I just love cool geometric choreo like this, but the problem is, I can't remember which show it was, and I can't seem to find it. I feel like I'm losing me ever loving mind rn. I saw all of the shows that are in the running at Philadelphia Ballet (formerly Pennsylvania Ballet, so I don't know if this is an uncommon artistic choice, but I Seriously think it was in Giselle. Perhaps a principle dancer was at the front or corner of the stage somewhere?

Does anyone know what this is??

Today I went to a pointe shoe fitting and I got fitted in the Virtisse Voilette!

I also bought some legwarmers since were at the start of the colder months.

Hey all!

I’m wondering what ballet flats everyone uses? I currently use the Bloch flex pro shoes but they just don’t seem to fit right, I’m wondering maybe I get 1/2 a size up or if anyone has any other recommendations for some other good split sole flats?

Many thanks <3

If you have taught ballet, what qualities makes a young child dancer (e.g. age 5-8) stand out compared to others? Is it their ability to focus and learn, their flexibility, their body proportions? How do you choose which kids go on to comeptetive vs rec team? I'm curious what teachers look for. Specifically in kids who do not have a lot of training yet.

I’m so excited to try these Nikolai stream points! I had them for my si in a soft shank, but those died very quickly so I’m trying them in a medium shank. Also, I’m super excited because I got into a pre professional program which starts tomorrow :) (and if anyone has any ballet slipper recommendations that would be super helpful!)

I have curly hair (2c-3a) and I always struggle keeping my hair frizz-free, especially by the end of class. All the tutorials I find online are of girls with perfectly pin straight hair, and I feel like mine just don't behave the same way. I actually have been trying to do French twists which I find so beautiful and perfect for ballet, but they end up looking super messy and loose. Does anyone have tips on how to style my curls for ballet?

I’m an actor taking beginner ballet because dance calls are the bane of my existence and really hinder me in auditions.
I do have hip dysplasia though and am just wondering if this is something the teacher should know or if it’s not useful info for them? I am a yogi so flexibility isn’t an issue, but this is also partly because I have an ED called ehlers danlos which is a connective tissue disorder…. It’s a long story😅 I have zero problem disclosing, I just don’t wanna disclose for them to be like “tmi girl we just met”

I‘m starting at a new studio and we can basically wear what we want (I’m an adult), still relatively new to ballet. Stupidly ridiculous question but what do people generally wear to them apart from tights Leo and a skirt? I love leg warmers etc but I think as a beginner I’d look like an overenthusiastic berk, can someone weigh in on this?. Lastly I’d love to know what people wear to and from the studio, at my old one I came straight from work and I’d just leave in my ballet clothes, but at this one I’ve got plenty time to go home and get changed. I struggle with anxiety and I’m terrified I’ll stick out line a sore thumb

Has anyone tried both the elation and performa in D width? I’ve seen people calling the elation wide but is it comparable/close to the D width? There’s a store 1hr away from me where I could try them on but I don’t want to make the trip if I shouldn’t bother. The widest point of my feet is right before my toes so my pinky can get a little cramped even in wide shoes, but my arches are really more high than wide.

I'm f/28yo, and I started to learn ballet 2 months ago with weekly classes. My core has always been good as I do cross training like pilates, lifting weights and cardio (aerobics, swimming) on almost daily basis. My plies and tendus are considered solid now and most beginner sets that I did on barre and center are quite easy for me to catch on. However, this change when my teacher introduced us retiré.

Although my core is strong to be able to do basic ballet moves, but retiré/passé is just different. My core just gave up after doing in a few times when I did it with and without demi pointe, and my mind just went 'blank' after that due to some kind of exhaustion that I've never knew of, which is interesting because I never feel physically tired after the classes (except the very first class). I've also gave up on doing pirouettes (my first time doing it) because I couldn't do it. Instead, I focused on balancing myself during centre class.

Is there any way to improve my core on my retiré? I would like to improve them so I can do pirouettes and other techniques asap.

For context about my current strength and level: - Although I did pilates but what I do is standing pilates, because my room is too small for a yoga mat. - I always rely on my core to do ballet as I'm not a flexible person. I can't even lift my legs up to the lower barre 2 months ago, but now I can lift my legs up to the lower barre during previous class last week. - Stretching is my worst enemy. I rather do many jumps and plies than stretching. - Just after a month and a half of training, I feel my feet are grounded/rooted to the floor.

I would like to become a ballet teacher and eventually a studio owner. I'm not sure if I should get a college degree as it's obviously very expensive, and a lot of the dance education programs I've looked into are masters degrees which would be even more expensive. I know there are some certifications like RAD so I wanted to know it that is a better option and what I could do to build my resume generally. Thanks!