Ballet on Television!

Before I dive into the heart of this post, let me take a minute to introduce myself. My name is Alyssa. I am one of the marketing and communications interns and I am thrilled to be part of the BalletMet team for the summer.  As of yesterday, I am a graduate of THE Ohio State University with a BFA in dance and a minor in arts entrepreneurship. This statement is normally followed with ever present questions such as, “So, what’s next for you?” or (my personal favorite) “A dance major?? So…what do you want to do with that?” Well, to be perfectly honest, I’m still figuring that out for myself. What I do know is that dance will continue to be a part of my life for a very long time. I may not be sure what the future holds for me, but I could not be happier with my decision to major in dance. Yes, many assume that a dance major means getting credit for prancing around like a fairy and stretching all day, but I know quite different. The knowledge, discipline, and experience I have gained in these past four years are invaluable to me.

As a Columbus native, I have always admired the work BalletMet is doing, both on the stage and in the community. Having been on the performance side of dance for quite some time now, I am very excited to learn about the administrative and marketing aspects of dance. Now that you know a little bit about me, let’s turn our attention to the recent boom ballet is making in television!

Until recently, most dance on television has been commercialized with contests and celebrities. Does this mean there is no room for the timeless art of classical ballet on television? Upcoming shows and documentaries such as “Breaking Pointe”, “Bunheads”, and FIRST POSITION say differently. These shows are giving real life insight into the different aspects of being a classical ballet dancer. This gives audiences who are used to popular shows like “So You Think You Can Dance” a new appreciation for classical dance. These shows are aiming to break the notion of ballet being old-fashioned and outdated. Let’s face it; a good majority of people in the U.S. do not attend classical ballets on a regular basis. Seeing ballet on modern day television may give classical dance performances the boost in attendance we’d all like to see.

The CW recently premiered “Breaking Pointe”, a reality show following the behind the scenes operations of Salt Lake City company, Ballet West. The show focuses on the dedication, vigor, and strength it takes to be a professional ballet dancer by following the dancers in class and rehearsals. In addition to life inside the studio, the dancers’ social lives are also documented, focusing on their relationships with one another and how they manage their careers as dancers. You can even watch full episodes on the CW website! The ABC Family original series “Bunheads” is also set to premiere on June 11th (as in tonight!!), focusing on a Las Vegas dancer who ends up taking a position at a ballet school. The series will follow her growth as a teacher and journey with the students. Episodes of this will also be available online.

And let's not forget to check out the upcoming documentary, FIRST POSITION at BalletMet night on June 14^th at 7:30 PM at the Drexel movie theater. This film follows six young ballerinas on their journey to the Youth American Grand Prix, one of the most prestigious ballet competitions in the world. Their sacrifices, dedication, and perseverance give the dancers a glimpse into the life of a professional ballerina. Call (614) 231-1050 for tickets, or visit http://www.drexel.net/.

Now let’s give it up for ballet making it on the big screen. Bravo, ballet. Bravo!

-Alyssa-

Start of Summer!

Summertime may mean lots of sunshine, days by the pool and cool nights catching fireflies, but it doesn’t mean the work has stopped! BalletMet is hard at work preparing for its next season and it looks like it’s going to be a good one! I’m Mackenzie, the new marketing intern for BalletMet this summer, and I’m ecstatic to get to spend my summer working here. A little bit about myself, I’m a Marketing major with a minor in Communications at The University of Toledo, GO ROCKETS! While I go to school up in Toledo, I grew up here in Central Ohio and get to spend my summers back home.

So far in school, it’s seemed that people often equate business students with plain personalities and a rather dull list of interests. I’ll be the first to tell you that is most definitely not true, as seen with my love of dance. I started dancing when I was only two years old, only stopping for a brief hiatus when I moved from Southern California to Ohio in preschool. Throughout the years I dabbled in various styles such as ballet, lyrical, baton, jazz, and even clogging! While I may have thought about quitting from time to time during the teenage years, I don’t regret sticking with it for an instant. I won’t lie, I definitely wasn’t the greatest dancer, nowhere near good enough to get into a company per say, but my dance studio was always my home away from home. I’m sure every dancer can agree with me on this one, that there’s just something magical about performing where you feel outside of yourself. Oftentimes I wish I would have pushed myself a little harder, practiced a little more, and been a little better than I was, but it in the end I still enjoyed it nonetheless.

Since dancing was such a huge part of my childhood, it was tremendously hard for me to quit when I moved off to college. With that, I couldn’t imagine a better place to be interning for the summer. Since I’m only home for the summer, however, it unfortunately means I won’t get to see any of the performances during the season. Disappointing, I know. I can only hope to catch a showing of The Nutcracker over Christmas break! Throughout the summer I’ll highlight all of the upcoming shows for the season, so stay tuned!

- Mackenzie J   

Back to the Costume Shop

A little more than one week until the opening of BalletMet’s next performance, DanceTech! I snuck down to the costume shop again today to chat with Erin Rollins about the final show of the season. (For those of you who don’t remember, she’s the Assistant Costume Shop Manager and Wardrobe Manager here at BalletMet.)

Q: Can you tell me a little about the costumes?

A: We are making a lot of costumes but they are simple and don’t take up much room. While it is less work than Sleeping Beauty, we are all still busy. We started on DanceTech after Sleeping Beauty ended. The costumes are very fun and space-agey and all of the fabric is hand-dyed. We have a woman who is helping us specifically with the dye because there are different dyes for different fabrics depending on the fabric content.

Q: What are you most excited for?

A: I am super excited about the tutus. In all my years here, we have never gotten the chance to make an abnormal tutu and we finally get to! They are handmade by our shop and we are making one for every girl in the company. It’s a whole new tutu and it is completely different than anything you’ve seen before.

(Since the tutus are a secret until the show, you will have to come see DanceTech to see them!)

Q: Will you be working up until the show?

A: Yes, but it won’t be manic, just some minor tweaking.

Q: What’s next for the Costume Shop once DanceTech is over?

A: We will be finishing up (cleaning, stocking, and refurbishing the machines) before shutting down for the summer. We will be reconvening in July to start on next season.

Q: Most importantly, which costume is your favorite?

A: There are a lot of cool costumes but the tutus are definitely my favorite!

Thanks for letting me talk to you again Erin! I cannot wait to see the finished costumes (especially those abnormal tutus!) DanceTech opens next weekend so make sure to get your tickets! (https://www.balletmet.org/current-performance)

-Kelsey :)