*BlOG CHANGING*

I have decided to switch up how I write my blog. Instead of giving an update of each of the three topics I am just going to share all the thoughts and tips I have about ballet and what is going on in my daily ballet world. Hope you like it.

Safe Stretching in Expensive Leotards

Upcoming shows at Ballet West:

The Nutcracker starts December 5th it runs until the 31st at the Capital theatre and in ogden November 28th and 29th . Come see the classic Christmas Ballet full of dancing dolls and wild parties. Personally I think you should go during December 18th to the 20th then you can see me. The nutcracker is fun for all ages and a great ballet. I have seen it over and over again not to mention from back stage and I never get tired of it even though the songs get suck in your head for ever.. This is good for the whole family and really gets you in the mood for the holidays. So, come enjoy the annual nutcracker at Ballet west. If you buy your tickets now they are 40% off. 

Photo by DC Metro Theaters 

Reviews:

Photo by Yumiko Berlin

Yumiko Dance wear. This review is on the one and only Yumiko. If you do not know what Yumiko is it is a dance wear company that makes very cute yet equally expensive leotards. A single leotard can run upwards of $80! They are an international company and their website is in 6 languages. All though they are expensive they have good quality and hold for a long time not to say how they are very stylish and have great ballet fashion. The website was easy to navigate and gave a very in depth selection. Once you have chosen the style you like you can chose a different trim and color and sized exactly to your needs. This is because they are all hand made. That is probably one of the reasons they are so expensive. I personally do not have one but it may be on the way soon for a holiday or upcoming birthday. (fingers crossed) Over all Yumikos are a great brand that everyone loves just not the price.

Stretch of the Week:
Good stetting techniques are necessary so you do not get injured. Here are 3 things to always remember when stretching. Before you stretch a muscle you must warm up. A good way to do this is by doing a plié combination or just getting you blood pumping. That can even be done by jumping jacks. Also do not jump into splits right away you could tear a muscle. Warm up properly before hard stretches. Another tip is that over stretching is worse than not stretching because you can pull a muscle and be hurt for a long time. You should not stretch your splits for longer than 2 minutes at a time then you can go back and do it again up to 15 times in one sitting but you need to give your body brakes in-between. When doing other stretches that come in reps like leg swings only do sets of 15 at a time and repeat this as much as you want but do not do more than 15 at a time. You may think it helps with endurance but really it just weakens the mussel and trust me you will be sore. Finally make sure to stay in your boundaries no matter what if you try something to far out of your comfort zone you will get hurt. An example of this is over splits. Over splits are when you elevate your leg then do the splits. I can do over splits on a chair but some people are not that flexible and no matter how warm they are they will get hurt. Work at your own pace and don't care about the people around you. 

Lots of rehearsals and Summer Programs Audition Preparation

Upcoming Utah Ballets:

Photo By University of UtahDepartment of Ballet

The University of Utah Department of Ballet 
The Utah Ballet will be performing November 13th -15th and November 20th -22nd. You can purchase your tickets through kingstix. The Utah Ballet's performances continue to impress me. I expected them to be good but last year I went to a couple performances with some girls from dance and we were very    surprised on how well the dancers are trained and how well the choreography was excited over all extremely well done.

 Daily Dance Days:

Along with nutcracker rehearsals we are already preparing for summer auditions which are in January. My teachers are telling us that it is right around the conner. This year I will be auditioning to several companies for a spot in their summer intensives. I will be auditioning for ABT American Ballet Theater, SAB School of American Ballet, NYC Ballet, The Royal Ballet

, Joffery School of Ballet and The School at Steps on Broadway. All of these are internationally recognized ballet companies and schools. All of them except for the Royal Ballet are in new york. The Royal Ballet is in London and is very hard to get into. Not only do they have summer programs but they have a boarding school that is year round. I would love to go there because I love London! We are working hard but got a break for UEA that was much needed. With Nutcracker rehearsals my weeks are reaching 28 hours and 45 minuets of Ballet! Saturdays alone are from 9AM to 6PM! I can say that I am very tired and sore to say the least. At least I love what I do.

Photo by Ballet West Blog

Reviews:
Dancewear Solutions
Dancewear Solutions is an online dance wear company that sells everything for every dancer. They have every thing from tights and leotards to tap shoes and costumes. I love this site and have probably spent way to much money on it..  Its not expensive at all in fact they have such good deals that I you could get 4 leotards for the price that you you could get one on a lot of other stores. If you are as obsessed with online shopping as I am you will really appreciate this site! Also there website has tons of selection. Sometimes I will find dance clothes that I really like but they are super expensive and almost always if I type it in to the search bar I can find it here for half the price. I go on this site all the time and defiantly would recommend it to friends. It is a great place to look for cute leotards for that one class a week where you get to wear your choice leotard. Ours is on Saturdays. They have tons of styles and colors to chose from. Dancewear Solutions get a great rating from me any day.

Stretch of the week: Frog

Photo by Different Steps to Ballet

The "Frog" has many names but what it is, is a stretch that helps loosen up your hips. This helps with turn out and basically every dance move you will ever do. All you do is lay down on your stomach and put you feet together and knees out, Try to get you feet and knees flat on the ground with out arching your back. This is a great stretch for all levels! After doing all of your other stretches your hips get tight and to make sure you have maximum range in your hips and to increase flexibility you need to loosen them up again. Plus it feels really good. At first most people can not get there feet any where near the floor but after doing it almost everyday it gets pretty easy and you end up like the girls in the picture. Depending on how flexible you are the can stretch a lot or a little. This is in almost every bar stretch at the end.

Long Days, Long Weeks and Long time Classic Shows

Upcoming Dance shows in Utah:

Thriller by Odyssey Dance Theatre September 1st to November 1st

Photo by Odyssey Dance 

Every year Odyssey put on thriller it is a halloween show filled with comedic and horror dances. They go all out on costumes and props. They tour around Utah and most people have seen it but it is always a good show and I don't mind seeing it more than once. From the 10th of october on they will be at Kingsbury Hall in Salt Lake.Tickets start at $25 and go up from there. I went to one a couple years back and had a lot of fun! Aways exciting and engaging. Even though it is not a ballet I still enjoyed it just as much. 

Weekly schedule:

This week I decided to tell you my weekly schedule. I dance for Ballet West Academy. I am level 8. I dance 6 days a week. Every day but Sunday because yes, we do live in Utah. It gets hard at time to get everything done and be able to socialize as well, but I make it work and wouldn't have it another way. ON monday and Fridays we have technique for 1:45 and then Pointe for 1 hour this starts at 6:30 and ends around 9:15. On tuesdays and wednesdays we have a 2 hour technique class then variations that is a total of 3 hours ending at 9:30 On Thursdays it starts at 4:30 with conditioning then a 2 hour technique class and Pointe. That is a total of 4:30 minutes ending at 9. Finally or longest day is Saturday. We start at 8:30 and end at 6:30  . The classes are Technique, Pointe, Repertory, Modern  and then rehearsal. It all adds up quickly! I love dance but even I know that is a lot. 

Photo by Life of a Dancer 

Stretch of the week: 

Bar Stretch! Bar stretch varies from studio to studio and even from teacher to teacher but a I will tell you a basic stretches done in bar stretches. At my studio we have to remember anywhere from two to four different bar stretches. The first thing I think that is important is putting your leg on the bar in second or to the side. You put it on the bar and stand as close to the bar as you can so that you're also stretching your turn out and rotation. Then you can reach towards your leg and away several times. You then also do this to the front turn slightly angled towards the bar and make sure you are staining straight up the repeat the reaching from before. Finally you do this to the back it is the same as the front but with your leg behind you. When you reach toward your leg twist you spine for an extra stretch. This is good for warming up all you muscles! Make sure to be warm when stretching always stay safe and have fun stretching!