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Ballet Level 4

July 8, 2013 – August 2, 2013

Times: 10 am – 4:30 pm with 1 1/2 hours for lunch

This is a really important summer intensive because this is where we get evaluated for placement in the upcoming school year. I hope I can get in at Level 4!

http://youtu.be/O01DsRafurI

WEEK 1

July 8, 2013 (Monday) – Day 1

So happy, we actually get 1 1/2 hours for lunch. Afternoon is pointe work – finally en pointe! I haven’t been on pointe for almost a year. My pointe was good. All the time at OSA really strengthened my feet and ankles. I wobbled only a little and I never fell off pointe. We have jazz from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM (First class of the day, as the intensive starts at 10:00). After that we have Technique (Ballet class) from 11:00 to 12:30. After that we have lunch from 12:30 to 2:00. I haven’t had a lunch break that long since at least kindergarten. After our lunch break we have Pointe & Variations from 2:00 to 3:30. We have Pointe for only 30 minutes or so, and Variations for an hour. The Level 3 class has Variations with us, which the teacher explained as we are all learning steps that in the last week of the intensive, we will split up into Level 4 and Level 3 and use those steps to make something we will perform at the end of the last week.

July 9, 2013 (Tuesday) – Day 2

Today I only had a little time to stretch, so I didn’t have such a great class. The ribbons and elastics on my pointe shoes came off by the end of pointe class so I have to sew those back on. Stretch class was pretty fun

July 10, 2013 (Wednesday) – Day 3

Caught the 8:05 train this morning…it’s the bullet train and it arrived in Millbrae in 19 minutes. So fast…had a few minutes extra time before the BART train departed for Civic Center. The laces on my pointe shoes separated and I need to sew them back on. I could do it on the train or wait until lunch break today.

July 11, 2013 (Thursday) – Day 4

Today in Jazz we found out that the combination we’ve been working on all week is actually the one we will perform on the last day on the intensive! We are learning new steps and keeping track of it all is a little hard, but I’m staying on top of it. In Technique we learned a new pliè combination, along with doing our fondues on relevè and different rond de jambe combinations. We went for an entire hour on pointe. We did the jumps on pointe and piquè combination we learned on the first day en pointe and the soutenu combination both jumping an en pointe.

My pointe shoes are hurting…they’re a little tight around the toes because I bought them last year and my feet have changed. They’re also starting to get soft. So I need to buy some new pointe shoes after another week of this.

July 12, 2013 (Friday) – Day 5

Today in Jazz we spent class working on the routine we will perform at the end of the 3 weeks of this intensive. In Technique we kept on at the combinations we’ve learned so far, and during center we went in groups for each combination versus the entire class going together. During lunch I had to spend extra time wrapping my toes and prepping my feet for Pointe due to my toes having little bruises on the. Pointe class wasn’t as fun as it usually is, because of my left pinky toenail. When I looked at it after class, I realized I had bruised it. Putting any weight on it en pointe was extremely painful, but I kept on dancing. It was especially hard when we learned the end of the variation we have been practicing, as it had many piquès (a step where you “jump” onto pointe/demi pointe) and passès. When we did take off our pointe shoes, I didn’t even want to look at my toe to see the damage. In stretch class we did our usual routine.

[For lunch today she gets the usual wrap as an “entree”. This consists of a low-carb wrap (flat-bread) with sliced Black Forest ham, grated Cheddar cheese, lemon humus spread and fresh spinach and arugula. Also included is a bag of edamame and a bag of raw almonds. As usual, a container of low-fat milk and a container of coconut water. There are also two sports granola bars and cantaloupe. Finally, she gets a small can of lemon-pepper seasoned tuna fish to give her more protein with a fork and napkin. Absolutely no junk food, like potato chips or candy or soda. – Dad]

WEEK 2

July 15, 2013 (Monday) – Day 6

Today I got to City Ballet a little bit late, but I still had just enough time to stretch before class. In Jazz we spent about half the class stretching, getting warmed up after the weekend before spending the rest of class working on the routine we are learning to perform. We also began adding to the end of the routine.

In Technique we learned mostly new combinations, and worked on new center combinations as well. During lunch I put Jet Glue in my pointe shoes to harden them, but since the glue wears off fast (in a few days) I’m going to have to get new ones. Pointe class went well, with my shoes holding up and we did most of the pointe exercises that we usually do in the center at barre, most likely so we would have more time to work on our variation.

In stretch class we did our usual back, abs, and center split workout, before changing what we did for over-splits. First we did or usual put one leg up on a chair then sliding into the splits, before half the class stretching splits at the barre by putting their leg up on the wall the barre was attached to and the other half putting both legs up on chairs and sliding into splits from there, then alternating. We ended class there as we were running out of time.

Tomorrow, I’ll need to buy some new pointe shoes but we don’t really have any money – so I’ll have to use some of my Tall Ships Camp money and some money from my Mom to buy them – ballet is more important.

July 16, 2013 (Tuesday) – Day 7

During my lunch break, I took the MUNI to SF Dancewear in downtown SF and bought a new pair of Gaynor Minden pointe shoes. They’re so beautiful!

Tonight I had to sew the ribbons and the elastic straps by hand. It’s tedious and meticulous work. It has to be done correctly. They’re really nice to wear and very beautiful to see on pointe. They’re for professional dance on stage but the teachers don’t mind I wear them in class. They wouldn’t like for me to wear them during a performance as I still a student.

I’ve made friends with the new administrator at City Ballet. She also takes the BART and I walked with her to the BART Station today. It’s nice to have someone to walk with. I hope she and I can walk to the BART station together more often.

July 17, 2013 (Wednesday) – Day 8

Today I wore my pointe shoes for the first time!

July 18, 2013 (Thursday) – Day 9

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July 19, 2013 (Friday) – Day 10

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WEEK 3

July 22, 2013 (Monday) – Day 11

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July 23, 2013 (Tuesday) – Day 12

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July 24, 2013 (Wednesday) – Day 13

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July 25, 2013 (Thursday) – Day 14

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July 26, 2013 (Friday) – Day 15

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WEEK 4

July 29, 2013 (Monday) – Day 16

Today in Jazz we finished our number “You Make Me Feel So Young”. We learned both the end of our Level 4 section and the finale. This number we are doing with the Level 3 kids. The other jazz number we have, “Blurred Lines” is just us Level 4 kids. In Technique we didn’t learn any new combinations and instead focused on speed and how quickly we could get through all of our combinations. This was because on Friday we only have about 50 minutes to get through barre and do a little bit of pointe. We spent some time organizing what formation we will stand in for Friday and where the Level 3 girls joining us for pointe will stand. We had a short pointe class, only warming up a little bit before diving straight into Variations. We worked on the final spacing for the first and second variation before rehearsing both dances in the new formations. In Stretch class we did our normal stretches, but ran out of time and were not able to do acrobatics, where we line up by the edge of the mats we use for Stretch and do things like cartwheels, walkovers, split jumps and attitude jumps.

July 30, 2013 (Tuesday) – Day 17

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July 31, 2013 (Wednesday) – Day 18

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August 1, 2013 (Thursday) – Day 19

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August 2, 2013 (Friday) – Day 20

This morning I arrived at City Ballet 2 hours early so I would have time to stretch and rehearse. We wouldn’t have time to do either once the showcase started, as the Jazz class that was first up would have no rehearsing and the only stretches were only showy ones that showed off our flexibility. We ran a very minor rehearsal of “You Make Me Feel So Young”, our piece with the Level 3 kids, because we had never rehearsed it with them before. The program for today’s Student Showcase is:

City Ballet Summer Intensive 2013 Student Showcase
Artistic Director Galina Alexandrova

This is the culmination of 4 weeks of hard work by students from Level II to Pre-professional. Their daily schedule goes from 10:00 AM to 4:30 PM and includes jazz, technique, pointe and variations work and stretch. That’s why it’s called intensive.

9:30 – 11:00 AM. Boys, Level III Choreography, Level IV Jazz and Level III Jazz
11:00 AM – 12:15 PM. Pre-professional technique and pointe class
12:00 PM – 12:40 PM. Level III technique class
12:40 PM – 1:30 PM. Level IV technique and pointe class
1:30 PM – 2:00 PM. Level II technique class
2:00 PM – 3:30 PM. Variations (Levels II, III, IV, V and Pre-professional)
3:45 PM – 4:15 PM. Level III and IV stretch class
4:15 PM – 4:45 PM. Pre-professional stretch class

http://youtu.be/_uKqnlK4bIU

http://youtu.be/9l3bDRY2vZU