I said on Sunday that I was away; well, the reason for that was a trip to the ballet to watch The Nutcracker.
The last time I watched a professional ballet (as far as I remember) I was really very young – maybe four or five, something like that. I know it was at night and I got tired and fell asleep but there are a couple of elements I remember. It was an outside performance, at a castle with a moat. We were a long way back, but the dancers were well lit.
I think it was Swan Lake – all I remember of the costumes was white tutus.
I say I remember these things – it’s entirely possible that it’s all just an impression I took away and nothing to do with the reality of the evening at all! But from an inspiration point of view, it doesn’t really matter. The ballet was a magical thing, and I remember the movements of the dancers as though they were silk threads weaving in the breeze.
As an adult, there is more to inspire me. The dancers are fluid, and yet incredibly strong with sharply defined muscles. The female dancers are almost ethereally delicate, yet when they wear their special shoes to dance en pointe, their landings are loud and sound almost wooden. The costumes are light but weighted with crystals. The make up is heavy, and yet subtle (from where we were sitting anyway!).
It was still magical, but now I am aware how much work went into making it so. The artistry is not just in the performance of the dancers but in the whole team – from musicians to hair and makeup to costume to set decorators. As in any creative endeavour, the whole is more than the sum of its parts – but without any one of those parts it wouldn’t be complete.
That’s knowledge that I can use as a writer, and appreciate as an audience member.
Until next time,
Happy writing
EJ
🙂
