my little ballerina

 my little ballerina

 

One, two, three and four

I bend my leg and take a leap

I turn and turn around and if I fall I count to ten

Then this whole old story starts again

Holy shit, now this one

I live on tiptoe

When I'm a child

I become the pride of the family

I spin in half pointe on my shoe

When I'm a toy, they give me endless rope

If the rope doesn't end, I don't stop dancing

(Antonio Pecci Filho / Lupicinio Morais Rodrigues)

 

Good morning... first, I would like to apologize to all of you. Yesterday I didn't have time to write like I always do, and consequently, I couldn't post anything. It was a really busy day, which started at six in the morning and lasted until about ten at night. No, there was no tragedy, no illness or anything like that, thank God. Fortunately, it's not always bad things that happen when we, for one reason or another, end up breaking the routine. Sometimes they are simple life events, things that would go completely unnoticed by us, were it not for the detail that we are breaking our daily routine. And I'm a bit methodical, I follow a series of daily procedures, and when I have to ignore them, I get really anxious. But, as Cecília Meireles said... "or you put on the glove and don't wear the ring, Or you wear the ring and don't put on the glove"... and so life goes on...

Yesterday, the first Sunday in February, was my little one's first ballet class. I mean, this season. She did ballet at another academy, before the Covid pandemic. From two years to four. She loved it. He loved it, no, he loves it to this day. She looked forward to Saturday mornings (her classes were on Saturdays) to be on the platform, taking her first steps into the world of dance. And since she always got a princess sticker from her teacher, I don't need to say how much pleasure this was for her. Yes, she just loved doing the dance steps ... at home, she was spinning like a top, repeating the steps learned from the teacher. Then came the pandemic and classes had to be suspended. Fortunately the danger subsided, but in the meantime, the dance school ended up closing. That's why we enrolled her in this new academy. It wasn't very easy, no. As it is free, the path to enrolling was a bit complicated. Mainly because the information was all mismatched. To give you an idea, the first information they gave me was that enrollment would take place during the month of January. In the first week I went there, on Sunday morning. They said that there was no one to help me and that enrollment would have to be done during the week, during business hours. I came back during the week. Then they informed me that the enrollment would only be made from the 6th of February. To cut the conversation short, if someone hadn't given me the name and phone number of the person in charge, my little one wouldn't be dancing ballet this year. Not for free, not by this Academy, anyway. It is important to emphasize that no one can be held responsible for the misinformation. It happens. Especially when there is not a single core of information. And what did it matter to me, I got it… after all, it was my little girl's wish… to dance again.

When the teacher said that it would not be possible to enroll Ame, as she had already passed the deadline, disappointment was written on the girl's face. I explained the situation to the teacher, all the ordeal that had come up to that moment. The teacher then decided that I could enroll the girl. She gave me the application forms. While I filled them in, my girl couldn't take her eyes off the platform, where the children had their first class. My God, it wasn't easy to contain her enthusiasm in the meantime. Each new song that was played for the students to practice their steps, the little one said “I know this song… I know how to do this too… why can’t I join in with them?” When, finally, she understood that her class would start classes later, she calmed down and let me finish filling out the documents. The teacher checked that everything was in order and asked us to return at half past eleven, which would be the time for my little one's class. They needed to see the girl's happy face… we went down the stairs, took the bus and went back home. We had lunch, waited a bit and returned to the School…

When we arrived, it was about eleven o'clock, the previous class was still in class. My little one looked fascinated at the group's steps, and from time to time she told me “I know how to do this step”… and when she finally stepped onto the platform as a student… happiness was stamped on her little face. She finally got back to doing one of the things she loves most in her life… dancing. And is there anything better than that?

We can say that the first lesson the teacher gave the children was that, to be a ballerina, the main quality is patience. She had all the students sit on the platform and while they were waiting for further instructions, she started talking to the parents, explaining how the teaching would be and what the regulations would be that everyone should follow, for the smooth running of the course. It really was very interesting. And I must say one thing... the teacher is really nice. After a brief lecture, the children were finally put into action... and their happiness was something you could feel in the air. Every time they got something wrong, the teacher made them repeat it, explaining why they couldn't act in this or that way during the execution of the steps.... I think that we parents who were watching our children's first class were so or more moved that the children... it was a beautiful sight to see. But the teacher made it clear that, except for the presentation class, the next ones will only have the presence of the students, so that they can really dedicate themselves to learning the art...

Did you know that classical ballet originated in the Italian courts in the 16th century? And that the Italian term “Balletto”, which means “little dance”, “bail”, gave rise to the French word “ballet”? This dance originated during the Renaissance period, being presented at aristocratic parties for the entertainment of the nobility. The first ballet show in history was presented in 1581, it lasted more than five hours and was very different from what we know today... there were speeches, poetry, singing and musical orchestra.

I'm sure you know that Louis XIV was known as the "Sun King". Well, at least most people know his nickname. Now, I don't think you knew he got that nickname from ballet... or did you? Well, what does ballet have to do with the French king's surname? Well, it's simple... Louis XIV was passionate about dancing, he was a dancer himself. And he participated in a show called “O Ballet Noturno da Realeza”, where he played what role? He was the light fertilizing the earth, of course… it was then that the nickname that would accompany him throughout his life came about. Louis XIV was so attached to ballet that in 1661 he installed the first dance school in the world… the Académie Royale de Danse, which was located in one of the rooms of the Louvre Museum. The ballet was perfected, getting less and less lines and more dancing. The presentations started to leave the palaces and go to the theaters, and now the rich also start to have access to the presentations, and not just the aristocrats, as in the beginning. In 1669, the Académie Royale de Musique was founded and Jean-Baptist Lully, Louis XIV's favorite dancer and who composed several ballets for him, was appointed director of the school. Lully created a dance academy within the music academy itself… the Paris Opera Ballet, the oldest professional dance company in the world, and it still exists today…

From the 19th century, ballet began to be staged in the way we know it today... that was when women began to be more prominent on stage and dancing “on tiptoe” became more explored. With much rehearsal and effort, perfecting the dance in pointe shoes, female dancers became more popular than male dancers. When Adolphe Adam composed “Giselle”, a romantic ballet in two acts that was first performed by the Opéra National de Paris in 1840, he did not dream of the success his play would make. Giselle became really popular, being performed on stages in Europe, Russia and the United States. It is one of the few ballets of this tradition that are still performed on stage, being danced in a romantic tutu…

In 1877, the ballet La Bayadére is created, which presents the first version of “Swan Lake”, by Tchaikovsky. It was a public failure. “Swan Lake” would only become a reference for classical ballet after a second production, staged in Saint Petersburg with new choreography by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov… this production was made after Tchaikovsky’s death…

“O Lago dos Cisnes” and “Giselle” belong to the genre Ballet de Repertório. And what the hell is that? Well, the Repertoire Ballet is nothing more than a theatrical play staged through dance. As there are no dialogues during the performance, all the action and emotion of the characters has to be conveyed by the dancers in their dance…

Nowadays, there is the concept that ballet “is a woman's thing”, thus creating a wrong idea about this art. Prejudice exists, but it is gradually being broken. Ballet dancing is for anyone who wants it, no matter what gender they belong to. After all, in its origin, it was danced by men...

Well, maybe you think so… wow, so much! And I thought it was just going to be a story about enrolling a little girl in a ballet course…but here it is…it's not “just a ballet course”, it's so much more. Everything you learn in your life, you always take it with you in your soul, no matter what it is. That's why we should always try to do what really makes us happy... as long as it doesn't harm our fellow man. I don't dance, I don't know how to dance and I never wanted to learn. Not just ballet, but any kind of dance. But that doesn't mean I don't enjoy watching a well-done performance... when the dancers are on stage enacting a story and convincing us of its veracity, my God, what a beautiful thing! We are sent to Paradise and we go back to our childhood days, when fantasy was the basis of everything in our lives. For example, when I hear the first chords of “The Sleeping Beauty”, I travel through existing dimensions and I end up there in that castle where Aurora goes through all her drama. And all this while watching the corps de ballet perform on stage... yes, art has that power... it makes us dream with our eyes open and transports us to the world of fantasy where everything we imagine is possible to come true, because the word doesn't exist “impossible” in the world of dreams… and when a child takes the path of art, he chooses the most beautiful path, because he will learn during his journey that life is more than what we see in our day to day. Yes, there are difficulties, obstacles that we have to overcome at all times, but the reward that awaits us at the end of the journey makes everything we go through to reach our goal worthwhile. And what is this reward? It's the feeling of full accomplishment, where we can reach our goal, which is to bring happiness and joy wherever we go. And if we achieve that by doing what we like, that we love, well… I don't think I need to say anything else, do I?

I know that my little one has a long way to go, and that for several moments she will falter... in those hours, I will be by her side to encourage her to continue her fight, so that her goal is reached, if she so wishes. And, no matter what she decides to do in her future, I will always be there, in the front row, applauding her performances on the stages of life...

It's 6:30 am on a Monday, partly cloudy, which means it might rain later... but still, the day dawned too beautiful, because life is beautiful...

May God allow us to have the most beautiful Monday of all that we've experienced to date and may he help us to achieve at least part of the goals we set for this day. May God bestow his blessing on us and may he always be by our side, guiding us through the paths of this endless world... until tomorrow, if He so permits...