Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
THE ART FORM OF BALLET BEGAN IN ITALY DURING THE
ITALIAN RENAISSANCE OF THE 15TH CENTURY AND LATER
DEVELOPED INTO A CONCERT DANCE FORM IN FRANCE AND RUSSIA.
IT HAS SINCE BECOME A WIDESPREAD TECHNICAL FORM OF DANCE,
WITH ITS OWN VOCABULARY BASED ON FRENCH TERMINOLOGY.
NADJA LANGENHORST TAKES THE ART FORM OF CLASSICAL
BALLET TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL TEACHING STUDENTS HERE
AT SCOTTSDALE COMMUNITY COLLEGE.
WELCOME TO "SPIRIT OF THE ART."
I'M YOUR HOST ANDREA ZAKRZEWSKI.
YOU'RE STARTING IN FIFTH, AND YOU'RE OPENING OUT TO
A THIRD OR FIRST POSITION.
NADJA LANGENHORST HAS OVER 20 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
TRAINING DANCERS IN THE CLASSICAL BALLET TECHNIQUE.
SHE'S DANCED INTERNATIONALLY AND WAS
TRAINED BY SEVERAL PROMINENT CHOREOGRAPHERS.
SHE COMBINES HER KNOWLEDGE OF DANCE, EMPHASIZING
PROPER KINESIOLOGICAL ALIGNMENT, AND GRADUATED
WITH A BACHELORS IN EXERCISE SCIENCE AND
WELLNESS PROMOTION.
THIS LEVEL OF EXPERTISE IS OFFERED AT SCOTTSDALE
COMMUNITY COLLEGE.
STUDENTS ATTEND AND KEEP COMING BACK FOR THE
ENJOYMENT OF THE PERFORMING ARTS AT A NOMINAL FEE.
BALLET IS A GRACEFUL FORM OF DANCE THAT STRENGTHENS
THE CORE AND THE ENTIRE BODY.
NADJA WORKS WITH STUDENTS WHO HAVE A PREVIOUS
EXPERIENCE IN BALLET.
SCOTTSDALE COMMUNITY COLLEGE OFFERS BALLET 1 AND 2,
WHICH STUDENTS CAN TAKE BEFORE COMING TO HER CLASS.
MOST OF HER STUDENTS HAVE MORE THAN FOUR YEARS OF
EXPERIENCE DANCING BALLET.
I'M IN THE CIRCLE, YET I'M GOING TO WATCH
THE SUPPORTING LEG.
SHE TEACHES STUDENTS A SERIES OF FEET AND ARM
MOVEMENTS, WHICH ARE THE BASIS FOR BALLET.
STUDENTS MOVE IN UNISON TO FIVE POSITIONS OF THE FEET
AND ARMS, WHICH ARE COMBINED WITH MOVEMENT AND ACCOMPANIED
BY CLASSICAL MUSIC OF SUCH COMPOSERS AS TCHAIKOVSKY.
EACH CLASS BEGINS WITH A SPECIFIC WARMUP.
WE KIND OF START WITH JUST WARMING UP THE BODY.
THAT'S WHAT WE WERE DOING ON THE FLOOR WHEN WE WERE
ALL DOING THOSE EXERCISES.
SO THEN WE GO TO THE BAR, AND EACH EXERCISE BUILDS
ON THE NEXT EXERCISE.
BALLET IS CENTERED AROUND ROTATION OF THE
FEMORAL -- THE FEMUR.
SO WE START EACH EXERCISE ROTATING THE LEGS OUT AND
THEN SLOWLY JUST KIND OF MASSAGING IN THE JOINT.
I THINK BALLET EMBODIES BEAUTY AND GRACE AND
STRENGTH AND FLEXIBILITY AND EVERYTHING THAT IS
JUST PLEASANT TO LOOK AT.
SHE'S SURPRISED BY HOW HARD IT IS.
WHEN YOU TRY IT YOURSELF, IT'S HARD.
JACLYN LEVINE HAS BEEN DANCING SINCE SHE WAS 17
AND HAS TRAINED WITH THE DANCE BALLET OF UKRAINE
AND COMES TO NADJA'S CLASS TO LEARN MORE.
NADJA'S CLASS IS WONDERFUL.
ALTHOUGH SHE FOCUSES ON ALL THE FINE POINTS AND
ALL THE TECHNIQUE AND SKILLS REQUIRED TO BECOME
A DANCER, THERE'S ALSO A CERTAIN FREEDOM THAT
ALLOWS YOU TO EXPLORE WITHIN YOUR ARTISTRY.
AND THAT'S WHAT I LOVE MOST ABOUT DANCING.
NADJA LIKES TO TEACH THE STUDENTS HOW KINESIOLOGY
PLAYS A ROLE IN BALLET.
KINESIOLOGY IS THE STUDY OF HUMAN MOVEMENT.
I TRY TO SHOW THEM THEIR SKELETAL SYSTEM AND THEIR
MUSCULAR SYSTEM AND HOW THOSE THINGS ARE GOING TO
CONNECT AND HOW TO USE THEIR BODY.
JESSICA REEG HAS BEEN DANCING BALLET OVER 10 YEARS
AND RECEIVED HER BACHELORS OF SCIENCE IN
KINESIOLOGY FROM ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY.
KINESIOLOGY HAS AFFECTED MY LIFE IN MANY WAYS.
I ACTUALLY GOT INTO THE SCIENCE ASPECT OF STUDYING
MOVEMENT BECAUSE I WAS DANCING.
AND ESPECIALLY IN NADJA'S CLASS, SHE TALKS A LOT
ABOUT THE ANATOMY AND HOW WE'RE MOVING AND THE
BIOMECHANICS OF WHAT'S -- WHAT'S HAPPENING DURING
EACH MOVEMENT -- OPEN UP OTHER OPPORTUNITIES WITH
DANCE AND OUTSIDE OF DANCE.
NADJA'S CLASS SERVES STUDENTS WITH A VARIETY OF GOALS.
SHE HAS STUDENTS WHO ARE PERFORMING IN DANCE COMPANIES,
SOME WHO ARE INTERESTED TO TEACH,
A FEW HAVE A DREAM TO PERFORM NATIONALLY AND
INTERNATIONALLY, AND SOME WHO CAME BACK FROM MANY
YEARS OF DANCING TO HAVE FUN AND PERFECT THEIR TECHNIQUE.
I SAY, YOU HAVE TO TRY IT.
IT'S A GREAT LEARNING TOOL FOR YOUR WHOLE BODY,
AND IT INCORPORATES SO MANY DIFFERENT PARTS.
AND THERE'S AN EXPRESSION OF SOMEONE -- SOMEONE'S SOUL IN IT.
NOW THAT CAN HAPPEN IN OTHER DANCE FORMS TOO,
BUT FOR ME, BALLET EXPRESSES IT THE DEEPEST.
STUDENTS SAY THEY HOPE THE LONG TRADITION OF BALLET
WITH LIVE ON HERE IN NADJA'S CLASS.
THE NEXT TIME YOU WATCH A BALLET PERFORMANCE,
SUCH AS "NUTCRACKER" OR "SWAN LAKE", AND YOU ARE
INSPIRED TO TRY BALLET, YOU COULD PURSUE YOUR
DREAM OF TAKING BALLET CLASSES AT AN AFFORDABLE
PRICE WITH HIGHLY-TRAINED INSTRUCTORS AT SCOTTSDALE
COMMUNITY COLLEGE.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT TAKING BALLET CLASSES,
GO TO SCOTTSDALECC.EDU.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US ON THIS EDITION
OF SPIRIT OF THE ARTS.
WE'LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME.
I'M YOUR HOST ANDREA ZAKRZEWSKI.