Perfect bodies & Summer ballet intensive

A ballerina with her perfect body on display

The Photo: A dancer exercising her nearly perfect unadorned Balanchine body during a private class. I’m indebted to Paul D for the photo.

Jack on perfect bodies: “Perfect Bodies While there are obviously different concepts of what a perfect human body form is there is more consensus then divergence on the matter. The ideal female form seems to evolve over time at least the Caucasian female whose ideal form is memorialize in art and sculpture handed down through the ages. Male form seems to have evolved less over time as we can see from the Elgin marbles right through to the Renaissance in Michelangelo's David. We can certainly see a series of rapid changes in the ideal female in from the 19th century to the present when some of the great choreographers such as Petipa emerged and reinvigorated interest in ballet. There appears to be a divergence in the artistic form of the dancer from the common vernacular of pop culture and the cartoon like form of pornography and erotica. These may each represent a different ideal forms and appeal to different sensibilities and lifestyles. Cosmetic surgery has presented the opportunity to literally resculpt the body into almost any form desired. And then there are the adornments which are used to enhance the female form. Clothing, of course comes to mind as the most obvious means to change, amplify, de emphasize parts of the form. And then there is hair which becomes part of the form and that is a whole other discussion. Jewelry, makeup and now tattoos are very much connected to and part of the female form. For something like ballet aside from story ballet with costuming jewelry, body mods, tattoos would be considered "blasphemy" as the pure unadorned form is an ideal which can only be lessened by such things. The body mod aesthetic and sensibility is so randomized and chaotic it defies the notion of a perfect form. Some women place symmetrical patterns of ink in their bodies which others use their skin for a canvas to portray an image or even write a message in text. Piercings and implants are placed in an almost defiant manner as if to challenge the very nature of conventional thinking about beauty. And much of this stuff is seen on some of the most stunning natural beauties. Is this an attempt to separate themselves from some sort of iconic mold and provide their own identity? Is it an attempt to demand that we see beauty as deeper than the surface of the skin or the shape of it? Is it an effort to engage our own skin and bodies and senses in a more expansive manner then a blank canvas? All the bod mods and tats certainly do destroy the notion of what an ideal female form would be. Personally I find the development off putting and jarring to my aesthetic sensibilities. Yet the fetish community which seems so body conscious incorporates bod mods almost as a fetish to be celebrated. It's a mad, mad, mad world. Ain't it?”

I totally agree with the Jack when he wrote: “For something like ballet aside from story ballet with costuming jewelry, body mods, tattoos would be considered "blasphemy" as the pure unadorned form is an ideal which can only be lessened by such things.”

The worst technical and esthetic error in the film Black Swan was the tattoo of wings on Lily’s back! No mainstream ballet company, much less a major one, would stand for tattoos where they can be easily seen in revealing costumes. ADs even hate tan lines from sunning in swimsuits so tats are a huge no-no! To my mind beautiful soft unblemished skin is one of our most glorious assets.

Auditions for places in St Lucy’s ballet program: It’s time again for auditions for St Lucy’s ballet Summer Intensive. We will accept videos, but prefer the prospective student to appear in front of the judges in person. A reader asked why parents would want to have their daughters take ballet at St Lucy’s when they could (possibly) attend ABT’s JKO School or NYCB’s SAB. The answer of course is that the goal of St Lucy’s ballet training is far different than turning out superbly trained professional dancers.

Our Summer Intensive is intended to assess and increase the skill and stamina of aspiring St Lucy’s students and is the primary source from which new students are invited to enter our ballet program. At St Lucy’s a solid background in classical ballet technique and a well toned ballet body is the foundation necessary for a student to successfully master the more advanced sexual techniques and skills for which St Lucy’s graduates are coveted as wives and mistresses. Training a student’s intellect is a primary goal at St Lucy’s so she can move confidently up through the business and social world and many students enter with just that as their goal. But a significant percentage recognize the ability to successfully compete for and retain the best mates is extremely important as well and our ballet and ancillary programs are designed to meet that need; to allow a graduate to so mesmerize a chosen male with her body, guile and erotic skills that he will stay bonded to her for as long as she wants him.

Given the importance of ballet in the development of a St. Lucy’s girl it’s understandable that there is intense competition for spots in the program. We have increased the size of the program this year, but not the size of the classes. We had been turning away so many well qualified girls that there will be no reduction in the skill levels of graduates successfully completing what has come to be thought of as the ‘Giulietta’ suite of courses, named for the courtesan of that name played by Ludmilla Tchérina in the 1951 film The Tales of Hoffmann.