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meteordustSo, there are a couple of events I went to that I never got around to posting about.
Last November, I went to see my first ever ballet! It was called Nijinsky, performed by the Australian Ballet, at the Opera House. It was inspired by the biography of the legendary dancer Vaslav Nijinsky, showcasing some of his most famous roles. It was kind of a downbeat story, because he had a short and brilliant career, and then spiralled into mental illness and institutionalism.
Apparently no footage of him exists. Although film had been invented by then, the technology was primitive, and many ballet dancers refused to be filmed, fearing the poor quality footage would ruin their reputations.
I used to watch So You Think You Can Dance, and the contestants who had trained in ballet always had such beautiful technique. And here, every single person was like that, to a professional level. Movement so graceful and fluid. No wonder people love watching this.
It was far more sensual than I expected, and wonderfully compelling. I wasn't sure if I understood all the symbolism though. There was more than one dancer portraying Nijinsky and his various roles, and at times I couldn't tell if his present self was witnessing his past self, or if they were supposed to be two different characters. I'm more used to musicals and plays, so I kept expecting people to burst into song or speech - but no, the story was carried through dance alone.
Anyway, I'm won over. I hope to see more ballet in future.
Last November, I went to see my first ever ballet! It was called Nijinsky, performed by the Australian Ballet, at the Opera House. It was inspired by the biography of the legendary dancer Vaslav Nijinsky, showcasing some of his most famous roles. It was kind of a downbeat story, because he had a short and brilliant career, and then spiralled into mental illness and institutionalism.
Apparently no footage of him exists. Although film had been invented by then, the technology was primitive, and many ballet dancers refused to be filmed, fearing the poor quality footage would ruin their reputations.
I used to watch So You Think You Can Dance, and the contestants who had trained in ballet always had such beautiful technique. And here, every single person was like that, to a professional level. Movement so graceful and fluid. No wonder people love watching this.
It was far more sensual than I expected, and wonderfully compelling. I wasn't sure if I understood all the symbolism though. There was more than one dancer portraying Nijinsky and his various roles, and at times I couldn't tell if his present self was witnessing his past self, or if they were supposed to be two different characters. I'm more used to musicals and plays, so I kept expecting people to burst into song or speech - but no, the story was carried through dance alone.
Anyway, I'm won over. I hope to see more ballet in future.
