Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev
Diaghilev Signed Calling Card
Russia

Twelve lines in French concerning the placement of an article in Le Figaro and other matters of business. Russian art critic

Diaghilev was the founder and director of the Ballets Russes, overseeing its productions and collaborations with many of the leading composers, choreographers, dancers, and artists of the early 20th century.

DIAGHILEV, Sergei Pavlovich (1872-1929). Autograph note signed ("X"). N.p., n.d. 2 pages on one card, 55 x 95 mm sheet (6.5 x 8 inches framed), graphite on a calling card engraved with "Serge de Diaghilew," a punched hole affecting text and slight toning, matted and framed (glazed on both sides), not examined out of frame.

Provenance: Collection of Michael Tilson Thomas

I had a right foot injury in ballet twice and have had an x-ray and ultrasound. The ultrasound has come back to say I have bursitis between my 3rd and 4th metatarsal. The thing is I am also getting pain on the side of my foot so they are (hopefully) referring me for an MRI. I am now developing hip pain in my right side due to this after walking my hip and right foot / side kills me.

Do I see a Chriopractor? Or a Podiatrist for gait analysis? The gait analysis is £200+! but don't know what to do :( Thank you!

I need to Measure to order my Tutu within the next few days, and I’m nervous because it’s made for/to MY Measurements, but I have a more Pear Body-Shape (All butt, thigh, & hip, with little-to-no chest.) and that’s making me a tad nervous.

How much room should I leave per Measurement (as-in how many extra Inches or Centimeters)? (I have to give them my Measurements in Centimeters, so I’ve been working on conversions from Inches.) I.e., Girth, High-Waist, Low-Waist, Hip, Upper-Arm Circumference, etc., etc. I would like to be able to breathe, but I don’t want the Tutu to fall off/fit weird because it’s that much too big.

Like I mentioned, and for some reason, my main concern is my Body-Shape being more Pear.

I just need some advice here to help me get my proper Measurements so my Tutu fits correctly, and hundreds of dollars doesn’t just go down the drain since it’s coming from overseas.

Thank You in advance!!🖤🩰

Hi everyone! I’m a 19-year-old trans girl and a complete beginner in ballet.

This isn’t strictly about ballet, but I’d like to know what I can do to get better workouts and gain more flexibility.

I had multiple scoliosis as a child and have been treating it since I was 12. Last year, I was finally discharged from physical therapy and RPG and cleared for muscle strengthening.

This year, my doctor gave me the green light to start Artistic Gymnastics and Ballet (which has been my dream since childhood!). 😃

Because of the scoliosis, I have very tight hamstrings (when I was 12, they were so tight that I used to walk as if I were on demi-pointe lol).

Nowadays, I don’t feel any pain anymore, my scoliosis is no longer an issue, I’m in good shape, and I can handle the workouts easily. However, I struggle a lot with my splits, straightening my legs, and pointing my feet (my feet cramp up a lot). I also lack back flexibility and frequently get cramps in my upper back/lat area.

Does anyone have recommendations for flexibility exercises that I can do daily? Or any tips on how to make my training more satisfying?
Also, has anyone here been through a similar situation and managed to go en pointe? Do you think I'll be able to achieve that someday? 🥲 (Yes, I know it takes years and I’m in absolutely no rush, I just need to give myself some peace of mind lol).

My current weekly routine is:
Gymnastics: 3x a week
Weight training: 2x a week
Ballet: currently 1x a week, but about to start 2x a week
Swimming: 1x a week
Physical therapy: 2x a week

I’ve been to more than 5 doctors since being discharged, and they all just say that as long as I don’t feel pain, everything is fine, so they never actually give me practical advice on what I can do. :(

I play freshman football and I'm already naturally flexible but I want to be more flexible for more flexibility in what I can do and for fun. My season ends in two weeks but I can find time to stretch during then.

What stretches and motions can I do for better flexibility especially in my hamstrings and overall body.

I started pointe again a year ago and went back to the basics. Now I am starting to do a lot more and am taking class in my shoes. I am doing pretty well but I am struggling a lot with turning and compensating for the extra height across the floor. My teacher said it’s because I’m not really ‘jumping’ and when I turn I’m trying to releve up but I’m still feeling a bit lost. She encouraged me to take class in my shoes but I also feel like she also assumes that I know how to modify the combos to be en pointe. It feels so weird because she seems to be surprised by my strength and when I can do certain things but when I’m confused by the details her answers feel blunt and unhelpful. I know it will come with practice but I hate feeling so confused as I tend to feel self conscious that I seem slow. (I’m autistic)

I’m also a bit concerned that my ankles still seem to wobble even in flat shoes. A lot of my joints are hyper mobile so I figured it was that and it would resolve with time/strength but it’s still happening. With all that I do en pointe and doing my Theraband exercises everyday I feel like my ankles are pretty strong but the wobbling is starting to carry into my pointe work. I asked my teacher and she said it was because my pointe shoes are heavy. When I said that it happens in flat shoes too she said it’s normal and that I just have to keep my ankles pulled up. I always try to do that anyway so I felt a bit frustrated but I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want her to think I was arguing with her. Is there exercises I can do or something to fix it?

My friends and I have been invited to a dance festival where one of our friends will be performing with her ballet school. We’d love to surprise her with a nice bouquet of flowers after the performance.

Are there any particular flowers traditionally gifted to ballet dancers after a recital or would any kind of bouquet be appropriate?

Thanks in advance!!

My friend dances ballet as a hobby and her birthday is coming up. Since I don't know anything about the sport, I would like some gift ideas that is useful for a beginner ballet dancer. She has done some simple dances with her dance school but it's definitely just a hobby.

I have been feeling really self-concious in my adult dance class recently, I started after a big gap from doing Ballet and about 2 months into starting at this studio, 2 new girls joined our class, I thought nothing of it as we get new people all the time as it is a mixed ability class and each ability is put in small groups for certain technique based on their ability. I go with the beginners small group due to my big gap from dance as I feel more comfortable doing everything at a slower pace and building myself up. These new girls joined the Ballet pro small group.

Well one particular day, I was just standing with my friend watching the intermediates group do their across the floor and then one of the new girls walked up to us and said "Have you just started dance?" And I said "No, I had a gap and came back, I am just building up my technique again" she then laughed in my face and then went "Oh my gosh, sorry I didn't mean to laugh, oh my gosh!" And walked away, she did the same to my friend who is in the same position as me (Big gap from dance and rebuilding technique) it made us both feel really bad about ourselves. She told my friend "Nobody would know" when she told her she had 12 years of Ballet experience before her break from dance.

We spoke to the teacher and those girls came back for 2 sessions then left, I don't know if it was by choice or if the teacher stopped them from coming back. The other girl that girl joined with was a really nice girl, I feel I lost the chance to have a good friendship there but I couldn't go near her due to that other girl and that other girl seemed to control her every move as she was quiet. It has made me feel like I just look bad to everyone now when I was a great dancer as a child, I think about this incident all the time.

Did that girl intentionally pick on me and my friend, or is it in my head?

I'm a ballet parent of a young daughter... money isn't currently an issue but I also don't want to just spend a ton of money on flying my daughter around to different summer programs just for fun lol. I'm wondering at what age/point do you think there is real value in traveling for different summer programs vs. staying local for them, if you can afford it? Are there any that would definitely be worth traveling to at a young age (like under 10)?

It looks so stiff and wrong, I already know i have to work on my turnout and back

but why do my arms look so wrong? No matter what i try, it looks so closed off and it won't look open like other dancers.

How do i make my arms look more open and proper?

in big live’s dracula, does anyone know the name of the music playing when jonathan meets mina’s ghost? i think it’s piano.

I have a short Achilles tendon and therefore a very shallow plie which has been putting a lot of stress on my ankles and knees during jumps. I’ve also started taking longer classes so I’m doing a lot more allegro and it feels like somethings always tweaked, literally like a 4 week cycle of ankle knee ankle knee lol. It’s kind of like trying to get my heels on the ground in a plie hurts my ankles but not doing so wears on my knees. My knees are also a little hyperextended which definitely doesn’t help. I’m trying to rest and sit out and not push myself to injury but I’d also really like to build strength so I don’t have to worry about landing wrong and injuring myself. Wondering if anyone knows what muscles to focus on strengthening or any non-jumping exercises that could help :)

I have always had a very flat arch and limited plantar flexion. It never really was a problem until I started pursuing dance as a career and taking ballet class everyday. My ankles feel really stiff and limited in their range of motion, but my achilles tendon is fine and not inflamed, so because of this I knew it had to do with the bone and I thought I had an os trigonum. Turns out after an X-ray that I just have a very long talus bone in both feet (syndrome of the long talus or posterior ankle conflict), granted it's not enormous but it still limits my foot pointing. The problem now is that the bone is not detached like an os trigonum but just the continuation of the talus, so I suppose surgery wouldn't be as easy and common as for os trigonum and I couldn't find a lot of information about it online. I seek a solution not just because I want my arch to look pwetty but because it limits my ankle mobility and could become a problem later on, with the bone compressing the surrounding tissue and tendons or ultimately leading to a stress fracture. Has anyone had an issue with a long talus, which got resolved with PT, surgery to shorten the talus, or anything else ? Basically, what can I do now to still be able to pursue dance professionally ?

I just wanted to share my enthusiasm at this unexpected finding when I went for a coffee in the office and grabbed my change. I wont spend it ever :)

I just purchased a jump rope with the aim of training on it to improve my endurance for petit allegro jumps, but how is everyone training to get better petit allegro (outside of just doing petit allegro)?

In my classes we only have around two combinations per class dedicated to petit allegro/jumping (changements), so I feel as though the improvement over time is very incremental. I'm wondering what I should do outside of class to get better jumps - and also better assemblés! How does one get strong enough to get the supporting leg in assemblé to jump up and meet the working leg to do a "beat" before coming back down? Any perspective is helpful.

In “Pithoprakta,” a rarely seen work by George Balanchine at City Ballet, Suzanne Farrell brings a tense and eerie dance back to life. It’s a laboratory for new movement.

 Bleeps and squeaks pop and hiss on a darkened stage. With little warning, dancers, like nimble moon walkers, spring to life in spotlights that form miniature tableaus. These circular frames, galaxies in miniature, pop up to reveal small clusters of dancers bending and reaching in agitation or spinning like steam bubbles rising in a beaker.

A ballet stage is conventionally thought of as a site for pretty dancing, but in George Balanchine’s “Pithoprakta” (1968), originally performed by Suzanne Farrell, Arthur Mitchell and 12 others at New York City Ballet, it is also a vital laboratory for movement. “Pithoprakta” may be nearly 60 years old, but it’s a succinct example of how timeless and contemporary a Balanchine ballet can be.

Access full gift article, NO PAYWALL.

The Dance Enthusiast posted a pretty positive audience review of YAGP’s program this past weekend. Curious to hear from anyone who went. Any standout pieces or choreographers?
https://www.dance-enthusiast.com/get-involved/reviews/view/Fresh-Voices-in-Dance-at-Jacobs-Pillow-October-16-18

I tried the mold putty from Michael’s to try making toe pads and it actually worked and way cheaper than perfectfit.

Basically… the title sums it up.

My current pair of Grishko shoes has been on backorder and is sold out in my area. R Class shoes, which are my back up plans, is also not very reliable with their stock management. I live in North America, so these shoes cost around $180 with tax and everything.

My teacher suggested trying synthetic shoes because they do last longer and might be better for my feet. She has a pretty similar foot shape to mine. Mine are just a bit smaller and more compressible, although not badly. She found synthetic shoes like Gaynors much more comfortable and supportive. One girl who was in a similar situation ended up switching to synthetic shoes and her feet looked so beautiful. She also said she felt much better in the new shoes.

I’ve booked an appointment. I am willing to step out of my comfort zone and try synthetic shoes. The price difference isn’t much at this point anyway. I’m just not sure what to expect or how they should feel since I’ve never had them before. The one time I tried on my friend’s Bloch Etu for fun, I hated them.

What should I expect? How are they different? What are some tips for getting fitted in synthetic shoes and finding the right pair? What are the signs that a pair is a good/bad fit?

Since the musical is returning to the West End I’ve watched some of the film for the first time in years. To be clear - I am not a ballet expert.

As a kid I always thought he did a great audition which was nearly spoiled by him punching the kid in the dressing room. Watching again as an adult, really his audition although showing clear passion, was very unconventional and not necessarily showing much ballet technique.

I’m not a ballet expert but to me it seems that the impromptu ‘what does it feel like when you’re dancing’ question is what got him in more than anything.

And crucially - if he didn’t get into the fight he might not have been asked it?

Anyways, I’d love to get people’s thoughts, especially anyone who knows more about ballet than me

Also - if this had happened in real life, would he have got in?

I’m researching the challenges faced by dancers aged 13–18 who are working towards professional ballet schools, auditions or more advanced training.

I’d like to understand what dancers and parents genuinely struggle with — especially when it comes to technical progress, audition preparation, understanding corrections and accessing individual guidance.

I’m particularly interested in real experiences:

\- What has been the most frustrating challenge in your dancer’s training recently?

\- What have you already tried to solve it?

\- What was still missing or disappointing?

\- What makes it difficult to decide whether private coaching is worth the cost?

If you’re comfortable sharing your experience in the comments, I’d really appreciate it. Please don’t share private information or identifying details about minors.

https://peterkoppers.substack.com/p/varvara-nikitina-petipas-sylphide