Musings on ballet, classical music, the violin, and life
Musings of a former ballet dancer who’s returned, years later, to the studio as a student.
A common question I get asked goes something like this: I’m taking a ballet class again after many years. I’m not even sure what to wear as an adult, or what to bring, What should I wear or bring, so that I fit in and don’t stand out as oblivious? Okay, a valid question, and … Read more
Boy, the things you come back home to after you’ve been away on vacation. Especially if you’re one of those people, like myself, who tries to avoid the stuff that chains you to your regular, non-vacationing life: the news, the Internet, social media. Sometimes this philosophy backfires. In mid-June I came home from a relaxing … Read more
The San Francisco Symphony is right across the street from the San Francisco Ballet. I attend both. I sharpen my skills as a dance reviewer while watching the ballet, so it would stand to reason that I learn more and more about composers and their music while at the symphony. Except when it comes … Read more
If you’re a ballet peep, it’s highly likely that you, along with 9.9 million other people, have seen ballet dancer Sergei Polunin’s breathtaking performance in Hozier’s now iconic “Take Me to Church.” If you haven’t yet seen it, wow, are you in for a treat. Choreography by Jade Hale-Christofi, filming by David LaChapelle. Ukrainian-born and … Read more
It’s minutes before midnight and I’m about to give birth. Well, to a book. But, weirdly, there are correlations: this pain of pushing, pushing, and finally, in this agonizing rush of both relief and loss, it’s out there. OFF BALANCE, my first ballet novel, is out there, in stores. My baby, out in the world. But I didn’t … Read more