In November 2009, I began taking ballet classes with Kip Martin at Symmetry Dance Wellness in Philadelphia. It changed my life to say the least. I won't go into the details of how here, but suffice to say that there was a point (sometime around January 2010) when I began taking classes with almost religious fervor-- 5, 6, 7 times a week. It became my obsession, my passion, my "bliss" as the great mythologist Joseph Campbell would say.
The state of adult ballet education elsewhere in the States is dismal overall as my sister and I discovered during our 1300 Miles of Ballet roadtrip in May 2010. The conclusion I arrived at after the roadtrip was that Symmetry (and by that I mean Kip and his teaching) was something incredibly special and one-of-a-kind. This blog is a natural 21st century outgrowth of my analog ballet diary in which I wrote down tips I picked up in class. But more than a journal for general ballet tips, of which you can probably find better ones on the American Ballet Theatre website and elsewhere, the purpose of this blog is:
(a) to record the story of Symmetry, which I consider an intangible heritage. It's not an artifact that you can hold in your hand (after all, it's dance!), and it comes from years of development and unique experiences gathered from various parts of the world, all processed and contained within one unassuming human form, which like every other human form before it, will eventually perish. By "story", I mean technical tips, quotes, and other elements that speak to the particular teaching and dancing style taught at Symmetry, as well as to the personality of our teacher, and random observations within the studio that may or may not be ballet-related; and
(b) to share this intangible heritage with the public and thus spread my passion for this story and art form. As well, I hope this blog will make my rather extreme devotion explicable to the uninitiated-- ie: to those not involved at my studio.
(c) to give myself a creative outlet. The act of creating is not characterized by chaos and disorder; rather, it is a means of organizing the disarray of one's life and the world into meaningful piles. Also, it is a means of expressing the invisible workings of one's mind into a visible format. How do I experience ballet class? Why do I love it so much? Here is why.
