Ballet Techniques Part-by-part
This two week Morning Practice is in direct relationship with Janet Panetta’s philosophy “Ballet for Contemporary Dancers” and the syllabus she created over the many decades of her teaching career. With clear movement tasks, we explore specific technical aspects, learn how they function part-by-part, and reintegrate the parts into full-bodied dancing.
Week One
In the first week, we will study principles in ballet technique such as alignment, musicality and tuning for percussive movement, and explore ways of arriving at some basic positions. You will gain familiarity with the form and become more specific in a deconstructed approach.
Week Two
In the second week, we use a conventional ballet class structure with exercises at the ballet barre and center, including across the floor exercises and big jumps. This class moves at a quicker pace and gives all the placement and direction from week one, while expanding and refining the embodiment.
Classes are open to dancers of all levels. If you are less familiar with the form please try to come consistently to week one.
Andrew Champlin is a performer, art researcher, and ballet teacher based in Berlin. His artistic practice explores the intersection of Western classical dance and contemporary performance. Champlin studied dance at the School of American Ballet and has collaborated with artists including Xavier le Roy, Madeline Hollander, Pam Tanowitz, and Miguel Gutierrez. He holds a BA in Liberal Arts from The New School in New York, and an MA in Choreography from Stockholm University of the Arts. He teaches across Europe and is currently a PhD candidate in Artistic Research at the University of Applied Arts Vienna.