Features
- Cover Type: Paperback with 224 pages
- Published by: Universe Publishing July 4, 2003
- Written in: English
- ISBN 10 Number: 0789308657
- ISBN 13 Number: 978-0789308658
-
Book Dimensions:
10.8 x 8.4 x 1 inches
- Weighs: 2.6 pounds
Product Description
The definitive book for learning and appreciating ballet,
The Ballet Book goes behind the scenes to the classes, rehearsals, and performances that have shaped this prestigious ballet company. Readers will learn from the best as American Ballet Theatre dancers show how to stretch, stand, dance, and perform like professional ballerinas. Featuring photographs of dancers at their most dramatic--and most intimate--this fully illustrated book shares ballet's best-kept secrets and, by demonstrating how to watch and appreciate as well as to dance ballet, is indispensable for every dancer and lover of dance.
The book offers a thorough explanation of each step in a dancer's routine: from preparing the shoes and stretching to classwork and rehearsals to the finale--the performance itself. Both a how-to and a privileged glimpse at the hours of practice and fierce determination that go into making the finest dancers, the book features ballet's brightest stars, including Nina Ananiashvili, popularly known as Nina Ballerina, and Ethan Stiefel, who has become a celebrity both onstage and off.
About The Author
Nancy Ellison is a photographer whose work has been the subject of several books, including
Romeo and Juliet (Universe) and
Swan Lake. Hanna Rubin is a freelance editor and writer who has written extensively for M
artha Stewart Living and
Playbill.
American Ballet Theatre is recognized as one of the great dance companies in the world. Few ballet companies equal ABT for its combination of size, scope, and outreach. ABT annually tours the United States, performing for more than 600,000 people. It has also made more than fifteen international tours to forty-two countries as perhaps the most representative American ballet company.
Reader ReviewsThe editorial reviews for "The Ballet Book" tout it as telling all about the fascinating world of ballet: "Readers will learn...how to stretch, stand, dance and perform like professional ballerinas", "...a thorough explanation of each step in a dancer's routine...". The reality, however, is a bit different. This is a gorgeously illustrated book with lots and lots of photos by dance photographer Nancy Ellison. We see the dancers of American Ballet Theatre in the studio, in performance, in costume, and even in some hilarious candid shots. But if you're looking for a book that explains the technical side of ballet in depth, you're going to be disappointed. The book touches on some of the basic elements of ballet such as plies and the positions of the body and shows the dancers demonstrating the finished result, but it doesn't explain how to get there; there is almost no discussion of turnout, placement, or anything of that nature. The book also offers extremely brief (think one paragraph) synopses of several famous and less-famous ballets like "Giselle", "La Fille Mal Gardee", "Apollo" and "The Leaves Are Fading" along with carefully posed studio photographs of dancers in the appropriate costumes. There's a brief section on choreography and, unusually, a short chapter on retirement in which recently retired ballerina Susan Jaffe discusses her farewell. All in all this is a lovely coffee-table book, but if you want a technical manual you should probably look elsewhere.
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