Vaganova Academy,3rd Grade, Novitskaya/Gortchakova part 3

[cksantiago]

Why do they water the floor?

[PrincessSakuno]

i feel horrible.... and fat.

[dancer4ever123100]

How your dancers can be so skinny, but still have so much muscles to do all those difficult things??

[Barbiebratzgal123]

3rd grade?!!?1

[balletstarheart13]

@Barbiebratzgal123 basicallly the 3rd YEAR of the academy. the girls are 13 or 14.

[ruslana4949]

I Love Ballet vaganova<3 :*

[polkadotpolka123]

it's funny to see all the grades as they go up and to see how different the girls bodies are in each grade. in first grade, they are really skinny and quite lanky, while here, in grade three, the girls start to fill out a bit, and then when they get to the sixth grade, they've slimmed down again!

[Lidewijke]

Can anyone tell me what the music that starts at 6:00 is from?

[746hirydutu]

本当に素晴らしい

[todanceinheaven]

I did Cecchetti and must say that when ventured to different classes, the technique I had learned was by far the best!!

[mikeyloufreebush]

Vaganova school is the best of all. It's a bit strange though that when they prepare for tour sur le cou de pied from second position they don't open their free leg with developpé. in our schoop only boys prepare this way...

[GawkyBallerina]

@mikeyloufreebush I think in this case it's more of a training tool. My teacher used to give us a very similar combination when I was a bit younger. It's not the type to ever be used in choreography, but it definitely taught us how to transfer our weight correctly!

[Rainmakerlola]

your girls are too unbalanced.

[AleksandraBallerina]

there is me and that is caled develope!

[XDRemiXD]

i dance to this :D

[highlighterish]

Why do they wet the floor?

[GawkyBallerina]

@highlighterish For traction :) It's basically a substitute for rosin- we use a spray bottle in my school.

[funaddict95]

they're so balanced! and slow! I dont know if i could ever be that slow, it hurts and i'd fall. The only thing I not impressed by is that they dont have that fluid serenity im used to seeing. In fact, i think they look kind of scared

[swanlake111]

The thing about Russian ballet schools is - they are tough in the tryouts - a gifted teacher can see right away if the kid has all required qualities, including raw talent AND body measurements. You either have it or you don't. And no amount of practice will make it happen if you don't have "it".

[ProDancer6]

Your wrong actually.. My ballet teacher says she was the worst dancer when she first started and at the end of it she said she was the best dancer.. and she was in the royal ballet. If you put the practice in and work hard you can have 'it'. It's not about having it or you don't have it! You can work for it..

[swanlake111]

Yeah, sure. To be in the ballet corps maybe, but not to become a star. Like all those kids who come on the talent shows and have been told "you can sing/dance/play piano" etc. You either have the talent or you don't. Noone can "work for" becoming a Micelangelo or Placido Domingo.

[G216A911]

absolutely agreed with you! people got to understand that "I love ballet, but ballet don't love me" it happened in every period, every country, every ballet school, it's kind of universal... please don't get upset if you are not your teacher's pet, if ballet is your "true love" you'll never quit. so this is.

[bolshoiboy8]

@ProDancer6 exactly she was in the corps... swanlake111 is right... FACE it. you MUST b honest with urself about ur body if u want to succeed.

[BethelBreaksNecksx]

what's the name of this song? it's really beautiful. these girls dance so beautifully i just admire them and the vaganova training. at my ballet school, i have a russian teacher who teaches vaganova but not as good as this. this is the real thing, and it's perfect.

[maksimowawasiliew]

name of the song: "Liebestraum" by Liszt ...

[Lissbirds]

It's Schubert's Impromptu #3 in G Flat Major, Op. 90.

[huixue]

This exercise of tempse lie is super hard. It reveals everything!

[balletbekah]

is this the school that is like under the mariinsky theatre? like the real kirov in russia, form like children on theatre street.

[RCreate123]

Yes - this is the same school!

[ferssis]

There a documentary about Paris Opera School.. take a look at it..

so refined... so pure ..The best dance school so far. And then pay attention on the quality of the dance which is made over there... Water and wine.

[DancingGirl4ever]

i did watch this documentary.. and i admit they are great! but in my opinion nothing can beat pure russian techinque.. that's my opinion and i'm saying it just becuase you started with trashing vaganova technique! and i really honestly say that i admire all these schools, pob too, and as i said probably houndred times it is stupid to argue about which techinque is better because there is no objective answer!!!

[ferssis]

Just question:

Are you Russian?

[DancingGirl4ever]

no i'm not russian :D

but all main teachers i had in life were russians and vaganova trained. well i have taken some other classes to experience other methods, but i always prefered the russian techinque and their methods.

[RCreate123]

The girls in this Vaganova Academy video are about 13 years old. The girls in the POB video (yes - they are amazing!) are 14 - 16 years old, so have more strength and precision because they are older. Also, the girls in this video are working s-l-o-w-l-y which is very difficult, and shows every wobble. The girls in the POB video are moving very quickly. Therefore, you are not comparing apples to apples, but apples to oranges. Both schools produce refined, strong, talented dancers.

[bagpussvamp]

yes do compare them because the difference is funny - better still compare them with the RAD videos - The girls in these videos make the girls at the other schools you mention look like clumsy twits - sorry to be blunt, but the difference is like night to day

[Ppendu]

@bagpussvamp RAD isn't usually used to train professional students, so it's not fair to compare the two. The Royal Ballet School is a professional school in the UK though, but that is not the same. Comparing the latter to the Vaganova students will prove that Vaganova training is superior, but it's not a HUGE difference.

Vaganova done by non-professional students can be pretty horrible too by the way...

[ferssis]

Because I respect Vaganova`s methodology but I dont think it is the only one and the best so far.

All these russians you named had to work hard and clean their technique in order to keep dancing in the west..If you see some videos from these same dancers on their times in russia u simply dont believe in your eyes. They had to polish their way of dancing with masters in Kopenhaguen, New York , Paris and London because they knew something was wrong with them. Excessive "circus"

lack of refine

[DancingGirl4ever]

yes, and i guess that's the reason why all major european and american companies invite russian ballerinas to work with them? if it is so then i admit i am wrong.. but of course it's not like that!

of course vaganova is not the only method and it's the matter of your personal opinion which one do you prefer, but you shouldn't say that these girls are bad dancers since they will be probably wanted all over the world when they finish this school!

[DancingGirl4ever]

and i do admit there are other teaching methods which are also great, but so is vaganova, you can't deny! each method has it's pros and con, it's just the way it is.. and about your "lack of refine" comment... i couldn't disagree more! it think russian ballerinas are much more elegant and maybe even more plain comparing to ballerinas form america and europe...

[Anna7alexia]

totally agree with you!

[ferssis]

This school is totally old fashioned.

Compare these girls with the ones at the same grades at Paris Opera School, or School of American Ballet , or Royal ballet School.

Quantity is not quality

[DancingGirl4ever]

they are not old fashioned they are traditional! they are the reason why the glorious russian ballet is still alive! this is vaganova tecnique, one way of teaching, you can't argue which techinque is better. each has its pros and cons and you should not judge it since i doubt you are such an expert.if you were you wouldn't be saying this! i prefer vaganova method and i'm vaganova trained, but this doesn't give me the right to insult or to judge other techinques! and you shouldn't do it either!!

[ferssis]

you can not put in the same pot Sergeyev and Dudynskaya with Balanchine..he is another thing.. He saw the real world and he develop the tecniche much further than anybody else.

[DancingGirl4ever]

Yes that's true, but he WAS vaganova trained and that's where he started, where his roots were!! Of course you can't compare him with Sergeyev, but I wanted to show you how many different dancer came from this school and as speaking of Balancine.. He was really beyond his time and he created the american ballet we know today, so obviously Vaganova academy didn't stop him of being creative open minded for new things.. It just gave him the required techinque he needed for further development!

[Firestarjude]

@DancingGirl4ever Balanchine was not Vaganova trained. Vaganova did not start teaching until 1916, and Balanchine graduated in 1921, and Vaganova is not listed as one of his teachers. He was therefore trained in the pre-Vaganova Imperial method and style.

[DancingGirl4ever]

But he's not the only one who left Russia. Also Baryshinkov, Preobrajenskaya, Makarova... left Russia and they were respected in the world! Respected for their technique, lines, way of dancing, distinctive for Vaganova students! Of course they changed, improved through their careers- every dancer develops his own dance habits, expression, adds something on his own etc., but they were in roots all Vaganova trained!

[DancingGirl4ever]

What I'm trying to say is that Vaganova students have always been cherished whether they stayed in Russia or they left it and went to different places all over the world! Because Vaganova training gives you perfect basic training with which you can do whatever you want. You can develop it further or go completely different direction. So how come you say that they are teaching wrong since the dancers are cherished and respected in the world, also from others who are taught in different methods?

[kirovbolshoi27]

How can you say these girls are weak??!!

[ferssis]

They are very weak students...they are not able to do these exercises!

Crazy teachers

[DancingGirl4ever]

i don't know how can you criticise their teaching methods when a lot (if not most) world's greatest stars of ballet are vaganova trained. look how amazing are they! i don't know where your statement came from? they are excellent students all very talented and naturally gifted. yes, their technique might be advanced for their age but they handle it amazingly and THIS is how they will become professionals who are able to succeed in harsh ballet world.

[DancingGirl4ever]

or do you dissagree that pavlova, nijinski, preobrajenskaya, dudinskaya, sergeyev, baryshnikov, balanchine, ulanova, asylmuratova, zelensky, zakharova, lopatkina, somova, vishneva... -i could go on for years-, aren't amazing dancers and some of the best of their time?? they are all vagaganova trained so how can you say that teacher in the vaganova academy is crazy?!

[schneggilein89]

omg i am in a ballet academy too, a really good one (nuremberg, germany)...and i am 19 years old, have been dancing ballet for 14 years now...and these girls are STILL better Oo how is it possible? theyre just sooooooo perfect....i really envy them...

[angelinemelody]

i may sound evne more stupid than geckoarmy8, but is Vaganova academy a prestige ballet school? and anyone knows if i can download these vaganova ballet videos?

[belley08]

Yeah Vaganova is a method of teaching :)

[geckoarmy8]

So wonderful! Suddenly I have the urge to practice harder... I know I shouldn't compare myself to students of the Vaganova academy, but still, they're just so PERFECT! It might sound pretty stupid, but how old are they?

[Kirumna]

I also do ballet and this makes me real depressed...I'll never become a dancer. I also would like to know how old they are....

[geckoarmy8]

Well, you shouldn't give up! If you really love it, just keep trying!

[umboreon]

dont say that...you will...you just have to practice and practice and never give up...

[writer13426]

They are 12-13 years old. The academy accepts the girls @ 10, so they are generally in one level for one year, so 12 to 13.

[wandaancion]

Love the beauty and discipline of these young dancers. Olga still looks the same beautiful!

[AmyKauai]

Great! Do you have the entire class?

[shkablender]

working on it.

[AmyKauai]

Thanks so much. Fantastic. If you have any other classroom videos I would love to see them too.

[rlion2005]

This is is the most UNgifted class at the Vaganova Ballet Academy ever!

Unfortunately, ms. Gortchakova posted herself here, and couldn't say anything else about the Academy in general as she was expelled!

Seriously, ALL girls classes at the Vaganova have great turn out, extentsions, feet! But not in this class! No wonder that NOBODY from this class became a soloist/principal anywhere! And most of this girls were expelled out from the Vaganova right after this year and later on!

[BalletShoes2011]

@rlion2005 They actually are VERY gifted. Ballet is very hard and demanding. I went to the National Ballet School of Poland. I would know. I'd like you to go to that class and see what it's like.