I'm quite new to the practice of burlesque, but over the few years i've been interested i've noticed a large majority of burlesque dancers go en pointe (i hope i have this right) during their performance. I was wondering if any one could tell me if they have all trained in ballet since a young age? If so, then i was a seriously deprived little girl! i was sent to highland dancing instead ! (sniff sniff)
thanks xx

Ballet helps, wether or not you decide to go up "en pointe".
I started ballet when I was 3 and continued until about age 17 or 18, then took jazz, etc. I danced en pointe for about a year or two, but realized that I didn't want to be a ballerina. It was 5 days a week, 4 to 6 hours a day after school of practice that took away from many other things I wanted to do.
Now, I'm looking to take a few classes again for polish and exercise. I would suggest to anyone getting into burlesque to take a ballet class; beginning or intermediate depending on dance experience. Ballet helps with poise, balance, strength, and is great help in choreographing your acts.

I miss my ballet teacher from when I was little. She wore this certain perfume (not sure of the name, I think it was Vanderbilt), and every time I catch a whiff of it somewhere, it brings back memories of her and the gorgeous ballet studio where I took my first tip-toe steps :-)

XOXO
~V

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I think that a lot of us have had some dance training, (but certainly by no means all) particurly the girls that dance on pointe, it's not generally the sort if thing that is self-taught. I know people who have taught themselves but as an experienced dancer I wouldn't recommend it.

Just from personal experience - I trained in all styles of dance all the way through normal school and then full time for three years after and danced on pointe from about the age of 14 to 22 - so plenty of experience. Athough I have carried on dancing over the next ten years, I only recently began dancing on pointe again and trust me, even with all my training and experience, after such a long gap it was not easy! (I forgot how much it hurts!)
Certainly for young dancers it is inadvisable to begin pointe work until your teacher judges you are ready - this is different for everyone, and a responsible teacher should assess your strength and ability properly - the same should really apply to adult dancers - I really wouldn't recommend doing it without some fairly rigorous ballet training and the guidance of your ballet teacher, you could seriously damage your body!
The best way to go about it is to find a good adult ballet class at a local school. There are some great ballet classes as places like Pineapple and Danceworks if you're in London, but you won't get the guidance and attention you'd need to progress on to pointe work as the classes are very big and quite impersonal.
However, I'd agree that whatever your final goal, ballet class is worth doing anyway for the strength, poise and style.
Tutu's on then!
xxx

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I am not a performer, but I did ballet from the aged of 2-18, I also did modern and tap for 3 years, and dance AS Level. I have recently been doing Jazz at uni. Basically I was never good at ballet, but if I wanted to perform the dance experience would be useful for choreography, staging space etc.

I've actually had no dance training whatsoever. My parents just couldn't afford it.
I did gymnastics for a couple of years when I was 10-12 and now that I think of it, I actually did Scottish Country Dancing when I was in primary 7 (ok, so maybe a tiny bit of training), but I hated it muchly (I kept missing Ulysses 31!) But I am good at interpreting music and have played musical instruments since Primary 4, so possibly that helped, and more recently I've been to the likes of Ceroc and Swing dance to learn some ACTUAL footsteps!
Obviously as a result I don't dance any Ballet and would never even contemplate trying to dance En Pointe. I don't think it's particularly necessary, although I am biased!
I do feel a slight pang of jealousy when watched En Pointe dancers though, as it is wonderful to behold!

Where are you based?

I have never had any formal dance training as such. I have been involved in a couple of classes over the years and have a little experience in gymnastics. I have also been looking into taking adult ballet classes with a view to going en pointe and here is what iv found out. Most ballerinas start at a very young age and reach the 'pointe' stage at around 12 depending on their body type/strength and feet. This is not because it takes so many years training but because a childs body is not developed enough to withstand the demands that pointe puts on the body. If you decide to take adult ballet classes then you should be able to get en pointe fairly quickly depending on how personal your classes are and how much time your willing to spend on achieving your goal. I am just about to start begginers classes and with some extra coaching from an experienced ballerina friend of mine, I hope to be en pointe withing two years.

If you are putting together a burlesque performance, why not incorporate highland dancing? Its surprisingly rare and quite original.

If any of this is wrong then please correct me, all you experienced dancers.

Busty
xxx

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Thanks for all the advice, i'll have a look for some adult ballet classes in my area. I had no idea you could get such a thing, i always assumed it was only achievable if you'd started from a young age. I am hoping to put together my own routine, i live in scotland and the scene is just taking off, so fingers crossed! I loved the idea about incorporating scottish country dancing into a routine, it sounds like it could be fun. Thanks again xx

Where in Scotland do you live? Im in Glasgow and could point you in the direction of some good adult dance schools I know if you're in the area.

Busty
xxx

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I live in fife and it would be great if you could point me in the direction of some dance schools. I know a couple of places nearby, but they dont do adult classes, but i'll keep looking!
Ps* where you at club noirs carnal carnival in glasgow, i recognize your photo from their site? If so, was it good, i missed it!
Thanks xx

Try this BBC website for a comprehensive list of danceschools in scotland. You'll probably find a school closer to you that I havent heard of. The ones I can personally recommend are the Dance Factory for any beginners classes including ballet and Deesdancing for latin. Gypsy who runs the Scottish burlesque classes works for DanceBase which is very popular but I think its a bit pricey for a beginner.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/strictlycomedan...scotland.shtml

You might also be interested to know that Gypsy will be running 2 beginner burlesque workshops over the summer in Glasgow rather than consecutive classes. Try the Academy of Striptease and Burlesque Scotland website for more details and updates.

Hope all this helps chick.

Busty
xxx

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Look like a girl - Act like a lady - Think like a man - Work like a dog!