Beautiful Photos That Show What It's Really Like to Be a Ballerina

Smiling, Lindsay let herself remember the music, the movement, the magic and the times she had felt her body was without bounds, fluid and free. 

Reality had come afterward, with unspeakable cramping, bleeding feet, strained muscles. 

How had it been possible, again and again, to contort her body into the unnatural lines that made up the dance? But she had done it, and she had pushed herself to the limits of ability and endurance. 

She had given herself over, sacrificing her body and the years. 

There had been only the dance. 

Reflections

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 By Lambtron - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6353701

Darian Volkova is a professional ballerina and photographer who captures what goes into practicing ballet. Volkova says her perspective is unique because she can "feel, see and shoot the dance like only [a] dancer can."

While traveling with her company, Volkova photographs ballet dancers from around the world, and the results are stunning. See 15 of her photos below:

HOUSE BEAUTIFUL

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She wondered how much truth had been in his angry words. Bursting through the front door of the building, she headed straight for her dressing room.

Once inside, she closed her door and leaned back against it. She was shaking from head to foot. A few short remarks from Donald had dehumanized her. 

Ruth moved slowly to her mirror and switched on all the lights. 

With hard, searching eyes, she studied her face.

Had her love and devotion for dancing made her selfish and one dimensional?

Was she really unable to feel deeply for a man, to make a positive commitment?

Ruth pressed her hands to her cheeks. The skin was soft, smooth, the scent on her hands was feminine.

But was she? Ruth could read the panic in her eyes. 

Where did the dancer end and the woman begin?

She shook her head and turned away from her own image.

Too many mirrors, she thought suddenly. 

There were too many mirrors in her life, and she was no longer certain what they reflected. 

What would she be in a decade, when the dancer faced the twilight of her career? 

Would memories and clippings be all she had?

Dance of Dreams

what happens to retired ballerinas?

"Ruth!" Nadine walked through the crowd with the assurance of a woman who knew people would step aside for her. She was small, with a trim build and grace that revealed her training as a dancer. Her hair was sculptured and palely blond, her skin smooth and pink. The angelic face belied a keen mind. More than she ever had as a dancer, Nadine Rothchild, as company founder, devoted her life to the ballet.

Dance of Dreams

 

 

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The ballerina’s life is remarkably long: the regime sets you up with fighting levels of fitness and energy, and there can have been few more superb specimens of nonagenarian erectness and alertness than Tamara Karsavina, Beryl Grey or Yvette Chauviré. 

So most ballerinas continue to work behind the scenes long after they retire from the stage, passing on the sacred flame either as coaches and teachers (Pamela May, Alexandra Danilova, Lysette Darsonval) or administrators (Merle Park, Elisabeth Platel, Monica Mason, Violette Verdy). This continuity of the bloodline is vital: ballet is an insider’s art, and it does not take kindly to managers being parachuted in from the outside. 

TELEGRAPH

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She faced Ruth directly. "When I first joined the company, Nadine was struggling to keep it going. Nick's coming gave it much-needed momentum, but there were internal problems, financial pressures outsiders are rarely aware of. I know you think Nadine was hard—she undoubtedly was—but the company is everything to her. It's easier for me to understand that now with the distance. I didn't always.

Dance of Dreams

Ballerina Irina Dvorovenko: ‘All Artists Are Very Vulnerable’

 

“All ballet dancers, all artists, are very vulnerable,” Dvorovenko said. “There are so many insecurities because it’s a huge responsibility and you’re dealing with discipline, routine and pain. From an early age, you have to learn how to control yourself. And have tremendous inner strength.”

 

“The ballet world is pretty hidden,” Dvorovenko continued. 

 “We dedicate our life to it. The audience sees beauty, grace, glamour, lightness, passion. Behind the curtain it’s a very difficult routine and strict discipline.”

YAHOO!

lost in motion

He should have been undistinguished in the plain gray jogging suit, but he wasn't. 

Ruth, despite her youth,recognized that certain men could never be ordinary. 

Some drew notice without effort. 

It was more than
his face and physique, it was his aura.

Reflections

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Guillaume Côté is a man able to fly. This dancer born in Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec attended the National Ballet School of Canada and thirteen years ago joined the company. His technique and ability to communicate on stage are such that it is able to leave the viewer breathless.

Earlier this year, the National Ballet of Canada chose Côté as the star of a video clip to promote the dance company in the world and especially in the World Wide Web.

 

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Nikolai Davidov's leaps were like no one else's. He would spring as if propelled, then pause and hang
impossibly suspended before descending. His body was as fluid as a waterfall, as taut as a bow string.
He had only to command it. And there was more, Ruth knew, just as mesmerized by him as she had
been the first time she'd seen him perform; there was his precision timing, his strength and endurance.
And he could act—an essential part of ballet. His face was as expressive as his body.

Dance of Dreams