Quick Update

Last night, during a conversation with a bright friend of a friend in Pforzheimer House,

I realized that I have danced 12-15 hours a week on average for most of this semester.

astounded,

rossi

Everything In Ballet Balance

I think that it is safe to say that I watch more ballet on YouTube than that average sophomore boy in college in America. Maybe I am just being proud.

Either way, I stopped to pause and realize that I have seen some fantastic dancing thanks to YouTube.

So I figured that YouTube, being a site for sharing, would want me to share these with those who are patient enough to watch.

move right along,
rossi

Alessandra Ferri and Wayne Eagling in "Romeo and Juliet"

Alessandra Ferri and Mikhail Baryshnikov in "Giselle"

Marinsky Ballet performing "Don Quixchotte"

Paloma Herrera and Angel Corella in "Don Quixote"

National Ballet of Canada performing 

"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
original choreography by Christopher Wheeldon

"WE'LL FIND OUT"

"Is your mind mistaken,

is your conscience not at ease,

we'll find out

we'll find out."

We'll Find Out, song by Timber Timbre

. . . 

Much has happened in this last month and much is still happening. 

The most pleasing news is that I have been accepted into the Harvard Ballet Company. This semester, I will be performing in several excerpts from the ballet Don Quixote, also being performed this season by the Boston Ballet. In addition to the ballet company, Monday of next week I will audition for the role of an extra in the Boston Ballet's Romeo + Juliet. 

Also relevant is the fact that Jill Johnson, the impressive new dance director at Harvard (read), brought Boston Ballet Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen to instruct a master class at 60 Garden St. studio, which I attended. He was very gentle with his corrections and exactly right about all of them. At this point in time, being in the throws of so much movement and expression will prove to be my necessary outlet. I am a dancer now. How far shall I go?

Next, to know about the nap that I took this evening is to know then that I took several hours exclusively for myself. I refused to respond to anything or receive anyone in any capacity. Having not done this since the academic year began, this nap was a jewel of time re-captured. When I arose in the blue darkness of the night, I allowed myself to accept an intention in my chest to pursue a concentration in History of Science. After moving to my bed (I slept on a large bean bag chair that I own), I re-read a letter given to me two years ago now by a close friend and its message was shockingly relevant: 

Another cool thing about you is your willingness to explore yourself. I’ve seen you dothis through art and poetry, and I’m sure there’s a bunch of other ways. But it’s justtoo cool to see you partake in that journey...and you do it while being so “into” it! Youdo not just float by on the river of life, but you kayak down it. You traverse the rapidsthat make your journey in particular so fun and unique. You make your life your own,and you make it interesting. Like I said, your courage to explore and express make meproud of you...I wish more people could be as courageous as you.      ~M.Navarrete.

I felt ashamed in the face of his words. I felt like a coward because I have shied away from certain knowledge being afraid that my intuition about and comprehension of it would pale in comparison to that of others. His words gave me the courage to reaffirm much of what I have recently doubted. 

Finally and to my dismay, though understandable given the circumstances, the rapid progress--what I call rapid and what I call progress--with my artwork has slowed severely. Though I worry about this, I shouldn't worry. I am all too familiar with these phases of creative diversion. They come and go like demons guided by the phases of the moon. 

shall have patience,

rossi 

Three Videos

Here are three videos to watch before bed. All of them contain dancing. One of them contains many smiles.

"Showreel" by James Welsby

"Window in the Skies" by U2

"Story of Bess" by Rossi Lamont Walter

How's that for an injection of creativity. You've seen what others can do, so do it too.

do it to it,

rossi

DEJAN TUBIC

Today is Tuesday, the slowest of the days in the week for us because it often goes as follows:

French class (3 hours), return to the Villa Jasmin, lunch, nap, beach, read (or not). Very nice, if you do it right.

However, today I did not nap. I wasn't feeling particularly tired. Instead, I decided to YouTube a formidable handful of songs by the "folk music project" Timber Timbre (ding) which just finished downloading, starting with "Woman". Check out the pretty artsy video that comes with the song. I expect to listen to their newest album, Creep On Creepin' On, later with my boyfriend. He is a musician. His name is Kyle. He is obscure e.g. from Delaware. He is a stud.

So things are going along nicely and the (*counts*) nine YouTube tabs open are set and ready to be heard but as things tend to go with the Internet, I wind up between Facebook, Gmail, and YouTube (1) and eagerly watching the choreography of the one and only Dejan Tubic. And I have to say, I am "wow"ed every time.

Dejan is a hip-hop/funk/body choreographer living in Los Angeles (2) and, apparently, often bleaches his hair, making him edgy and recognizable. I can image this is good for his dancer-students in class (3). Here are four pieces he has choreographed, the ones I've seen, but you can find all of his fun videos on his website here.

Choreographed to "Whip My Hair" by Willow Smith

Choreographed to "Bloody Mary" by Lady Gaga

Choreographed to "We No Speak Americano" by Yolanda Be Cool

Choreographed to "Outta Your Mind" by Lil Jon and LMFAO ["vulgar"]

You can see for yourself how talented Dejan is and how many people he inspires to move.
Here is his fan page.

Honestly, dance in general is a great way to keep active while having a great time, meeting lively people, and appreciating popular music with a depth not many can achieve, especially since popular music gets the blunt end of the stick from a lot of people a lot of the time. Consider giving a dance class a try, be it hip-hop, swing, funk, jazz, tap, ballet, modern, African, East Asian, Bhangra, anything. Dance comes in so much variety and captures such a wide audience, it's amazing the kind of culture and history you can experience and become apart of just by dancing.

These last few hours just leave me thinking, "Inspiration overload: good thing or bad?" Obviously, both, but there is no time to sort out why. You just have to "go and do something with you life" (Dejan Tubic).

I myself will finish listening to Timber Timbre.

tree falls in a forest... and it lands on my head,
rossi



UNDERSCORES
(1) Facebook, Gmail, YouTube: WARNING. Commence the devouring of at least two hours of your time. Be aware.
(2) I wonder how many people actually say "Los Angeles" with what is probably the correct accent "L-OH-S AHN-JE-LEZ".
(3) Info on classes found here: "Come Take Dejan Tubic’s Class at IDA Hollywood. EVERY WEDNESDAY FROM 730pm - 9:00pm. www.idahollywood.com"

Break Down No.1: Kaba Modern/Body Rock 2010

Not too long ago I resurrected my YouTube account and starting a half-organized effort at keeping track of music videos and videos in general that I found interesting or memorable. Eventually, this meant that I started rather exclusively hoarding videos of choreography and dance troupes. Keeping track of anything is just the brain and body's way of saying, "I will return to this" and all too often we don't. But hurrah! I have returned to a video sent to me through Expressions Dance Company at Harvard. Aside from the flashy stage, there is some sick choreography in this 4:44 piece, and some details that easily worth noting. You may end up watching an interval 2 or 3 (or 50...) times. Whatever. You will enjoy.

---

"it's gonna be the day" 0:07-0:10 - I think it was a superb choice to have all dancers isolate their shoulders like they did. It was super soft and super effective. I think that was definitely a great way to start off the piece (can you believe it's only 4:44?). With so many dancers on stage your eye is immediately drawn to the three showcased ones in the center. Not only because of numbers and lighting, but the levels help create the dynamic texture on stage. While most dancers are kneeling, several are standing legs hip-width apart and--here is my favorite observation--they aren't just in the back row! They are in the middle row, too, making the layering almost 3-D instead of flat. 

hard house music 0:10-0:32 - So, for those who don't already know, I am really a fan of house music and techno in choreography for any style of dance. It is entrancing and persistent, and makes a good canvas for repetitive motions executed canon style, like in choruses. These dancers did the music justice by virtually staying in place instead of bouncing all over the stage-- they really made it easy to see all the cool body extensions and playing they were doing. Oh, and the two moments were a horizontal line forms across the front of the stage? Brilliant and visually very effective 

"the hoochie leg" 1:01-1:03 - I just really like this move. They executed it well, again, with all dancers doing it.

four part ensemble 1:16-1:31 - So, not only is this approach pretty visually effective, it's very easy to do and do well as long as the groups of dancers know their choreo step for step. But what made this even more awesome was the subtle thread of the dancer in the grey jacket and scarf moving imperceptibly from group to group until the very end, when everyone rotates over their left side. So dope.

formation(s) 1:31-1:39 - For me it was a little messy. I could tell what they were going for, but their right/our left side was a bit late and off-spacing for, like, a second, but then everyone gets back into it at 1:39, which does indeed look hella cool.

footwork! ahhh! 2:02-2:05 - I LOVE ISOLATED TORSOS AND BOUNCY FEET, AHH!

and right after that, the audience goes vocal for the first time, ACTUALLY, where the beat drops at 2:05, after "Mr. Hugh Hefner," and I think I've finally figured out why. 

So, the beat picks up, maybe even double-times, and the girl SMACK in the middle with those ridiculous boots really brings out that quickness because of how her head sort of rocks back at forth as almost an after-shock result of what her legs are doing (stomping one at a time). It really is a nuance that she nailed down hard. Almost all of other dancers do it too, but to a less crazy degree. The girls that do it best are the middle girl and the two girls at the top of the formation, closest to the stage, not quite on the outskirts. A girl that seems to not do it is the one in the white jacket on the far left/our right: her head doesn't rebound as hard, and the double-time effect is that much more lost. Fortunately, the young lady in the center has enough rebound and stage crunk for everyone.

It's all just super baller.

And, note the music:

Intro: Peanuts Enhancer (Mobbing Remix) - Benny Benassi

Walking on a Dream (Treasure Fingers Remix) - Empire of the Sun

Losing My Mind - Cold Flamez

Bitch You'll Gag - Jay Karan Pendavis

Closer: Cheap and Cheerful (Fake Blood Remix) - The Kills

It's funny, really, because a friend of mine just sent me "Ohm-O-Genik" by Alle "Mobbing" Benassi, Benny (Marco) Benassi's cousin. 

This is all around a really, really great video.

always rock your body,
rossi