The Ballet

I have always admired the beauty of ballet - to me it is incredible how anyone can train their bodies to move so eloquently and make it appear effortless.  And, of course, there are the costumes - who wouldn't dream of being a sparkling ballerina princess (or is that just me)?  But I had only been able to indulge my love of it through reading about it and watching video clips on YouTube (btw, if you love ballet as much as me, you should definitely follow Anaheim Ballet).

Yesterday, I got to watch my first ever, real, right-in-front-of-me (I'm not kidding - I was in the front row, less than a metre from the stage), ballet.  It was a performance of Coppelia - a fascinating story with plenty of humour.  In truth, it was the perfect ballet to see live.  I had worried that I would get bored when faced with an entire production (the only ballet I've been able to watch all the way through on film is Sleeping Beauty which will probably always be my favourite) but this was certainly not the case.  Not only was I thralled with the magic of seeing it up close, I became entagled in the story.  It is true that ballet can only really truly be appreciated when it is seen live.

This was an incredible experience for me and I am so thankful that there are ballet companies about that are willing to tour to local theatres, providing cheap tickets, to bring this incredible art form to the masses.  If you are interested, I saw The European Ballet - I would highly recommend you see if they are visiting your area as it really is an amazing experience.  Not to mention that afterwards, the prima dancers were very accommodating in signing many many tickets and programmes.  Many of the audience members were like me - they had never had the opportunity to see a real ballet before and I hope these dancers realise how many dreams they make come true each time they dance.