Nutcracker

The topic of this post is on a story ballet that should be familiar to just about everyone: The Nutcracker

Whether you’ve watched it on stage, performed in it, heard the music, or heard the story, The Nutcracker is a big part of many peoples Christmas season. This year, I am so excited to be dancing in The Nutcracker for the very first time. I was cast in five different parts and have been rehearsing with Dance Alive for about 3 months. If you are not familiar with the story, here is a synopsis-

ACT I

Herr Stahlbaum and his wife are giving a Christmas Party. Clara and Fritz, their children, greet the guests. The parents give toys to all the children. Suddenly, the mysterious Dr. Drosselmeyer arrives and entertains the children with his magical tricks and wind-up dolls.

Dr. Drosselmeyer brings a special gift for Clara – a wooden nutcracker. In a jealous fit, Fritz breaks it. Dr. Drosselmeyer quickly repairs it.

The party ends, the guests leave, and the Stahlbaums retire for the night. Clara awakens as a mouse runs through her room. The clock strikes midnight. Suddenly, the room fills with giant mice who attack Clara. Life-size toy soldiers, led by her valiant Nutcracker, come to her rescue. The King Rat attacks the Nutcracker, but Clara hits him with her shoe and the Nutcracker wins the battle. After the battle, the Nutcracker is transformed into a handsome prince.

The Nutcracker Prince turns the Stahlbaums house into the Land of Snow. The Snow Queen and the Nutcracker Prince dance with the Snowflakes. Clara and the Nutcracker Prince depart for the Kingdom of Sweets in an enchanted sleigh.

ACT II

Clara and the Nutcracker Prince continue their journey across the Lemonade Sea. When they arrive in the Kingdom of Sweets, the cooks are preparing delectable treats for their arrival. They are greeted by the Sugar Plum Fairy. In Clara’s honor, the Sugar Plum Fairy arranges for the inhabitants of her kingdom to entertain them while they eat: chocolate, a Spanish Dance; coffee, an Arabian Dance; and tea, a Chinese Dance. Clara is also entertained by the dance of the Mirlitons, a dance with Madame Bonbonaire and her clowns, a Russian dance, and the Waltz of the Flowers. Then, the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Nutcracker Prince dance a grand pas de deux. As the celebration draws to a close, Clara drifts off to sleep. She awakens in bed, as the Nutcracker Prince salutes his princess Clara.

Here is a little preview of Dance Alive National Ballet Nutcracker which will be at the Phillips Center December 20-22. Also, here is an insane Sugar Plum pas de deux I found… enjoy!

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Food for thought

One thing that makes everyone happy: food.

Food not only can change ones mood and make them happy, it brings people together. Think about all the conversations have around the table during meal time. Food made those conversations happen. 

Ever heard of the term “hangry“? Well its a term meaning hungry/angry and all of you must have felt it at some time in your life. I know that I get hangry WAY too often sooo I’m sorry for what I said when I was hungry…

I think a good way to solve the hangry issue is to learn how to cook. I’m not saying you need to become some kind of culinary expert but it really is helpful to know how to cook a couple things for yourself. I’m going off to college next year and I really need to avoid that “freshman 15” so I figured that the best way to avoid that would be to cook my own food as often as possible. I have lots of quick, easy, yummy recipes that I will take with me to college. This one recipe is so simple and so quick. You definitely don’t have to be a master chef to just make breakfast. 

 

Pancakes

Original recipe makes 8 servings

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted

 

 Directions

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

 

Bon Appetit!

 

Word Count: 311

Expectation vs. Reality

“Disappointment is the gap that exists between expectation and reality”

Everyone hopes to achieve their dreams, but no one should expect to. Expectations can be so far from reality, it is sometimes a waste to think that everything will play out the way you want it to. Don’t get me wrong, it’s good to set high expectations, and it’s good to have high hopes, but too often that can turn out bad. When you have to face reality, it can be scary, depressing, and very disappointing. Who would choose to live in reality if we could live in our own dream world? Sometimes it even seems like a dream world could be more easily understood and more sane than reality. Day dreaming is the closest thing we have to living in our dream worlds. Day dreaming is a perfect escape, and find myself drifting away to that world more than I probably should be.

The fact that there is nothing but disappointment in between expectation and reality seems very true to me. When what we want to happen doesn’t, we’re often plagued with curiosity, questioning, and disappointment. There have been so many things in my life that did not turn out the way I expected. Some for better, and others for worse. I’ll give you an example…

This is my senior year of high school. As a freshman, sophomore, and junior, even in middle school I was always wondering about this year and what it’d be like. Honestly, I really didn’t know what to expect. I assumed I’d be loaded down with homework and long papers, going to some football games, having to spend hours and hours on college applications, having tons of dance classes, and not knowing how to get myself out of the deep, inescapable pit of senioritis. You could say that I am disappointed with the way my senior year has been so far. Things are a bit easier that I expected and I am doing tons of things that I did not think I would be doing. I am dual enrolled, I changed dance studios… Now this doesn’t mean that these things have disappointed me, I am perfectly happy with these changes and I’m very relieved that I’m not as stressed as I thought I would be. There is a small glimmer of hope in between reality and expectation. Sometimes what you didn’t believe would happen made you happier than what you expected would happen, and I am lucky to have reached that.

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What I love about my life…

1. My big crazy family
2. My supportive friends
3. My home
4. My car
5. Being able to Dual Enroll
6. Being in the Academy of Health Professions
7. My best friend
8. The ability I have to dance
9. The studio I dance at
10. Going out with friends
11. Eating Pizookies (I hope you all know what those are… they’re heaven)
12. Having nice professors
13. Memories I have
14. Spending summers in New Hampshire
15. My Papa’s stories
16. Being able to dance en pointe
17. Knowing the lyrics to the majority of Disney songs
18. Being able to surround myself with people who help build me up, not break me down
19. Comfy clothes
20. Being strong
21. My fat cat and my Diabetic cat
22. My dance teachers
23. Being able to leave for college next year
24. Being able to walk in heels
25. Waking up every morning
26. How I’m not a light sleeper
27. Having an older sister (Sometimes thats really not a good thing)
28. Being able to bake
29. Not having to work yet
30. Knowing that there’s people who love me and returning the love back to them

Ever have one of those moments when you take a step back from everything and you realize how lucky you are? I love those moments. They open up my eyes to what’s most important in my life and they remind me to be grateful for what I have. Everyone has bad days, everyone has to go through rough times, no doubt I’ve had my fair share. But things like that build character and help create the person you are. I don’t understand how someone could go throughout their day hating their life. Someone always has it worse than you do. So with that said, your life is beautiful- live it up.

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music is everything

Who hasn’t driven around in their car blasting music and singing at the top of their lungs? How about those performances in the shower? And what about those days when you just need to play a sad song and let all your emotions go? I believe everyone has those days, we’d all be crazy if music didn’t allow us to  express emotion. All different styles and genres can bring out something special and unique in a person. 

Music is also a big part of dance. Gorgeous choreography paired with gorgeous music is a masterpiece. You cant move effectively if you don’t have a steady beat to follow. It’s like a heartbeat that keeps you going, and is essentially never-ending. A happy upbeat song can create a dance that makes the audience smile and want to join in. This for example might be disco, hip=hop, or salsa. A pretty, slower song, mostly used in ballet, contemporary, or ballroom cam create really heavily emotional dances. These are my favorite to watch and to dance because you really feel like you’ve accomplished something if you can make someone who is watching you dance feel some special type of emotion. Dance and music have always gone hand in hand. The beat of a song is what makes us want to get up and shake our tail feathers. Life would be extremely boring without music. No one would dance, or sing; no one would have that emotional outlet. Music truly is everything.

Music also has a heavily influence on history. The 20’s, or the Jazz Age was full of lively parties, with tons of dancing. Disco is easily identified with the 70’s, with flashy outfits, tricky partnering work, and a ton of hip action. Music has revolutionized the world and has left a big impact on history. It is a part of most peoples daily life and I, personally, could not function with out it.

 

word count: 319

college life in high school

I never thought I would be a high school senior attending college…

I was so unsure about turning in my Dual Enrollment application at the end of my junior year. I had no idea what my classes would be like, if I would blend in, if I could handle the work load, I just didn’t know what to expect at all. Even though I was timid, I went through with everything and made the decision to Dual Enroll. I think it is one of the best decisions I have made yet. Hey, I get one year of college education free- nothing wrong with that.

High school was fun for me, but nothing really special. I really don’t miss it that much. Santa Fe really isn’t drastically different from my high school. Still, no words can describe how nervous I was the first day of classes. Were things going to be different because I was just a high schooler? I was so excited to explore the different options I had, also worried about all the responsibility I would have. College life seemed so different to me, so freeing. So many emotions came with this big change. I know this change is just a small one compared to all the adjustments I will have to make in my life, but its a start and you have to start somewhere.

There were so many perks to doing this. I’m so thankful that I will have about 8 college classes out of the way by the time I graduate high school. The start of this semester has been brutal, and really tough, but also incredibly fun. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without encouragement from my family, friends, and teachers at my high school. I am on the way to bigger and better things!

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Buddy

Friend: A person who is in good terms with another, supporter, a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard.

Friendship: The harmony of two people, a friendly relation or intimacy, friendly disposition, understanding.

Everyone wants to have someone who cares about you, its essential to being happy and feeling loved. This is why I think friendship is so important and this is why I am so grateful for my best friend.

I have known my best friend for seven years, and i met him in sixth grade. Meeting him is absolutely the best memory I have from middle school. We were both different people back then and we have grown together, and helped one another get through so many things in these seven years. We have constantly been there for one another and I think that’s what makes this so special. We understand each other, we always laugh together, we know what can tick the other person off, we make fun of each other, and he’s so easy to be around. He has a great personality. Smart, kind, never judgmental, funny, talented, athletic, and I could go on, but point is he’s awesome. I can tell him anything, and he will listen (making an occasional smart-aleck comment), and I feel completely safe about it. I’m so thankful to have him to talk to, because one of the worst things a person can do is bottle things up inside. Not everyone can find a friendship like this, and I know how lucky I am. Every day it’s important to think of the things you are most grateful for, and my best friend is always at the top of my list…

So even though this post is extremely sappy, I cant explain how happy I am to have him.

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First Post

This is my first blog post, so I’m trying to get the creative juices flowing. I have never written a blog before and there are so many topics I could write about, but nothing great is coming to mind. I suppose I’ll write about dancing aka my life. To me, dance isn’t just a hobby or extracurricular activity, it’s what I do every day and it’s a real sport. I have been dancing for thirteen years now and its one of my greatest passions. Currently, I take Ballet, Pointe, Partnering, Jazz, Contemporary, Conditioning, plus extra rehearsals on the weekends.

It is a lot of work to be a ballet dancer; it’s like a 24/7 job. You have to be extremely fit and strong. If you’ve ever watched a ballet, dancing in pointe shoes might look easy but it is the extreme opposite. It can be very painful and it’s really hard to find a pair of pointe shoes that work best for you. Male dancers have it hard too. They have to lift, carry, turn, support the ballerinas while trying not to mess up or get hit by her pointe shoes. Basically, ballet is not something everyone can do.

In order to be a ballet dancer, you shouldn’t just do ballet. It is really beneficial to take other styles of dance as well as conditioning. The conditioning class i take is so hard i feel like im training to be a pro athlete or something! Is that really necessary? No matter how hard it is or how sore i get, i know its worth it. Its impossible to stand on just your ten toes in pointe shoes if you’re weak.

I have found so many great benefits from being a dancer. I have good posture and know how to sit up straight, having to remember long combinations in the studio helps my memory and thinking skills, being flexible means i get less injuries, I have a strong body, and it lets me be able to express myself creatively.

Yes, it doesn’t sound like much, but its everything to me. Its really hard to stick to something for so many years but i could never give ballet up. I’m a ballerina for life!

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