Last January the sixth was the 20th anniversary of the death of one of the greatest dancers ever: Rudolph Nureyev. He became a legend, as did other great 20th-century artists such as Mikhail Baryshnikov or Anna Pavlova.
Rudolph Nureyev
Dancers have delighted the public with the naturalness of their movements, performing incredible works like Don Quixote, Swan Lake
Far from spontaneous, these movements require extreme effort. The training of the body demands long hours of work day after day. Elasticity, strength, balance and rhythm are some of the aspects that need to be practised from childhood. In fact, most dancers begin their careers very early, usually distinguishing themselves from other children by their aptitude. The conditioning of muscles that causes suffering in young bodies and the point shoes that produce malformation in growing feet are just some of the sacrifices that are often made.
Not only is the training of the body important, but also of the mind, as dancers often have to deal with fatigue, pain and frustration in an extremely exacting and competitive world. Facing anxiety before a premiere, recovering from an injury or accepting a negative result in an audition are some of the most common situations that need to be faced.
Rudolph Nureyev
Undoubtedly, becoming a dancer requires a great amount of discipline. Tenacity is the key to putting up with obstacles, both physical and psychological. But this is not enough. To touch the audience, dancers should not only be perfect in technique but must also have soul. They must interpret the music, as if their movements were the lyrics of the song, showing passion, desperation, happiness or sadness. Because if they didn't, it would be no more than a gymnastic exercise. What really makes a dancer is the feeling of the music, the performance of each step, plie and cambre coming from the heart, as if they were writing the most beautiful of poems.
Anna Pavlova - The Dying Swan
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