Ballet Articles Category -

Sir Kenneth MacMillan, although a dancer himself, is widely regarded for his contributions to choreography. Born in Dunfermline, Scotland on the 11th December 1929 to a working class family, Macmillan grew up in Great Yarmouth and took up dancing at the age of 12. Naturally gifted he moved to London when he was just 15 years old after being accepted by the Sadler's Wells Ballet.

The ballet Sylvia is based on the play Aminta written by the Italian poet Torquato Tasso. It is a ballet performed in three acts with characters that are taken from mythology. The music used in the ballet is by Lo Delibes the French composer and is often cited as one of Delibes's greatest pieces of work. Unfortunately it could not live up to the acclaim of its music and its debut was met with a lukewarm response. Future performances of Sylvia were also unsuccessful and the ballet all but disappeared from the stage for many years.

Ballet has something magical about it and once ballet dancers start to move around a stage then a whole new fantasy world opens. This is a world defined by romance, beauty and grace, one that many want to belong to. One of the best ways to really start to do this is with the use of a a ballet barre.