Practice until you get it wrong every time
June 15, 2021 3:42 AM   Subscribe

The Mistake Waltz - a short ballet choreographed with intentional and comical errors that can't help but make you smile. (via Kottke)
posted by Stark (15 comments total) 27 users marked this as a favorite
 
Nice
posted by igor4btc at 5:01 AM on June 15, 2021


Clueless, I wasn’t sure what to think when SF Ballet had a slip onstage. Did that just happen? Then it happened again. Wait a minute…
posted by richeditor at 5:54 AM on June 15, 2021 [1 favorite]


Kudos upon kudos to the performers. Making mistakes on accident is easy, but doing it on purpose, the exact same way, when you have years of instincts to follow the group? That is a skill beyond. Lovely. Thanks for sharing Stark!
posted by snerson at 6:52 AM on June 15, 2021 [4 favorites]


Thanks for this Stark! Great stuff. Also liked how one of the dancers is wearing glasses, lol.
One question for those who know ballet more than I do. Is the squeaking of the shoes normal?
posted by storybored at 8:13 AM on June 15, 2021 [1 favorite]


For more comedic ballet, I recommend the Royal Ballet's Tart Adage from Alice in Wonderland. The Red Queen's overreaction to landing a handoff from one male dancer to another is explained in this making of video. Jump to 1:27 for an quick explanation of how it's playing up the classical Sleeping Beauty coreography.

It amazes me how hard it has to be to not only be able to dance at that level, but to throw in comedy and intentional slips broad enough for the audience to catch that they are indeed intentional.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 9:45 AM on June 15, 2021 [4 favorites]


In her 1987 gala routine, Debi Thomas gave a masterclass in how to use her incredible gifts as a skater to play a comedic version of a much younger skater. The way she does things so precisely poorly is incredible -- a lesser skater could never be so perfectly hopeless.
posted by jacquilynne at 9:48 AM on June 15, 2021 [7 favorites]


I wasn't going to click because I didn't think I knew enough about dance to see when things went wrong. I am very glad I clicked!
posted by kimberussell at 9:53 AM on June 15, 2021


PDQ Bachalanchine!
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:56 PM on June 15, 2021 [7 favorites]


Shoe squeeking and landing thumps are normal but unexpected because you haven’t heard those on TV as much.
posted by richeditor at 1:10 PM on June 15, 2021 [2 favorites]


I have always wanted to experience a 'silent disco' type ballet performance or rehearsal.
Say, the pas de quatre from Swan Lake where the dancers are wearing headphones; I take mine off, and all I can hear is the thump-swish-thump-creak-exhale of the shoes and the stage and the dancers.
posted by bartleby at 2:44 PM on June 15, 2021


Reminds me of scenes in films in which talented actors must play the role of an untalented actor. Very clever stuff!
posted by subocoyne at 2:47 PM on June 15, 2021


Loved this clip! Thank you for sharing. Very comedic.
posted by ellerhodes at 5:17 PM on June 15, 2021


It kept getting funnier and funnier. The last port de bras cracked me up!
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 5:46 PM on June 15, 2021


snerson, I thought the same. How hard is it to be deliberately off from everyone else as a professional? Dang.
posted by jenfullmoon at 6:39 PM on June 15, 2021


I adore this piece, I think there was a point where I was watching it at least once a day. I was also lucky enough to see the entire ballet a few years ago (performed by the National Ballet of Canada). The rest of the show has the same kooky, eccentric energy, I highly recommend.
posted by Rora at 7:35 PM on June 15, 2021 [1 favorite]


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