ART, PHOTOGRAPH Lea Thomasson ART, PHOTOGRAPH Lea Thomasson

Ballet meets Photography. Daria Popova

BALLET MEETS PHOTOGRAPHY is an incredible creative project that we started with Dasha Popova many years ago. I want to share with you some results of this beautiful creative cooperation and a glimpse of why photographers love to have ballet under their cameras.

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ART, PAINTING, MOSCOW Lea Thomasson ART, PAINTING, MOSCOW Lea Thomasson

RUSSIAN -EAST PAINTINGS. 20TH CENTURY

Having visited the Tretyakov Gallery, I decided to visit the New Tretyakov Gallery.

It's a modern art gallery in a Soviet-style building, located in front of the Gorky Park's entrance, that offers monumental temporary exhibitions.

This time I have been lucky to visit a world I know little about 20th-century Russian painting. Growing up in France, I know more about European painting, among them, we find Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Edvard Munch, Joan Miró, etc., but less about Russian art.

Today we will discover more about Russian-Eastern European artists of the 20th-century.

Enjoy !

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ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson

Ballet and Diet ?

Ballet and physical fitness are a rather risky and controversial theme. Nevertheless, by constantly receiving questions about my weight and my eating habits from non-dancers, it seemed interesting to open this subject here on this open platform.

Finding this balance in a demanding environment like ballet is not always so simple, and it would be a lie not to admit that many dancers encounter difficulties with body weight.

In a world that promotes body positivity, what about ballet weight?

How is it possible to be skinny like a ballerina ?

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ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson

Is Ballet friendly Or competitive ?

Most people outside the ballet world have an opinion about ballet after watching movies like Black Swan with Natalie Portman. I would say it's a pretty dark vision of ballet, potentially realistic but undoubtedly limited.

As a professional ballet dancer, I thought it would be interesting to show you from the inside, a true portrait of this art life, closer to reality, than the illusions or filmmaker's fantasy.

Is there a toxic atmosphere in ballet or positive competition ?

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ART, INSIDER, BALLET Lea Thomasson ART, INSIDER, BALLET Lea Thomasson

Bolshoi Ballet vs. Mariinsky Ballet

The Bolshoi Ballet and The Mariinsky Ballet are two very powerful theaters with old history and traditions, which make them still the most famous in the world.

Today i want to share with you my vision on the situation as a ballet dancer from The Mariinsky Theater, who sometimes also dances on the Bolshoi Stage.

As people love to compare them, i will try to compare them not to chose which one is the best (because i believe it's a question that will never be resolved) but more basing myself on the facts.

HOW DIFFERENT ARE THEY ?

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ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson

Mariinsky Ballet Unique Repertoire

My dream to work at The Mariinsky Theater came naturally, since I loved the Kirov's ballerinas, their style, manners, purity and beauty. My first trip to Saint Petersburg confirmed that my soul here felt at home, a strange feeling.

I decide to share with you today what I consider to be Saint Petersburg's unique footprint, these specifics and unique ballets that are linked to this theater ; they can be exclusive to our theater repertoire, or they originate from this theater.

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ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson ART, BALLET, INSIDER Lea Thomasson

Classical vs. Character Dancer

Baryshnikov always inspired me. I admire in him, the ability to dance so easily, as if it didn’t cost any power or struggle, and also to dance everything so brightly. If a dancer is great, he/she is great at everything.

So what about this division in Russian Ballet about Character and Classical Dance ?

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ART, BALLET Lea Thomasson ART, BALLET Lea Thomasson

‘BALLET’ ?

Recently, I watched the movie-serial about Mathilde Kschessinska’s life, in which I found incredible inspiration. Working at the Mariinsky nowadays, the comparison was especially perspicacious: same place, one theater, but different time.

What is exactly BALLET ?

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ART, BALLET, BODY, BEAUTY Lea Thomasson ART, BALLET, BODY, BEAUTY Lea Thomasson

The subjectivity of BEAUTY.

The Dancer's Vision Of Beauty Is So Specific That Our Parameters May Not Be As Pleasant To An Outsider's Eyes (And Maybe Even To The Audience).

We, Ballet Dancers, Spend Our Lives In Front Of A Mirror, Sculpting Our Bodies And Striving To Reach Perfect Harmony And Beauty In Our Body Lines.

Today I will talk about the idea of beauty in ballet and share a little bit about my vision.

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