When Sylvie Guillem was approached by French Vogue to pose for the magazine’s iconic pages, the renegade ballerina – who acquired the epithet ‘Mademoiselle Non’ during her fiery spell at The Royal Ballet – took the reins. Early in her career, Guillem appeared in Vogue in a series of polished fashion shots by her partner, photographer Giles Tapie, but felt they portrayed her as “a model, something I am not”. In 2001, she refuted the proverbial ‘diva’ tag by refusing make-up and airbrushing, posing instead for a series of stark self-portraits. The images – dramatic and incandescent – show Guillem dancing naked in a studio, her lithe, disciplined physique suspended in the air.

Ballet’s indelible influence on fashion – line, ethereal beauty and the tutu – extends to high-fashion glossies, where spreads have been devoted to dancers and, in turn, dance has inspired magazine content.

With their strong, willowy physiques, dancers make enviable clothes horses. British ballerina Darcey Bussell modeled regularly for Vogue throughout her career, effortlessly melding beauty and finesse, while The Royal Ballet Principal Artist Tamara Rojo appeared with fellow dancer Carlos Augusta in French Vogue’s May 2010 issue. Photographed by David Burton, the star duo appears in striking black and white under the headline ‘Les Amants Terribles’.

In Australia, Harper’s Bazaar captured the allure of the tutu and the theatre when, in 2005, the glossy featured Principal Artist Kirsty Martin creeping down a stage ladder in Akira Isogawa’s winsome design. Recently, dancers of The Australian Ballet vamped it up alongside Li Cunxin for Harper’s Bazaar’s whimsical ‘Ballet in Wonderland’ spread, inspired by the enduring magic of Disney’s fairytales.

Pictorials inspired by ballet – like Vogue Russia’s May issue shoot ‘Russia, Which is not Lost’, which paid homage to the drama and progressiveness of 20th century Russian ballet – are plentiful. Ballerina-turned-model Karlie Kloss is regularly snapped playing up her dancing chops. She limbered up for Chinese Vogue’s February spread ‘Perfect Sport’ and put her training to good use in French Vogue’s March 2009 ‘Coco Dancer’ spread – a nod to Coco Chanel’s involvement with the Ballets Russes. Her grace and skill were perhaps best captured in German Vogue’s beautiful 2008 editorial, ‘Pas de Deux’.

Image: Kirsty Martin. Photographer Simon Upton

Only moments after the trailer for Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan appeared online, internet wits had already dubbed it Single White Ballerina. Like Barbet Schroeder’s smash 1992 film Single White Female, Black Swan appears to be the story of a young woman (Natalie Portman) whose identity is usurped by an obsessed competitor. Here, the women are ballerinas, and their contest is for the affections of their choreographer as well as his leading roles.

The psycho-sexual relationship between the dancers hinted at in the trailer comes as no surprise; it’s almost a requirement of the genre. Equally, the overbearing mother – here seen painfully cropping her daughter’s fingernails – is a familiar role. (And one that will soon be played for black comedy, too. A just-announced independent comedy called Dance of the Mirlitons focuses on a ballet-mother who is determined to make her daughter famous, no matter what it takes.)

But it’s the final moments of Black Swan’s trailer that are fascinating, as Portman’s dancer appears to pluck a single feather from her back – and the film shifts from a psychological thriller to a more visceral sort of horror. It wouldn’t be the first time. 1977’s Suspiria, from Italian horror master Dario Argento, focused on an American dancer discovering an evil force lurking in her ballet academy – resulting in a series of bloody, hallucinogenic, and unforgettable murders.

Ballet and horror also share an interest in bodily transformations. The former tends to treat them as magic; the latter as mutation. But when Aronofsky’s last film, The Wrestler, was a blistering account of the true costs of masculinity, I wonder Black Swan will ask similar questions of femininity. Will the wings of Portman’s ballerina serve the same purpose as the distorted features of Mickey Rourke’s wrestler?

(I also wonder whether her transformation can possibly equal the greatest ballerina movie-monster of all. We’ll have to wait and see.)

Black Swan premieres tonight at the 67th Venice Film Festival and will be released in Australia early 2011

George Balanchine famously stated: “I don’t want people who want to dance, I want people who have to dance”. I was reminded of this quote when I had the privilege of seeing the incomparable Stephen Fry talk at the Regent Theatre in Melbourne. Regaling us with charming and often hilarious tales of discovering and pursuing his passions, at one point he recounted the scene from the cinematic masterpiece The Red Shoes in which our aspiring ballerina Victoria Page first encounters ballet company impresario Boris Lermentov:

Lermentov: Why do you want to dance?
Page: Why do you want to live?
Lermentov: Well I don’t know exactly why, er, but I must.
Page: That’s my answer too.

Fry used this analogy to exemplify the difference between mere desire and inexplicable need. Like involuntary functions as mundane but vital as breathing – for Fry, writing became his lifeblood; essential to his existence. I walked away from Fry’s talk feeling inspired and compelled to introspection. I was fascinated by this notion of want versus need and how pertinent it is in shaping one’s destiny. I also wondered whether, like an involuntary function, its manifestation is so natural, so right, that it is imperceptible, or whether someone has to experience a single defining moment to know that they are fulfilling their true calling. I’m often asked at what point in my life I decided to become a ballet dancer. My answer is always vague, a patchwork of various turning points and epiphanies (the day that my teacher Mrs Jenkins suggested to my parents, when I was ten years old, that I come in for private ballet lessons after school because she recognised talent in me; going to see Sydney Dance Company in Graeme Murphy’s Berlin aged 12; watching Alessandra Ferri and Julio Bocca perform the ‘Balcony Pas de Deux’ from Romeo and Juliet on video, aged 14; witnessing the pride and enjoyment it endlessly gave my parents and those around me and realising that I shared those feelings in my dancing). Is the fact that I am now eight years into a happy career and have been dancing for a total 21 of my 26 years enough to confirm that dancing was my lifeblood? Do I want to dance or do I need to dance?

Juliet Burnett. Photography Jo Duck

I thought that imagining my life without dancing might be a good way to find out. The thing about pursuing a career in dance is that hours and years of training must be dedicated to it, and because it demands such finely tuned physical and emotional skills, it is by its very nature an all-consuming art form. In other words, it is hard for me to imagine living without dance simply because it has defined my life. But that’s not to say that it is all of my life. I hold many passionate interests outside ballet – the visual arts, music, nature, writing – all of which are intrinsically part of my life and whose influences nurture my approach to dancing. I have the occasional flight of fancy in which I pursue one of these other passions; indeed someone like Fry seems to do quite a good job at writing, speaking, hosting TV shows and acting. He manages to maintain his lifeblood while engaging himself in a multitude of other creative vocations.

Interestingly, the central theme of The Red Shoes is that of the struggle between one’s passions – between romantic love and artistic expression; between real life and life onstage played out in front of an audience. The two passions are depicted as impossible to coexist in harmony in one artistic soul. Oh, the torment! One could easily construe the moral lesson of the film to be as black and white as that (which today seems preposterous, given the number of happily married dancers in The Australian Ballet at the moment), but I would argue that the lesson is that in order to truly and wholly live life, we can’t let ourselves become blinded by our passions to the point where they become obsessions. Being obsessed implies obstinacy and blindness, which would lead to an imbalanced and unhappy life. When you experience an inexplicable urge, when you simply need to or must do something, pursue something – that is not an obsession, it is response to instinct.

And so when I do imagine my life without dancing, it’s not such a bleak picture that flashes before me. At this stage in my life, of all my passions, I have only experienced the inexplicable urge, the need, the instinct to dance. I feel wholly fulfilled by the joy that dancing gives me. Perhaps the magic I experience onstage shows that my need to dance transcends analysis. And I guess that is all the confirmation I could hope for.

Those other passions can remain – if they have been such an enriching part of my life thus far, why would I let them go? And besides, I need to harbour them, for a dancer’s career has a ruthlessly brief timeframe. Inevitably, there will come a day when my body will protest relentlessly after years of push and pull, and no amount of passion and persistence could convince it to continue dancing. Or maybe it is my heart that will, just as imperceptibly as when it had instilled my need to dance, take that very need away. I wonder, then, what adventures the next chapter will hold – in which I immerse myself in one of my other passions and discover I have a new lifeblood? I guess I’m counting on old friend Instinct to kick in, when it’s time.

Dear Tess,
At 13 you may not have yet reached your full height.  As the height of all our dancers is much more than it was ten years ago (our tallest ballerina is 5’9”) you need not worry about growing too tall to be a dancer.  As long as you are under the supervision of a professional for your gym work it should not be a problem.  A good website for you to visit for diet and training tips is the Australian Institute of Sport website.
All the best,
Colin

You can email your ballet questions to Colin at hello@behindballet.com

Karen Nanasca. Photography Jeff Busby

Since joining The Australian Ballet 15 years ago, Principal Artist Olivia Bell has performed many powerful lead roles: Clara’s dream ballerina the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, the warrior-like Flavia in Spartacus and the duplicitous Manon. After a short hiatus, Olivia returns to The Australian Ballet to perform the leading lady in red in Stephen Baynes’ At the edge of night. As she prepares for the role, Olivia shares some of her favourite performances to date.

The Nutcracker, Sugar Plum Fairy
Tchaikovsky’s score makes this magical ballet a favourite of mine. The Sugar Plum Fairy solo in act two is one of ballet’s most recognised pieces of music and, for me, epitomises the music of mystical dancing fairies. I have one particularly special memory of performing this role at the Sydney Opera House with my family in the audience as I was promoted to principal artist and presented flowers on stage by my husband, Nicholas. A moment I hold close to my heart.

Other Dances
This is a pas de deux choreographed by Jerome Robbins originally for Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov, two of my all-time favourite dancers. I was plucked from the corps de ballet to perform this ballet. It contains all the elements I love about dancing. The dance gradually builds up in intensity and technical complexity until it finally explodes in a flourish of fluid and luxurious movements. It also combines subtle Russian undertones that reflect my heritage.

Manon
A dramatic story about love and betrayal. I always love the process of becoming a character. From the early rehearsals when we’re understanding the character behind the story, to the performance when I no longer think and just fall into the role and tell the story through every inch of my body.

Ballet Imperial
Every Balanchine ballet is a challenge. They’re always technically difficult with very precise choreographic demands and built-on stylised movements. His ballets require coaching from specialised Balanchine repetiteurs weeks prior to the performances.

Spartacus, Flavia
This was my first full-length principal role. But I was in the trustworthy hands of my long-time friend and colleague, Robert Curran, who has been dancing with me since I was 10 years old! The ballet is both emotionally and physically exhausting, but the music keeps you going. The score was composed by Khachaturian, who created an incredible atmosphere. Some parts are so beautiful I have had tears in my eyes on stage.

Edge of night opens tomorrow night in Melbourne and opens in Sydney 11 November

Olivia Bell in Suite en blanc. Photography Justin Smith

In Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker, Soloist Gina Brescianini steps into the shoes of the wide-eyed Clara, rides a flying goose, saves her Nutcracker Prince and travels to the Land of Sweets.
Clara is definitely one of my all-time favourite roles. She’s bright, inquisitive and wants to be involved in everything. It’s such a joyous role. From the moment the curtain goes up, you enter the stage and dance throughout the entire ballet. I love how much dancing you do, but also how magical the production is.

The Nutcracker is a magical journey from a child-like perspective, but with a range of complicated emotions as well. For me, when the nutcracker doll wakes up I think something awakens in Clara, too. She really thinks he’s dead, but he wakes up and they dance a beautiful pas de deux together. They have a real, loving friendship. Every dancer brings their own interpretation to the role of Clara but I think when a dancer is drawing their interpretation from a real place within them, and they’re expressing that, then the audience can really connect.

Damien Welch has a penchant for villainous characters. In 2009, Damien retired from the principal ranks of The Australian Ballet. This year he returns as a guest artist to play the shadowy magician Drosselmeyer.
The key thing Peter Wright told me about Drosselmeyer was that he needed to have a particular kind of authority, so that when he makes his very first entrance he’s already commanding the room. He’s been employed to entertain the kids and adults – in other versions of The Nutcracker he’s an uncle or a friend – but in this one he’s a professional musician, entertainer and storyteller. There’s even a scene where he gets paid for his services. He’s a man of complete confidence and he’s a little bit devious as well.

I love playing characters like these, from characters like Drosselmeyer who have a sinister edge, to full-blown baddies. For me, they’re much more fun than playing the prince. Some princes are great, but villains always command respect in the way they hold themselves, that evil glint in their eye, or because they know something the other characters don’t. It’s a wonderful challenge and a satisfying feeling to portray these roles.

Robert Curran, Principal Artist of The Australian Ballet, is The Nutcracker’s Prince in pink. Every time Robert steps on stage in this magical ballet, he remembers when his career as a dancer began.
For me, the key metaphor in this role is the transition from childhood to adulthood. The role of the Prince is as much a romantic figure as he is a saviour – especially during the battle of the rats. The main challenge for a dancer performing the role of the Prince is giving the character some gravitas. You know, when he’s wearing pink for most of the ballet you don’t want to him to be a flimsy character.

Throughout my dance career, The Nutcracker has always been an inspiration. You want to be magical and technically assured so you can slot yourself into the memory of another young dancer. I remember opportunities coming my way as a young dancer where I danced The Nutcracker overseas. This ballet really makes me remember my first years with the company. It’s always an honour dancing with Lucinda Dunn, too. We have a great working relationship and bring the best out of each other. Dancing this ballet gives a real sense of achievement.

The Sugar Plum Fairy is the ballerina of Clara’s dreams. Principal Artist Lucinda Dunn also dreamed about dancing this role ever since she first slipped into a tutu. For Lucinda, hard work and determination has paid off.
The pinnacle of the second act is set in the Kingdom of the Sweets, where the Sugar Plum Fairy enters and performs the grand pas de deux with her Prince. The Sugar Plum Fairy, complete with her pink sparkly tutu, is very me; anyone who knows me knows that I love pink and sparkles. But it’s also a very challenging and long solo, and quite heavy on my legs.

Now that I have a little daughter I’ll be introducing her to the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Interestingly, during the 2007 Sydney season when I danced the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy I was pregnant – so I had my own little Sugar Plum! That actually makes this role even more special.

The Australian Ballet’s Artist in Residence Colin Peasley joined the company in its inaugural year of 1962. Since then he’s performed countless conniving villains, peculiar magicians and foppish kings. Colin plays the grandfather in this production of The Nutcracker.
A lot of dancers think that if they’re not doing five pirouettes then they’re not in a good role. But there’s a heck of a lot of satisfaction in exploring who your character is. I think about what the grandfather must have been like at the turn of the century. He sounds like he’s very proud of his family, so I try ad infuse that into the character on stage.

To colour your character, you can’t just know what he’s doing on stage but you have to know how he got on stage. What did the character have for breakfast? Why does he have this wonderful house where he’s throwing a fabulous party, and yet he’s a tottering old man who doesn’t put on any heirs and graces? I get really bound up in the story. I mean, you can walk across the stage but if you can walk across the stage with a past, present and possible future then you can bring the character to life.

The Nutcracker plays in Melbourne and Sydney in September and December

This is an edited extract from The Australian Ballet’s The Nutcracker souvenir programme, available at the theatre before performances

Image: Gina Brescianini as Clara and Damien Welch as Drosselmeyer
. Photography Jim McFarlane

Dear Colin,
I am 18 years old and I stopped ballet at the age of 13 (I started when I was six or seven), but I have totally forgotten the techniques and the moves. I was just wondering if it’s possible to restart ballet at my age; I was planning on working really hard and taking on four courses a week. Can I be a professional one day?
Many thanks,
Sabrine

Dear Sabrine,
Yes, it is possible to come back from a long layoff and regain the ballet technique but it is very difficult. It relies on the resilience of your body, its natural flexibility, and gaining the right help. The choice of teacher is very important as you need someone who can inspire you to work technically and productively. It is most important that you’re working toward achieving your goal. Although ballet companies are often age-conscious, there are a huge range of companies in Australia that you may find interesting – modern dance, jazz, commercial dance and ethnic dance companies can now be found in most major cities. Go for it! You will never find out if you can, unless you try.
All the best,
Colin

You can email your ballet questions to Colin at hello@behindballet.com

Image: Sarah Thompson. Photography Jeff Busby

Fluid silhouettes, subtle femininity and an ethereal sensuality are the hallmarks of  Valentino Garavani’s style. The celebrated haute couture designer’s striking, sophisticated forms and lean, graphic contours intersect beautifully with the world of dance, where Valentino, who retired in 2008, re-emerged last year to create costumes for the Vienna State Ballet. Melding couture with classic costume design, the garments for Vienna’s traditional New Year’s Concert demonstrated Valentino’s innate understanding of the dancers’ physique and his devotion to elegance, modernity and motion.

For the ballerinas, Valentino designed eight-layered dresses in blue, pink and his signature poppy-red, adorned with delicate fabric flowers – a perennial feature in his design repertoire. For the male dancers, he created a sleek black tailcoat paired with a white shirt. “It was really difficult to combine couture and the dancers’ need for movement,” he said of the project. “But I am very happy about the outcome.”

Valentino followed in the footsteps of a handful of high fashion designers to experiment with ballet garb. In 2009 Karl Lagerfeld, taking his cue from Coco Chanel, who created costumes for Le Train Bleu and Apollon Musagete, outfitted the English National Ballet for its celebration of the Ballet Russes’ centenary. Narciso Rodriguez and Isabel Toledo have dressed dancers of Christopher Wheeldon’s Morphoses, while Christian LaCroix and the late Alexander McQueen also designed for dance.

Though Valentino’s Vienna State Ballet costumes aren’t featured in GoMA’s sumptuous exhibition Valentino, Retrospective: Past/Present/Future visitors will be among 100 ensembles from the late-1950s to the present that reflect the House of Valentino’s graceful approach to design. The exhibition explores Valentino’s techniques, recurring motifs, prints and geometry as well as the themes of volume, structure and, above all, line.

Born in Voghera, Italy in 1932, Valentino arrived in Paris in 1950 – the height of Parisian haute couture’s golden age. He graduated from the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne in 1952, and showed his debut collection in 1962. His garments have been worn by icons including Rita Hayworth, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

Valentino, Retrospective: Past/Present/Future runs until 14 November at GoMA, Brisbane.

With his new work Halcyon premiering on the mainstage in less than a fortnight, Tim Harbour has made a seamless transition from the top ranks of The Australian Ballet to the role of fledgling choreographer. We chatted to Tim about Halcyon and how he balances the excitement and hard work involved in his courageous career shift.

How did you come up with the title for your piece and what is it about?
Halcyon is the name of the lead character in a Greek myth. She falls in love with a mortal and they anger the Gods. He is killed and she redeems his body by transforming into the Halcyon, a type of kingfisher.

You drew inspiration from a Greek mythological love story. Where else do you draw inspiration from?
While I was thinking and working on this ballet I turned to works by Martha Graham, for the way she told stories through strong theatrical choreography. I’ve often thought of Graeme Murphy for the same reason. I also read about the art of the playwright and the structure of plays. I also looked to the stage and costume designers, and I collected a gazillion images that helped us to formulate visual ideas.

For Halcyon’s music you worked with Australian composer Gerard Brophy. Will this piece have an overall Australian feel to it?
To me it sounds more Middle Eastern, actually. Gerard took my ideas away after our talks and now his music is influencing me. I’m actually at a point where I’m trying to reconcile my earlier thoughts with the music. Sometimes that means changes. It’s a different process for me. It’s surprising and exciting hearing what Gerard’s done and wonderful to have someone working on Halcyon with me.

You’ve actually danced in Stephen Baynes’ Molto Vivace. How does it feel to have your work  featured next to his in Edge of night?
Yes, I created the role of the Cupid in Molto Vivace and danced in performances of At the edge of night, too. Stephen is a great choreographer and they’re wonderful ballets. I can only hope my work stands up alongside them!

When did you first try your hand at choreography?
In 2005 I made a duet that became part of that year’s Bodytorque programme. I wanted to try it before then, but time and courage failed me.

What is it like working with dancers that you were dancing alongside only three years ago?
Every dancer in my creative cast is someone I’ve worked with in the Bodytorque programme. It’s a luxury to know your dancers intimately, who are all so inspiring.

What was it like to choreograph a piece for Christopher Wheeldon’s company Morphoses in New York?
Both exhilarating and a little intimidating. I was a little unprepared for the pace of it all, but I’ve come to admire Chris all the more for his ability to produce such fine work so quickly and so often. He did it right before my eyes but I still don’t know how!

How have you found juggling your new career as a choreographer with a young family? [Tim is married to Principal Artist Madeleine Eastoe. They have a young daughter.]
To be honest, it is a challenge. Sometimes creativity seems like such an indulgence when you look at your kid and think of your responsibility as a parent. I’m working hard and I’ll just keep doing that.

Would you ever perform in one of your own ballets?
Yes, I think so. It would have to be a walk-on part though!

Edge of Night plays in Melbourne 26 August – 4 September and Sydney 11 – 29 November.

A former dancer, Lydia Gibala is now studying for a Masters in Marketing at RMIT University and recently completed an internship with The Australian Ballet’s marketing team.

Image: Tim Harbour and Rachel Rawlins in rehearsal for Halcyon. Photography Jessica Bialek

Update: the ‘PLIE CHASSE’ totes have sold out! BALLERINA totes are still available.

Melbourne label chip chop! and The Australian Ballet have collaborated on two cheeky limited-edition tote bags. Francophile Hannah Chipkin from chip chop! found ballet to be the perfect foil for her iconic designs. The ‘PLIÉ CHASSÉ’ bag was influenced by the stark black and white type of old tram signs; ‘BALLERINA’ by her own dashed dreams to dance en pointe. We caught up with Hannah to talk leg warmers and Centre Stage.

Do you dance?
I grew up dancing from an early age doing almost everything BUT ballet; I think the perfection intimidated me. I did folk dancing (at age five), tap dancing (which I loved!), funk and jazz for many years. Now I don’t dance so much – just the odd boogie when I go out and some moves in the living room when no one is watching.

Your three favourite things about ballet?
Ah, so many. But three?
The toned bodies
The incredible talent and discipline
Pointe shoes (I always WISHED I could wear these!)

Recurring obsessions in your work?
All things French, wordplay, typography, bold colour, simple shapes, and always a sense of humour.

What should people put in their Ballet V chip chop! tote?
Pointe shoes
A DVD of Centre Stage (is it cool to like that movie?)
Leg warmers
I could go on, because the bag can fit much more than three things!

Available from The Australian Ballet Shop
$50

Miwako Kubota and Amber Scott. Photography Jo Duck