The prime of a dancer 2/4 part 2 - Baryshnikov - Don Quixote variation 1967-1983

1967 Baryshnikov/Eleonora Kuvatova https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYF_XMTqi8g
1968 Baryshnikov/Ludmila Semenyaka https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrxgBzx0QD4
1971 Baryshnikov/Gabriela Komleva
1973/4 Baryshnikov https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxdyhiNtgjI
1975 #1 Baryshnikov/Gelsey Kirkland
1975 #2 Baryshnikov/Natalia Makarova
1976 Baryshnikov/Gelsey Kirkland
1983 Baryshnikov/Cynthia Harvey

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How do you define the ABSOLUTE prime of a CLASSICAL ballet dancer? I'm puzzled by statements like 'ballet dancer X [in his/her late 30s] enters now his/her absolute prime'. That's not to say I don't find some dancers in their late 30s riveting, but entering 'absolute prime' close to retirement...? For me the absolute prime is a time in the life of a dancer when the body is STILL very reliable, and the artistry is ALREADY remarkable. Most dancers enter this enviable period in their mid or late 20s (if they enter it at all, but this is beside the point). How long does it last? It depends, but it certainly doesn't last indefinitely and it doesn't get better with age and every new injury.

I find the topic very interesting particularly in the context of bravura variations. Less imaginative dancers usually try to amp up the difficulty level through a quatitative approach - more jumping, or forcing the extension, or fitting in extra revolution(s) in turns & pirouettes. Often (but not always) at the expense of musicality or linking steps. (How many dancers would polish their phrasing in their absolute prime? Or emphasize their port de bras or épaulement? Or do an entrechat-huit instead of a six?)

And so I hit upon the idea of making compilation(s) of the same variation, performed by the same dancer, throughout their performing lifetime, to see how their understanding developed. And to test my definition of 'absolute prime' ;)

Видео The prime of a dancer 2/4 part 2 - Baryshnikov - Don Quixote variation 1967-1983 канала Navarre Brixen