Kizomba, Afrohouse, Semba, Kuduro, Urban Kiz… That’s all that is on my Fbk, my blog’s fbk, my IG. Y’all are forgiven for believing that I am obsessed. I am obsessed.
But.
My true love remains ballet. Always and forever. There is no greater art or discipline, nothing – and I do mean nothing – that can give me more feels.
I’m headed to NYC for a little bougie weekend getaway with 2 of my cousins. We are going to the ABT to see Giselle. I’m such a balletomane, I insisted on picking the exact date and seats, bc I have my favorite ballerinas, and am very picky about which ballerina is suited for what role.
The last time I was in NYC was in 2014: my 30th birthday present to myself was to go see Polina Semionova in Manon, as a solocation. It was my first solo trip, not for work. It was a few weeks before the start of this blog, a few weeks before my depression, a few days after the biggest trainwreck of my dating life (at that point). I wept as I watched Manon go from an innocent girl, to a woman unable to control her sexual impulses, torn between the desire for a nice life and true love, and her eventual death as the price for her sins.
Now, I prepare myself to watch Giselle. I will weep as I watch a young girl with terrible taste in men fall in love with a playboy. He makes her fall for him, only for her to realize she was just a distraction – he is engaged to a beautiful noblewoman. She snaps – unable to process such dehumanizing treatment – goes psycho (the name for that part of the ballet is the “Mad scene”. Giselle goes bonkers; any woman can relate) and then dies from heartbreak. Playboy filled with regret, visits her tomb, only to be haunted by the Ghosts of Jilted Women Past who seek revenge by casting a spell on him to make him dance until he dies from exhaustion. Ghost Giselle intervenes from the afterworld, because although betrayed by him, her love is pure, and she forgives him.
WHO SAYS BALLET IS NOT RELATABLE?! If both of those plot-lines are not accurate descriptions of dating as a single girl in your 30s, I dunno what is.
#soexcited
#badandbougie
Further thoughts on ballet:
Discovering ratchet 
I have never been to the ballet, and now I’m wondering… are they all like this? Do all the female characters get PLAYED and then die a tragic death? That seems unfair!
LikeLike
Ummmmm in most the classical ballets, yes. Cinderella, Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty are notable exceptions, but even so, they don’t exactly have strong female characters, and they are also my least favorite ballets. The women in Giselle, Swan Lake and Manon might die tragic deaths, but boy do they have personalities. They LIVED.
Not to keep tooting my own horn, but your comment reminded me of what happened when I took a boxer to the opera. His commentary was HILARIOUS.
https://discoveringratchet.wordpress.com/2015/11/17/opera-and-chill/
Dont let the ridiculous and archaic story lines put you off. The best ballets, like opera, overcome such ridiculous elements because they are about true feelings.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I feel like I would cry at a ballet. I mean I cry at the concert hall, I cry at musicals, I cry at the cinema… why would ballet be any different?!
LikeLike
Oh yeah. I definitely do. It squeezes my heart so.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I mean… try watch this and not get goosebumps.
This is Manon dying in a swamp, with her true love. He just helped her escape deportation to America for being deemed a prostitute/escort.
LikeLike