Ballet

by Kate Castle

Book Overview

Written by a former member of The Royal Ballet company, this book offers a true insider's view of absolutely everything a budding balletomane wants to know about dance from the costumes, the steps, the choreographers, and the dance companies to what it's like in a class, a rehearsal and a performance. The illustrations --luscious and atmospheric -- thrill and inspire. Also a terrific reference, this book provides detailed coverage of the history of...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0753450011
• ISBN13: 9780753450017
• Release Date: September 1996
• Publisher: Kingfisher
• Length: 64 Pages
• Weight: 1.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 10.0" x 11.9"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9

Customer Reviews

Very Nice Book

Anyone who loves ballet or is a ballet dancer will just love this book. It provides tons of information, all that will be useful to any ballet dancer. This book was also authored by Darcey Bussel, a professional ballet dancer. I found it to be extremely helpful and useful. Some things this book includes are what to wear, how to tie pointe shoe ribbons, lots of moves, a pointe work section, famous ballets and ballet dancers, and much, much, more! This is an excellent book!

Great for beginning ballerinas!

My seven-year-old is in her second semester of ballet, but has been picked to appear in the company's Christmas presentation. She seems to be taking the lessons and rehersals seriously. I got this book because I took two years of ballet, and wanted to remember the terms and positions and share with my daughter. We both love the book -- the pictures are clear, the descriptions and short and good. I would recommend this to any young lady starting out in ballet!

A lovely, lively guide.

Another instalment in what has become the season of the ballet books. Typical DK, this is beautiful and comprehensive. The photos are crisp, the information is accurate, and the whole presentation is attractive. The author is a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet. It is nice to have the author of a ballet book be a young dancer who is currently popular, rather than one close to retirement and more unfamiliar to the beginning students who would be most interested in the book. It is difficult to explain physical activities with words, movement with photos, so this book (or any other book on ballet) won't really teach one to dance, but will help with what to expect, and perhaps perfect movements and positions learned in class. This is also the only ballet book I have ever seen that teaches one how to tie ribbons on pointe shoes. Useful addresses, index, glossary at the end. The price is certainly right, and I could find no technical flaws, other than the few photos of dancers often identified by company and/or piece, but not always the individuals. It would also have been nice to see the author's credentials listed in the beginning of the book, rather than on the outside back cover.

This is a beautiful book!

This is one of the prettiest books on ballet I've ever seen. It's very informative and gives a good description of life in the ballet. I recommend this book to anyone with a passion for dancing!!

A beautifully illustrated children's book about ballet

This book caught my eye while I passed through the children's section in the library. Perhaps my childhood fantasy of being a ballerina led me to check it out. Costumes, practice, performance, and ballet history are a few of the topics covered. There are short biographies about dancers, choreographers, and composers along with a ballet timeline and summaries of some of the more famous ballets. My favorite illustration is a full page cross section of the Met that has descriptions of all of the rooms and happenings behind the scenes. Every time I see this book, I have to pick it up and look through it. I find something new each time.