Technique: Olga Dvorovenko
How I teach character dance
Simply standing in the commanding presence of ballet teacher Olga Dvorovenko can inspire a dancer to lift her sternum, elongate her neck, widen her shoulders and engage her core muscles. Whether Dvorovenko’s teaching the youngest levels at Ballet Academy East or coaching older dancers at American Ballet Theatre, she’s able to pull the very best from her students, and they dance with the artistry and musicality of professionals. What’s one of her secrets? A deep understanding of character dance. “It teaches students coordination, and how to listen and express different music,” she says. “It helps them open up and show that they love to dance—it’s so expressive.” And beyond that, character dance gives students freedom in movement and dynamics that they may find more difficult to experience within the confines of classical ballet.
Found in almost all classical ballets—from the mazurka in Paquita to the polonaise in Coppélia—character is a highly stylized technique, done in special character shoes or boots. A standard part of many ballet academies’ curriculum, it’s also offered at many summer intensives.
Since character uses much of the same vocabulary and concepts as ballet technique, Dvorovenko says it’s best to begin character training around 8 or 9 years old. “Students have to have a basis of classical ballet. It’s impossible to teach character without one to two years of solid ballet training,” Dvorovenko says, adding that the tarantella, for example, uses the ballet step ballonné, so students need to have this movement in their bodies.
Since character is a dance tradition influenced by geographic location, stemming from both folk and court dancing in Eastern Europe, teachers may have varying stylizations and approach movements differently, Dvorovenko says. And though she was born in Ukraine, Dvorovenko’s style is heavily influenced by the Polish folk dancing troupes that often traveled to her town when she was a child.
One key movement that she teaches early on is the mazurka, a Polish step with a distinct 3-count rhythm. It’s a cornerstone of character dance and teaches students to travel smoothly across the floor, challenging their arm and head coordination. Here, Dvorovenko and student Paulina Waski demonstrate the basics of character dance and the classic mazurka.
————————————
Born near the Dnieper River in Ukraine, Olga Dvorovenko is a former principal dancer and ballet mistress for the Ukrainian State Academic Dance Ensemble, where she danced and coached character roles. She is the mother of American Ballet Theatre principal Irina Dvorovenko, whom she also helped coach for ballet competitions as a young dancer. She came to the United States in 1996 and is currently on faculty at The Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre, as well as at Ballet Academy East in New York City. She has taught extensively in Canada and France and received the Honored Artist Award, given by the president of Ukraine.
Paulina Waski, 16, is a student at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at ABT.
————————————
Dvorovenko’s character classes begin at the barre, and she places great emphasis on training students to move their upper bodies elegantly. “Your upper body has to talk—every gesture is important,” she says. During class, she is careful to attribute each traditional movement to its global roots, giving her students a historical and worldly foundation. And because each step is associated with a unique musicality, students gain a solid understanding of rhythm and phrasing.
*Keep your chest and shoulders wide and open. Dvorovenko tells students to imagine that they have hooks and eyes attached to their backs, and the hooks and eyes are close together. At the same time, dancers must hold their stomachs in tightly.
*Increasing épaulement makes a dancer’s movement more alive, says Dvorovenko. It’s difficult to teach the arms and head together, because so many tiny movements happen at once. “It’s like adding many spices when cooking; they make the food so much more flavorful,” she says.
* When you open your arms in preparation, initiate the movement with your elbows. Then, rotate your forearms to lift your wrists and hands slightly while continuing to open your arms. When you do it correctly, your body will rise. Stay tall.
————————————
Mazurka: This 3-count step should slide across the floor. Try not to bounce, even though there are slight hops. When this step originated, dancers wore long, heavy costumes with detailed embroidery and jewels.
count 1: Plié on your left downstage leg as you slide your right (upstage) leg forward.
count 2: Transfer your weight to your right (upstage) leg as your left leg slides toward coupé derrière. Slightly hop by releasing and dropping your right heel as your left foot meets your right leg.
count 3: Again, release and drop your right heel, at the same time bringing your left foot forward through to the front.
Note: Do not place your foot in coupé devant or derrière. It moves through the positions but does not beat against your standing leg in a static position.
count 1: Slide your left heel forward to present your left leg.
count 2: Transfer your weight and bring your right foot toward coupé derrière (at the same time hopping lightly on you left foot).
count 3: Hop lightly again as you bring your right foot past coupé devant to present it forward.
Notes:
a. In this facing, your right arm and torso move with your legs. Open your arm when your upstage right leg is presented forward.
b. Close your arm and twist your torso toward your left leg when it’s presented forward.
c. Always keep your legs turned out. Make sure your knees stay in line with your toe. It’s easy—and detrimental—to let your ankles roll in, especially if you’re wearing heels and not engaging your rotators.
Click here to see a video of Olga and Paulina demonstrating movements from character dance.
Photo by Kyle Froman at the ABT Studios in NYC
