Fancy Footwork
21" X 24" oil on linen
Original art is available
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This is the “Introduction to Ballet” dance class. I’m here for the big end of term recital to see my daughter Sarah, age 4, perform. This is one of her classmates, also displaying her moves for her eager parents. The final performance was the only time the parents are allowed in the studio. We're all eager to see what they've been up to.
Today Sarah is 12, and in something called “middle school,” a relatively new invention. Rituals of social interaction have changed, as well. Sarah tells us that a dance at school consists of groups of girls, arranged in a circle, jumping up and down on the spot to the music. The boys do the same in their own separate groups. It reminds me of those National Geographic films of the jumping Masai, whose personal appeal is directly related to the altitude they achieve.
The first dances held at our school were also when I was in Grade 7, but at that time, it was still an elementary school grade. Only students graduating to high school were allowed to attend. It seems to me that Grade sevens were younger back then. In those days, one had to face the intimidating prospect of actually interacting with girls. I can’t imagine myself in Grade 7, jumping up and down in a circle of other boys. It seems to me that dancing is really made for girls. Personally, I’ve seen very few males who manage to look anything but goofy on most dance floors, me being the exception of course :)
I’m sure that, eventually, the kids of today will start to interact at their social functions. I’m in no hurry for that to happen. As a parent, I’m all in favour of the circle-the-wagons style of today’s ... fancy footwork. Mark Heine
21" X 24" oil on linen
Original art is available
Contact us
This is the “Introduction to Ballet” dance class. I’m here for the big end of term recital to see my daughter Sarah, age 4, perform. This is one of her classmates, also displaying her moves for her eager parents. The final performance was the only time the parents are allowed in the studio. We're all eager to see what they've been up to.
Today Sarah is 12, and in something called “middle school,” a relatively new invention. Rituals of social interaction have changed, as well. Sarah tells us that a dance at school consists of groups of girls, arranged in a circle, jumping up and down on the spot to the music. The boys do the same in their own separate groups. It reminds me of those National Geographic films of the jumping Masai, whose personal appeal is directly related to the altitude they achieve.
The first dances held at our school were also when I was in Grade 7, but at that time, it was still an elementary school grade. Only students graduating to high school were allowed to attend. It seems to me that Grade sevens were younger back then. In those days, one had to face the intimidating prospect of actually interacting with girls. I can’t imagine myself in Grade 7, jumping up and down in a circle of other boys. It seems to me that dancing is really made for girls. Personally, I’ve seen very few males who manage to look anything but goofy on most dance floors, me being the exception of course :)
I’m sure that, eventually, the kids of today will start to interact at their social functions. I’m in no hurry for that to happen. As a parent, I’m all in favour of the circle-the-wagons style of today’s ... fancy footwork. Mark Heine
