Remember how the other day I was all like:

I R SO AWSUM AT ADODGIOH. I PWN ADODGIOH ALLA TAIMZ.

Well, apparently, there are limits.

I should begin by making all the appropriate excuses:

1. I managed to get to sleep at a reasonable hour (1:30 AM; 7 hours of sleep isn’t great, but it’ll do) only to wake up at 5:00 in the morning.

   Why? Who knows.

   Either way, not great for balance, coordination, the ability to learn rapidly, or … well, basically anything else you need in ballet (though my body was ON today, at least, in terms of sending proprioceptive signals about where its parts were).

2. Company B was in class. This is normally a good thing. I admire him (okay, so he is totally my current Ballet Crush), and I learn a great deal by watching him. For some reason (probably Excuse #1 above, sleep-dep does not improve my ADHD), though I found this a little distracting today.
3. Um, did I mention that whole thing where I woke up at 5:30?
4. Oh, and also Ms. B (who made a guest-appearance as teacher in today’s Advanced Class) said the word “GOOD!” to me not once, but like three or four times, and as many of us who dance know, that is basically a recipe for disaster.

That said, class started out well.

I haz a turnouts, etc. Plies were fine. Tendus were fine. Degage/jetes and piques and frappes were (at least mostly) fine. Even ronds-de-jambe were fine.

Then we fondu-ed, only I basically fondidn’t. I mean, I was more or less doing the movements? And my legs were fondu-ing? Only the rest of me was … ugh. Just, ugh. My eyes were like, “Oh, look, the floor,” and my arms were like, “We’re supposed to stay behind your shoulders, right?” and my clavicles. Oy. Let’s not even talk about my clavicles.

I discovered on the right that I couldn’t seem to hold my core together. I opted for the non-releve approach on the left, which helped a bit, but frankly I was still a mess.

After anxiously faking my way through the battement combination that I kept doing wrong (because See Excuses 1 and 2), we took a quick break and then did adagio.

And mine was turrible.

Basically, the part where I couldn’t balance or keep my core engaged really came home to roost. So I knocked myself over in simple developpes, then again in a tour lent (when my tour lent/promenade is good, it’s good; when it’s bad, it’s baaaad). Then I forgot the end of the combination and did that thing where you’re watching the guy in front of you so you can follow him and that throws your balance off. Side-eye is not the way to ballet, y’all.

I should probably add that I was less horrible on the repeat. But, still.

Let this be a lesson to all of us. In short:

Don’t get cocky there, kid.

Because the Ballet Gods in their hallowed halls (which, I hear, have really excellent floors) will notice and will put you firmly back in your place (apparently by waking you up at 5:30 when you really need, like, three more hours of sleep).

I feel that I kinda-sorta redeemed myself in turns and terre-a-terre, and my petit allegro was less bad than it could have been. Some of it was even good, only once again I totally failed at remembering the combinations, so whatevs.

Anyway, I’m planning to skip out on my usual Thursday activities to take Company B’s class this coming week. The following week, I’ll be in Lexington doing their ballet intensive.

Perhaps before then I’ll manage to assemble my waterfowls in a linear array and actually get some sleep.