Boys and Ballet
Posted on July 1st, 2009 in Entertainment |
Girls and ballerinas go hand-in-hand. Even in days of female superheroes, the ballerina dreams of 5 year old girls are still popular. To boys, a ballet dancer is a girl - someone in a pink tutu and ballet shoes.
The strange thing is that although men are not common in the ballet world today, when ballet first began back in the Renaissance period, men were the only ballet dancers. It would be some years before women were allowed to take part in the ballets. Men of that period would dress in tonnelets, a hoop-skirt that came to the knee, and would dance female roles.
Why Ballet for Your Son?
Enrolling your son may be a good idea for you, but your son may not be as optimistic. While you may see all the advantages that your son can get from ballet, he may see otherwise. All he can see are the disadvantages that he can get from ballet classes. Boys usually are the most gender-sensitive people. They always want to look tough and manly. This is why when you want your son to enroll in ballet classes, you need to remember that this is not as simple are enrolling your daughter in the same class.
The main thing your child needs is to have shown an interest in dancing. Usually this surfaces at a very young age, and if you have a son you hope to enrol in a ballet school, then the younger the better! The earlier they start, the more chance you have of him establishing a routine and enjoying his dance before he gets amongst his peers and finds that this isn’t something that many boys do. The older he becomes, the more involved he will become in the traditional male activities and the less likely he will be to willing join a ballet class.
How to Convince the Reluctant Male Ballet Dancer
In order to convince little boys to enroll in ballet classes, have them watch ballet movies such as Billy Elliot and Center Stage. You may even show them famous male ballet dancers and prove to them that ballet is not only for girls. These days, there are televisions shows like So You Think You Can Dance which show male ballet dancers. This may encourage him to join ballet if they see how beautiful the dance looks.
If you can, find a boys only ballet class for your son. Not only will this ensure that he’s not the only boy in a class of girls, which would reinforce his argument that only girls do ballet, but it will also let him meet with other boys who are also interested in learning to dance. These ballet friends may not be in his school class, but they will be a separate group of friends who share his love of dance.
Once you get him enrolled, you need to keep him enthusiastic. If he’s serious about it, he’ll find a passion that none of his peers will be able to knock down. Part of his ballet training will allow him to walk tall in a self-assured manner that his classmates will eventually give up trying to break. They may not understand what he does, but as he develops more confidence and strength from his ballet training, they’ll be less inclined to mess with him. Until then, you need to keep an eye on what’s happening and not allow other kids to stop your child doing what he wants.
