Heidby Ratmansky Dance Style

Alexei Ratmansky was born on August 27, 1968 in Leningrad Russia (Alexei Ratmansky, 2016.). He started dancing at the young age of four to the sound of music, Alexei moved very amicably to the musical beats. At the age of ten he was enrolled in what was known as the Bolshoi Ballet but is now the Moscow State Academy of Choreography (Alexei Ratmansky, 2016). He and his classmates had grown to have tremendous respect for their teacher, Pyotr Pestov. He can recall how classes were like, he compared it to wartime. He explained the brutal teachings when Pestov would demand that his students hold a ninety degree position with one leg like an arabesque. The music would stop and he would go on to tell a story. The first person to break position would then be dismissed. The students knew that the strictness of their teacher only meant that he was very serious of his work. ( Acocella, Joan. 2011)
His education of ballet
In Foster’s textbook she discusses how Balanchine’s style is more of a story dance with elegance and often involve a plot which is the style that Ratmansky also has. What Balanchine and Ratmansky most have in common is their performance of the Nutcracker (pg 14, Foster). Balanchine’s training process is similar to what Ratmansky went through as a kid in the academy of choreography . Balanchine focuses more on mastering basics with elegance. His style requires repeated intense training of the body to have precision and speed throughout the choreography. Balanchine also claimed that training for the dance should begin at the age of seven, Ratmansky was a lot younger (four years old) when he started to dance. (pg 19, Foster). Balanchine believes that the relationship of the music to the dance is more fascinating. Ratmansky likes a challenge when it comes to music and believes that it can be choreographed especially when a certain tune catches his