Holliday 1

Leeanna Holliday

Mrs. Sluder

Dance

27 March 2017

Mid-Semester Reflection

When starting the semester, I set some new objectives and decided to continue to improve

old objectives. The new goals that I set were to engage the correct muscles when doing ballet,

increase my ability to balance, and have more fluidity in my arms. Some old objectives that I

continued to work on were to lengthen my Achilles so that I could have a deeper plie and

increase my flexibility. I kept many of these ambitions in mind while doing ballet at the barre

and even in center. To engage the appropriate muscles while dancing, I put little to no weight

with my hand on the barre so that I would not need the barre to dance in center. I also thought

about pulling up in my standing leg so that it would be strong and durable while in center. The

balances in passe, sus-suos, and cuo de pied that were added at the end of each combination

certainly helped with my balance overall. I found that I can stand on one leg for a longer period

of time. To develop fluidity in my arms, I tried to remind myself to relax and breathe because I

hold a great deal of tension in my arms. To lengthen my Achilles, I used the foot stretcher as

often as possible. Finally, to increase flexibility, I stretched my splits during break in addition to

stretching them after the circle of death. In conclusion, I have worked very hard to reach my

goals and will hopefully meet them by the end of the semester.