Grand Jeté


Original DDE™ surrealistic art: “To Fly” by: rob kistner © 1/30/24
 

She need not be frightened
she knows the moves
sees the steps
clearly in her mind

she knows the stride
the position of her body
just before elevation

she understands the speed
the run up
the lead foot
the plant angle
the knee bend
the thrust

she has done this
literally thousands of repetitions
no need for trepidation

she knows the energy of the moment
of the crowd
as they anticipate
as she anticipates
the lift off
the rise

the glorious weightlessness
the thrill of flying

she knows

how to offset the momentum
the feel of returning to earth
to her feet

actually

to her toes

to snap to a graceful stop
at point
straight and strong
arms raised and extended

the applause
that exhilaration

she knows this all
to her bones

she can do this
in her sleep

she has this mastered
she is a master dancer

but

that flash of doubt

there is always one leap
hat gives her a brief moment
of contemplative pause

the leap
back through time
to her eager youth
to all her dance training
her well-honed muscle memory
her invincibility

to her glory

but they do not feel it
that instantaneous flash
of mortal uncertainty
they do not feel it

nor do they feel the surge
of determination
of confidence
of courage
that roars to flame
in her soul

that fires her limbs
frees her mind
unleashes absolute inner silence
peace

they do not feel it
but they will see it

now

her Grand Jeté
human mastery
dance perfection

snd so
she leaps

beautifully

she will always
leap


Original DDE™ surrealistic art: “Quiet After Curtain”
by: rob kistner © 1/30/24

 

*
rob kistner © 2024

Poetry at: dVerse

 



26 thoughts on “Grand Jeté”

  1. Oh you dove deep into the mind of the dancer. I love that. Each segment was captivating. The dance took me right along with each step and then the perspectives of the dancer vs. the audience, the confidence vs. doubt…..this was brilliant. The ending “she will always leap”. Yes!! I am clapping.

  2. A beautiful capture of a ballerina’s moves, Rob. I love how you used line length and structure to convey movement, especially in the lines:
    ‘she understands the speed
    the run up
    the lead foot
    the plant angle
    the knee bend
    the thrust’.
    You got into her very being in these lines:
    ‘the glorious weightlessness
    the thrill of flying

    the feel of returning to earth
    to her feet

    actually

    to her toes’,
    and the clever ‘leap back through time to her eager youth’.

  3. This is a lovely view into the mind of the Ballerina, and also how many hopeful girls who has not reached her position… it only take one wrong leap and it will change her life.

  4. Having done many a grand jetes in my dance training (age 4 to 18) I understand this perfectly!!! And you’ve described it so very well. The most amazing thing about ballet is that for the audience, it looks effortless….for the dancer, it is exactly as you suggest. Well done!

    1. Thank you so much Lillian. I never personally took ballet, but having sung professionally for more than 2 decades, I equated it loosely with having to hit the high notes in certain songs as I performed nightly. And a female signing partner I worked with for 2 years was also studying at, and was a pretty good “amateur” ballerina/modern-dancer. We used to talk after our band rehearsals. I remember her talking about it. I also accompanied her to a few of her recitals/performances.

  5. Very nice poem, Rob.
    And with “she will always leap” a beautiful ending.

    (5th but last line is an “s” instead of an “a” on the word “and) just in case you might want to get that little error out)

    1. Thank you Jan. I am prone to that typographical error. Because I have arthritis in my hands I type with my single finger, I won’t say which one but sometimes reaching across to the a fall short the “s”. Thank you for pointing it out. I’m always on the lookout for that. I missed this one. 🙂

  6. Your grasp of the beautiful ballerina’s mind, movements .. poetic description beyond perfect. Like you inhabited her. Lovely poem, Rob and great music to accompany.

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