TO A YOUNG DANCER

by Agnes de Mille ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 1962

A wise and gifted artist points the way for young dancers in a handbook that will surely discourage the starry eyed and find its own audience among the determined. In addition to an overpowering desire to dance, the beginner must be willing to face the cold reality and obsessive challenge of the dancer's life. What type of training to seek out in ballet supplemented by modern techniques, how to temper hard won technical achievement with spontaneous motion, what danger signs to avoid during these early years prepares the dancer for her earliest and most difficult challenge, disciplining the body. According to Miss de Mille, college and dancing are incompatible. Though she lists colleges that offer good conditions for dance training, her primary contention is that the years between 17 and 22 should be devoted to the difficult transformation from expert athlete to artist. Then a new battle begins. The trails and tribulations of auditions, rehearsals, and performances are dissected. In her ""handbook"", Miss DeMille has penetrated the very core of her art with pertinent anecdotes about the greats, with all the distilled earthly wisdom of years of discipline and work. For appreciative spectators, the book is an enlightening portrait of the rigors and art of the devoted dancer.

Pub Date: June 1, 1962

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Little, Brown-A.M.P.

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1962

Categories: NONFICTION