How The Nutcracker Became a Winter Tradition

Dyumna ChhabraBallet Leave a Comment

It is no surprise that if you’ve been associated with ballet in any capacity (or perhaps even movies that revolve around one specific doll: Barbie), you know about The Nutcracker. It is also no surprise that you know it as a ballet performed across the USA by most ballet companies from November to January, and sometimes even longer. But how ...

Holly Hynes on her designing process

Dyumna ChhabraBallet Leave a Comment

Article by Ahana Ayyaparaj for En Avant Winter 2025 Holly Hynes We hear from Holly Hynes, an award-winning costume designer with credits in over 300 ballets, including more than 70 for New York City Ballet. Her work appears in major companies worldwide - from The Bolshoi Ballet and The Royal Ballet to American Ballet Theatre, La Scala, and Paris Opera ...

Flexibility Meets Function: How Dancers Train Off Stage

Dyumna ChhabraBallet, dancefit, dancers Leave a Comment

Content by Swetlana Goswami, and design by Maya Haridas for En Avant Summer 2025 When you watch a dancer performing on the stage, especially a ballet dancer, it often looks like an illusion of grace, power, and precision flowing effortlessly together. But what happens behind the scenes is months and years of rigorous training. Dancers nowadays understand that what they ...

Lights, Sound, Rehearsals!

Dyumna Chhabraballerina, Ballet, ballet class Leave a Comment

Students during rehearsals for Wicked (Summer Program 2025). The word “rehearsals” is as far from alien to the world of performing arts as it can be. If there is a show, there must be rehearsals and if there are rehearsals, a dancer knows, their family knows, their friends know and often (at least here in India) even their distant family ...

Ballet Dreams: Sanvitti Sai Roopesh and Swapna Roopesh

Dyumna Chhabraballerina, Ballet, insights, student scoop, summer intensive Leave a Comment

Article by Maya Haridas for En Avant Mar-Apr 2024 Sanvitti Sai Roopesh At the time of interview, Sanvitti was 11 years old, in Grade 1 Ballet and had been learning ballet at TLFCB for 6 and a half years. As of now, she is in Grade 3 and 4 Ballet, and has also attended Australian Ballet School's Summer Intensive in ...

Cygnet to Swan: Krita Yernool, Ryka Das, Keya Matthew

Dyumna Chhabraalumni, artist, ballerina, Ballet, insights Leave a Comment

Article by Neha Chowdhury and Kenisha Rao, and design by Maya Haridas for En Avant Winter 2024 Get a real life insight into the ballet journey - baby steps to ballerina - with a TLFCB senior student and her mum! Krita Yernool Krita is 17 years old and is currently in Grade 6 ballet. She’s been a part of TLFCB since ...

Spotlight on Queer Ballet

Dyumna ChhabraBallet, ballet methods, insights Leave a Comment

Article by Aditri Chawla and design by Anagha Madan for En Avant July/August 2024 The narrative of nearly every classical ballet revolves around a man and a woman. The ballerina captivates us with her graceful pointework, while the male dancer impresses with his strength and agility. Together, they perform the iconic pas de deux, with their love and struggles propelling ...

The Muscly Ballerina

Dyumna ChhabraBallet, ballet methods, insights Leave a Comment

Article by Ahana Ayyapparaj and design by Mythili A. P. for En Avant Summer 2025 Feature image: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in Alvin Ailey’s “Revel-ations.” (Photo: Gert Krautbauer) When most people think of ballet, they may not immediately consider the intense muscular effort behind each movement. Yet behind every lift, leap, and position en pointe lies a network of ...

Learning Ballet through Online Platforms

Dyumna ChhabraBallet, ballet class, ballet methods, children, insights Leave a Comment

Article by: Shayna Sunu Cover image: A shot during rehearsals for Recital 2023, a show by TLFCB post the pandemic. Classical Ballet is an art form that demands extensive training, irrespective of a dancer’s age or expertise. Everything from establishing the right alignment, developing the rhythm, learning the positions to instilling patience and discipline requires structured instruction and rigorous practice. ...

The Magic of Make-Believe: Imagination in Early Ballet Classes

Dyumna ChhabraBallet, ballet class, ballet methods, children, insights Leave a Comment

By Shayna Sunu  A sense of awe struck me as I watched a bunch of tiny tots dressed in pink leotards and skirts, chattering in pairs and small groups just before their class began. Parents stood at the side, offering small words of encouragement, while the children shared giggles and carefully arranged their shoes in a neat line. All of ...