A Map, High Heels and a Ribbon Skirt

Character is a specific subdivision of classical ballet that represents traditional folk dance of different European countries. Young dancers are often very excited to learn Character as not only is it really fun, it also involves wearing a pretty ribbon skirt and shoes with little high heels!

Ballets such as Swan Lake, Coppelia and the Nutcracker all incorporate Character segments in the show. Perhaps one of the most famous pieces of character is the Spanish dance in Swan lake where dancers use fans to compliment strong elegant steps during a ballroom scene.

This week I was explaining to my grade 2s that the character dance I was going to teach them was from Hungary and incorporated parts of the national dance ‘The Hungarian Csárdás’. This led to a whole range of questions the first of which was ‘What is the difference between and Hungary and Hungarian?’ This was closely followed by ‘Where is Hungary?’ I explained that Hungary was in Europe and people who live in Hungary are Hungarian. Confusion crossed their faces and I began to realise that the only way they would understand exactly where Hungary is, was to show them a map. A map is something that I do not take to class but I think it is something that I now need to consider adding to my collection of props. Soon I will need to carry a Mary Poppins bag to house all of the props I keep gathering! The final questions from my grade 2 class included how to say hello in Hungarian and what is the capital city of Hungary…this I set as a homework task so I’m looking forward to seeing what they come back with this week!