Never Say “Good Luck” to a Ballet Dancer
Instead of saying “good luck” or “break a leg”, ballet dancers greet each other with “merde” before going on stage. In French, the word means poop, and you’re right to raise your eyebrows like that.
Nobody knows for sure why they use that word specifically, but there are a few common speculations. One says that it is a remanent from when the dancers performed with animals so they would warn each other not to step in it on stage. Another says that lots of animal droppings outside the theater used to indicate that there are many horses around, and therefore, lots of viewers.
Charin Yuthasastrkosol
The life trajectory of a typical professional ballerina usually includes first training from the age of 4-6, doing summer-intensive programs as a teenager, applying for dance companies right out of high school, and retiring at 30-40 years old.
But the life of Charin Yuthasastrkosol was a lot different. She started ballet training at 47, and in 2002, at 71 years old, she became a Guinness World Record holder as the oldest performing ballerina!
Misty Copeland
Misty Copeland is one of the most famous ballerinas today, and for a good reason. In 2015, at 32 years old, she became the first ballerina of color to be appointed a principal dancer by the American Ballet Theater.
She went on to star in almost every famous ballet ever written, including Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, the Nutcracker, and more.
Lighter Than Air
Before pointe shoes were even a thing, ballerinas used to create the illusion of being feather-weight fairies by using wires that lifted them off the stage.
Using wires made it possible for the dancers to dance on their toes without having to support their own weight. After noticing the crowds' positive reaction to pointe work, it was only a matter of time until choreographers started incorporating more of it into their dance pieces.
Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
Historically speaking, ballet used to be a guy thing until women were given the right to perform on stage. Nowadays, it is often perceived as a more feminine dance, and women ballerinas are more common than men.
However, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo is a combination of then and now, with an all-male cast that dresses up as women for female parts and performs famous ballet works with impeccable technique as well as humor.