Lauren Jankowski's Blog, page 3
November 2, 2021
Favorite Dancers: Beatriz Stix-Brunell
Discussing another one of my absolute favorite dancers: Beatriz Stix-Brunell, formerly of the Royal Ballet
Captain Marvel Costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Captain Marvel Helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Disclaimer: I’m in no way affiliated with the Royal Ballet or Royal Opera House and are not driving any benefit from talking about them.
Recommended Links for Beatriz Stix-Brunell
Royal Opera House Page: http://www.roh.org.uk/people/beatriz-stix-brunell
Royal Ballet Flickr
Royal Ballet Flickr, part 2
Beatriz Stix-Brunell Instagram
Videos
Rehearsing Alice in Wonderland (Alice and the White Rabbit)
Rehearsing the Mad Tea Party
Rehearsing the Caterpillar Scene
Rehearsing “Sugarplum Fairy Pas de Deux” from The Nutcracker (2017)
Rehearsing “Juliet and Paris” from Romeo and Juliet (2019)
In Conversation with Beatriz Stix-Brunell
Friend & Foe by Xiaomi Studios
Emeralds first variation
The Art of the Pas de Deux
Getting in character for the courtesans in Manon
After the Rain extract
On Raven Girl
Rehearsing Raven Girl
Alice in Wonderland Rehearsal Clip
Rehearsing Sleeping Beauty
The dancers in this series of intros are Beatriz Stix-Brunell and William Bracewell
Articles
You’re Never Comfortable as a Dancer
Royal Ballet Star Trades Stage for Frosh Life at Stanford
A Week in the Life of Giselle’s Beatriz Stix-Brunell
Dance Tabs: Beatriz Stix-Brunell tag
Honest Photographs that Show the “Sweat, Blood, and Repetition” behind the Royal Ballet
Beatriz Stix-Brunell
What Dancers Eat: Beatriz Stix-Brunell’s Daily Diet
Two articles on “Duet“: CNN, BBC
Honest Photographs that Show the “Sweat, Blood, and Repetition” behind the Royal Ballet
November 1, 2021
Captain Marvel Photoset 1
October 31, 2021
Introduction: Captain Marvel
The introduction to this week’s character: Captain Marvel! I absolutely love Carol Danvers. She’s such a badass and this is one of my favorite costumes of this project.
Captain Marvel costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Captain Marvel helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
As mentioned, thank you to Brie Larson (Instagram) for bringing this amazing character to life on the big screen. Larson is a phenomenal actress and I love how much she loves this character. She has given millions of girls a superhero to look up to. Special thanks to Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck (Instagram) for doing such an incredible job bringing Captain Marvel to the big screen. Special thanks also to Nia DaCosta for helming The Marvels, which I seriously can’t wait to see (because I know DaCosta is going to do an amazing job with it. She’s such an incredible talent and I could not be more excited).
Captain Marvel week is dedicated to the phenomenally talented Gene Ha (Instagram), who is one of the most talented artists I know. His graphic novel Mae took my breath away. He also encouraged me to cosplay Sylvie, which really meant a great deal to me. It ended up being that little nudge I needed to try my hand at the look and now it’s my favorite cosplay. Be sure to look up his art, because it’s really beautiful 
Captain Marvel week is also dedicated to my lovely mother. She’s the one who taught me about the importance of kindness and showed me things like gymnastics, ice skating, and even ballet. Mom has always let me try my hand at things and to this day, she remains my biggest cheerleader. One of the reasons why I have the nerve to try ambitious projects like this is because of my mom’s love and support.
October 30, 2021
Ballet Gamora Bow
That’s a wrap on Gamora week! I’m always a little sad when the week ends, even though I feel excitement about bringing in the next one. I do hope folks are still enjoying this project and are having as much fun as I am.
Next week, a new character takes the stage!
Special thanks to Zoe Saldana (Instagram) for bringing Gamora to life on the big screen and giving her such heart. Thank you for giving adoptees like me another character with a familiar story. Thanks to James Gunn (Instagram) for doing such an amazing job directing the Guardians of the Galaxy series.
Gamora week has been dedicated to Nikki Ward (Instagram) and Robbie Cook (Instagram), who are some of the most amazingly talented artists and wonderful people. I’m very lucky to know them. Thank you both so much
Gamora costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Gamora helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
October 29, 2021
Favorite Ballets: Flight Pattern and The Statement
In which I discuss another ballet I really enjoyed: Crystal Pite’s Flight Pattern and The Statement.
Nebula costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Nebula helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Disclaimer: I’m in no way affiliated with the Royal Ballet or Royal Opera House and are not driving any benefit from talking about them.
Flight Pattern and The Statement recommended links
Streamed on the Royal Opera House site (both were only available for a limited time)
Clip of Kristen McNally and Marcelino Sambé
Crystal Pite on her ballet “Flight Pattern”
“My way of coping with the world at the moment” (Crystal Pite on “Flight Pattern”)
A clip from “The Statement”
Rehearsals
Flight Pattern (1 hour 10 minutes, 2017, Kristen McNally, Isabella Gasparini, Mica Bradbury, Solomon Golding, Calvin Richardson, Joseph Sissens)
Two Pieces by Crystal Pite (1 hour, 10 minutes, 2021, Francesca Hayward, Isabella Gasparini, Cesar Corrales, “Solo Echo”; Ashley Dean, Joseph Sissens, Kristen McNally, Calvin Richardson, “The Statement”)
The Royal Ballet Rehearse “The Statement” (2 minutes 41 seconds, 2021, Ashley Dean, Joseph Sissens, Kristen McNally, Calvin Richardson)
**Crystal Pite is a choreographer to watch. She has an astonishing talent. I can’t wait to see what she does next.
October 28, 2021
Making Ballet Gamora: From Page to Reality
The Gamora costume was another really difficult costume to figure out a ballet version of. Both of Gamora’s costumes are heavy on leather.
The first option Karolina presented me with was pretty, but not quite what I was looking for.
The tutu just didn’t strike me as very Gamora-esque. I envisioned a longer skirt, similar to the ones worn by Queen Hermione and Perdita in the Royal Ballet’s production of The Winter’s Tale.
So Karolina went back to the drawing board and designed what would become the Gamora costume:
This had the lines I was hoping for and struck me as very Gamora-like. The skirt changed slightly in the execution (the color of the underskirt is green rather than magenta and blue), but overall, it’s fairly close to the preliminary sketch.
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For the helm, Carol designed something simple to be similar to the ballets I was going to talk about during Gamora week: Flight Pattern and The Statement. She designed it in the colors of Gamora’s hair: black and magenta.
We had to scour the Michael’s site to find the right shade of magenta Swarovski crystals, but we found a perfect shade.
Gamora preliminary sketch and costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Gamora helm sketch and helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
October 27, 2021
Gamora Photoset 2
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“Can we put the bickering on hold until after we survive this massive space battle?” ~ Gamora, Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2
“[Hugging Nebula] You will always be my sister.” ~ Gamora, Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2
Gamora costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Gamora helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
October 26, 2021
Favorite Dancers: Joseph Sissens
Discussing another one of my favorite dancers: the amazing Joseph Sissens of the Royal Ballet
Gamora Costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Gamora Helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Disclaimer: I’m in no way affiliated with the Royal Ballet or Royal Opera House and are not driving any benefit from talking about them.
Recommended links for Joseph Sissens
Royal Opera House Page: http://www.roh.org.uk/people/joseph-sissens
Royal Ballet Flickr
Joseph Sissens’ Instagram
Videos
Jojo
Moving Lines
Insights: Kenneth Tharp in conversation with The Royal Ballet for Black History Month
Dance Europe Interview
Performance from when he was in school
The Statement extract
Rehearsing The Statement
Rehearsing The Mad Hatter
Another rehearsal of The Statement
Rehearsing the Neapolitan Dance for Swan Lake
An Illustrated Farewell
Rehearsing Flight Pattern (from 22:20 – 1:10:48)
Rehearsing The Statement (from 38:23 – 1:02:46)
Articles and pictures
The Show Must Be Paused
An Interview (behind a paywall)
Rehearsal pictures from The Statement
Dance Magazine’s 2020 “25 to Watch” (scroll to find him)
Sissens in Obsidian Tear
Calvin Richardson and Joseph Sissens rehearsing (by Tristam Kenton)
October 25, 2021
Gamora Photoset 1
“I’m a warrior, an assassin. I don’t dance.” ~ Gamora, Guardians of the Galaxy
“I have lived most of my life surrounded by enemies. I will be grateful to die surrounded by my friends.” ~ Gamora, Guardians of the Galaxy
Gamora Costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Gamora Helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
October 24, 2021
Introduction: Gamora
The introduction to this week’s character: the badass Gamora. She’s another favorite, obviously. The relationship between Gamora and Nebula means a great deal to me as they’re the 2nd pair of adopted siblings in the MCU.
Costume by BeBaGo (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
Helm by Carol Datura Riot (Etsy, Facebook, Instagram)
As mentioned, special thanks to Zoe Saldana (Instagram) for playing Gamora and crafting that truly amazing bond with Nebula. It means a lot to have characters and stories that feel familiar. Thanks to James Gunn (Instagram) for directing the Guardians of the Galaxy series and including adopted siblings on the big screen.
Gamora week is dedicated to Nikki Ward (Instagram) and Robbie Cook (Instagram), who are really incredible artists and equally amazing people. Be sure to check out their art, you will not be disappointed because it’s beautiful.
