03/15/2026
Today I sew a Gamzatti tutu before I coach a pr***en dancer in this variation. I am passing on the ballet lineage. I have never seen your acting, but thank you, Timothee for making so many of us all stop and think about the value of our art. I have taught and sewn and drawn dancers for over 50 years throughout the nation. One of my first dance class friends (we were 4), Hilarie Jenkins, went onto be costume mistress for ABT. We learned all the arts back then in NYC.
I became a child actress, switched to modern dance as a teen under the inspiration of Valerie Bettis, and then through her guidance found myself at NYU Tisch, where I met Valerie’s ballet teacher, Nenette Charisse. Nenette quite simply, changed my life and the lives of all of my students since. She made me understand and fall in love with ballet. She once said to me, “Talara, dont give me that modern or ballet dance, there’s only two types of dancing, good dancing and bad dancing.“
So it is with all art, Timothee…. I am sorry you have not the pleasure of being moved by great ballet dancing. For me, having watched Baryshnikov or Paloma in class is more than enough to be a lifelong fan. As I sew & teach & draw for the next generation I am aware than this lineage that travels thru me from the past 400 plus years, will travel forward as long as there are human bodies needing expression. Ballet, like all artforms, continues to grow & change. But there are only 2 types of art… good and bad.
