Dance Books

The Story of the Nutcracker Ballet (Pictureback(R))

Amazon Price: $3.99 List Price: $3.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Random House Books for Young Readers Amazon Marketplace: 234 new & used starting at $0.01

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Ballet
Subjects -> Children's Books -> Baby-3 -> Bedtime & Dreaming
Subjects -> Children's Books -> Ages 4-8 -> Picture Books

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

a little confusing 4 out of 5 stars.
8 of 12 people found this review helpful.

This book is beautifully illustrated and the story is an abreviated version of the origional which is nice for young children. My only complaint is that the character "Clara" is called "Marie" which is very confusing to children (and adults).

important part of Christmas to many 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 10 people found this review helpful.

In reference to the next review, Marie and Clara are not the same character. Marie is the little girl, and Clara is her doll.

Confusion about the character's name 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 9 people found this review helpful.

Although many versions of the ballet call the girl Clara, she is called Marie Stahlbaum in the original E.T.A. Hoffmann story and in some versions of the ballet. This retelling is lovely. The name "Marie" is not incorrect; it just refers back to an earlier version of the story.

amazing book! 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

I was in first grade in the late 80's and we were doing a unit on the nutcracker. We went to go see the play and did a lot of music, art and english activities related to it. I was enjoying it so much that my mom bought me a copy of this book, same cover and all. I really loved the illustrations in it, from the christmas decorations to the land of sweets to all the snow. I've misplaced my copy but if I ever do find it it's a keeper!

Editorial Review:

Illus. in full color. The magic of the beloved ballet is captured in this affordable edition. Art by a Caldecott Honor Book artist complements a succinct narration that is ideal for young children.  

Burlesque and the Art of the Teese/Fetish and the Art of the Teese

Dita Von Teese

Amazon Price: $26.37 List Price: $39.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: HarperEntertainment Amazon Marketplace: 51 new & used starting at $22.38

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Fashion -> General
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Fashion -> General AAS
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 49 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

On one side, Dita Von Teese shares the beauty of the burlesque world, with bubblegum dreams and show tunes to strip to. Flip over for fantasies in fetish with dramatic costumes and the allure of submission.

Burlesque and the Art of the Teese

"I advocate glamour. Every day. Every minute."

I'm a good dancer and a nice girl, but I'm a great showgirl. I sell, in a word, magic. Burlesque is a world of illusion and dreams and of course, the striptease. Whether I am bathing in my martini glass, riding my sparkling carousel horse, or emerging from my giant gold powder compact, I live out my most glamorous fantasies by bringing nostalgic imagery to life.

Let me show you my world of gorgeous pin-ups, tantalizing stripteases, and femmes fatales. I'll give you a glimpse into my life, but a lady never reveals all.

Fetish and the Art of the Teese

You may have come for the fetish. Or you may just be sneaking a peek at this mysterious and peculiar other side. No matter what you've come for, there is something for you to indulge in.

My world of fetish may not be the one that you would expect. As a burlesque performer, I entice my audience, bringing their minds closer and closer to sex and then -- as good temptress must -- snatching it away. As a fetish star, I apply the same techniques. . . .

An opera-length kid leather glove, a strict wasp waist, an impossibly high patent leather heel, a severely painted red lip. . . . Come with me into my world of decadent fetishism.

Radio City Spectacular: A Photographic History of the Rockettes and Christmas Spectacular

Radio City Entertainment

Amazon Price: $17.72 List Price: $24.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Harper Amazon Marketplace: 36 new & used starting at $8.91

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General AAS
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Theater -> History & Criticism

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Excellent value 4 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

I have the Rockette's Dance through Time, and I would say that, all though it's good, this book is much better. It's a fairly big, glossy, hardcover thing, with a lot of amazing pictures. Though it covers a lot of history, it isn't full of dreary black and white pictures. So I'm basically saying that, despite the low price, the book is quite flashy. If you already have Dance through Time, you'll recognise a lot of the pictures, but the best shots are ones I've never seen before. For any fan of the Rockettes I recommend this highly.

spectacular! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

got it for mom as a gift. we have been to the show. mom was absolutely thrilled.

Ailey Ascending: A Portrait in Motion

Alvin Alley America Dance Theater

Amazon Price: $40.00 List Price: $50.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Chronicle Books Amazon Marketplace: 32 new & used starting at $27.40

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Modern
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A Masterpiece in Motion 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Ailey Ascending: A Portrait In Motion. My Christmas treat to myself! And I couldn't wait to tear open the package. It didn't take me long to greedily consume award winning photographer, Andrew Eccles book, Ailey Ascending A Portrait in Motion, just released by Chronicle Books. And what a treat it was!

Mr. Eccles lavish book, Ailey Ascending: A Portrait in Motion, is painted poetry in motion. A beautiful treasure trove of take your breath photography of the fine art of dance. A must have book and a must have give-gift for the holiday season.

This beautiful coffee table book; perfect for anyone who appreciates art of photography and dance. You can't go wrong!

Editorial Review:

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Ailey American Dance Theatre, this lavishly illustrated book features 120 original dynamic photos of the dancers, the performances, and ultimately the vision that shapes this groundbreaking company founded by Alvin Ailey. The book features a preface by artistic director, Judith Jamison, and a foreword by writer Anna Deveare Smith.

Dancing with the Stars: Jive, Samba, and Tango Your Way into the Best Shape of Your Life

Dancing With The Stars

List Price: $19.95 By: Collins Living Amazon Marketplace: 11 new & used starting at $4.44

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Tango
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Exercise & Fitness -> Injuries & Rehabilitation

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Twice a week, millions of viewers tune in to watch the magical transformations undergone by their favorite entertainers through the beauty of dance—and now you can bring all that excitement, sparkle, and glamour into your own home.

Based on the hit ABC series, Dancing with the Stars has everything a fan of the show could want: never-before-seen pictures and stories from the stars describing their favorite moments on the show and how they trained for each week's competition; a behind-the-scenes tour of what goes into the all the hair, makeup, and costumes each week; a look at all the key dances performed on the show; and finally, a complete dance-based workout that helps you lose weight, get fit, and have fun. Filled with photographs and detailed instructions, this book will inspire you to take to the dance floor and get a dancer's body yourself. Anyone who has watched the show knows it doesn't matter if you're young or old, male or female, a talk-show host or a football player—this workout will get you in the best shape of your life.

The Viewpoints Book: A Practical Guide to Viewpoints and Composition

Anne Bogart, Tina Landau

Amazon Price: $12.38 List Price: $16.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Theatre Communications Group Amazon Marketplace: 44 new & used starting at $10.12

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General AAS
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Theater -> Acting & Auditioning

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Viewpoints is a technique of improvisation that grew out of the postmodern dance world. It was first articulated by choreographer Mary Overlie, who broke down the two dominant issues performers deal with-space and time-into six categories. Since that time, directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau have expanded her notions and adapted them for actors to function together spontaneously and intuitively and to generate bold, theatrical work.

The Viewpoints are a set of names given to certain principles of movement through time and space-they constitute a language for talking about what happens on stage. Coupling this with Composition, which is the practice of selecting and arranging the separate components of theatrical language into a cohesive work of art, provides theatre artists with an important new tool for creating and understanding their art form.

Primarily intended for the many theatre artists who, in the last several years, have become intrigued with Viewpoints yet have had no single source to refer to in their investigations. It can also be used by anyone with a general interest in collaboration and the creative process, whether in art, business or daily life.

Anne Bogart is Artistic Director of the SITI Company, which she founded with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki in 1992. She is the recipient of two OBIE Awards and a Bessie Award, and is an associate professor at Columbia University. Her recent works include Alice's Adventures; Bobrauschenbergamerica; Small Lives, Big Dreams; Marathon Dancing; and The Baltimore Waltz.

Tina Landau, noted director and playwright, whose original work includes Space (Time magazine 10 Best), Dream True (with composer Ricky Ian Gordon) and Floyd Collins (with composer Adam Guettel), which received the Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical, an OBIE Award and seven Drama Desk nominations. She has been an ensemble member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company since 1997.

Conditioning for Dance

Eric Franklin

Amazon Price: $16.29 List Price: $23.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Human Kinetics Publishers Amazon Marketplace: 45 new & used starting at $13.99

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Ballet
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Reference
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 17 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Conditioning for Dance improves your technique and performance in all dance forms by strengthening the body’s core while improving your coordination, balance, alignment, and flexibility. The result is more lift without tension, deeper pliés, higher jumps with less effort, tighter turns, and improved extension and turnout.

The innovative, proven techniques in this book will help you execute key movements better as you

·strengthen the muscles you use in dance by performing exercises with elastic resistance bands;
·start and move in proper alignment using imagery;
·improve your balance and release tension through playful exercises with small balls;
·develop leg and torso power that translates to higher jumps and tighter turns; and
·optimize your flexibility through touch, movement awareness, and imagery.

Conditioning for Dance features 102 imagery illustrations paired with dance-specific exercises to help you maximize body–mind conditioning. The book culminates with a 20-minute, full-body barre workout routine designed to help you warm up, condition, and refine your dance technique.

By working the muscles through movements and ranges of motion that approximate the demands of your chosen dance form, you directly enrich your performance capabilities. And as you strengthen the body’s core, stretch to gain just the right amount of flexibility, and incorporate the power of the mind, you unleash your full artistic and physical potential.

Breaking Bounds 2009 Wall Calendar

Lois Greenfield

Amazon Price: $12.99 List Price: $12.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Chronicle Books Amazon Marketplace: 8 new & used starting at $8.78

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> General AAS

Editorial Review:

Arresting images of dancers captured mid-motion celebrate the beauty of modern dance in this perennially popular calendar.

Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet (Dover Books on Dance)

Gail Grant

Amazon Price: $4.95 List Price: $4.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Dover Publications Amazon Marketplace: 173 new & used starting at $0.01

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Ballet
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Classical
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 25 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A Great Reference Guide That'll Keep You On Your Toes! 5 out of 5 stars.
121 of 121 people found this review helpful.

First published in 1950, this ballet reference guide has stood the test of time. Who's it for? Ballet students and teachers, choreographers, or any ballet enthusiast. Here's what the book covers:

-descriptions and definitions of over 1100 ballet steps (in alphabetical order)
-how to say the darn words (worth the price of the book alone!)
-illustrations showing you body positions for the more common ballet steps and movements
-cross-references to other names for similar steps/positions that vary from the Russian, French and Italian schools

A must have book that can easily be toted around, I doubt most readers will regret buying it. Other ballet resources I recommend include The 5-Minute Plantar Fasciitis Solution for practitioners who have trouble with their feet.

Editorial Review:

From adagio to voyage, over 800 steps, movements, poses and concepts are fully defined. A pronunciation guide, cross-references to alternate names for similar steps and positions that vary from the Russian to the French or Italian schools, are also invaluable aids.

The Ballet Companion: A Dancer's Guide to the Technique, Traditions, and Joys of Ballet

Eliza Gaynor Minden

Amazon Price: $19.77 List Price: $29.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Fireside Amazon Marketplace: 48 new & used starting at $14.41

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Ballet
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Classical
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Performing Arts -> Dance -> Reference

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

A New Classic for Today's Dancer

The Ballet Companion is a fresh, comprehensive, and thoroughly up-to-date reference book for the dancer. With 150 stunning photographs of ballet stars Maria Riccetto and Benjamin Millepied demonstrating perfect execution of positions and steps, this elegant volume brims with everything today's dance student needs, including:

• Practical advice for getting started, such as selecting a school, making the most of class, and studio etiquette

• Explanations of ballet fundamentals and major training systems

• An illustrated guide through ballet class -- warm-up, barre, and center floor

• Guidelines for safe, healthy dancing through a sensible diet, injury prevention, and cross-training with yoga and Pilates

• Descriptions of must-see ballets and glossaries of dance, music, and theater terms

Along the way you'll find technique secrets from stars of American Ballet Theatre, lavishly illustrated sidebars on ballet history, and tips on everything from styling a ballet bun to stage makeup to performing the perfect pirouette.

Whether a budding ballerina, serious student, or adult returning to ballet, dancers will find a lively mix of ballet's time-honored traditions and essential new information.