Real Talk ith Ballet Master Yannick Boquin

Interview by Armando Braswell

When someone is being interviewed, they always put their best face forward. “Real Talk” is designed to help young dancers and professionals by providing them with the whole truth about the problems faced by artists…on stage and off.

Yannick Boquin is an expert guest ballet master. He trained at the Paris Opera and the National Conservatory of Paris. Boquin was a principle dancer with Bonn Opera Ballet, Royal Ballet of Flanders, Rome Opera Ballet and Deutsche Oper Berlin. He is currently teaching and coaching top companies all over the world.

A few words about giving a warm class as opposed to a full class?

In some companies, not all, they ask me to give a warm up before the performance that is 30 minutes long. I am not a teacher that would just repeat the morning barre. After a day of work and rehearsal the dancers don’t need another full barre. I try to give the barre I would want as a dancer. I give simple exercises so that the dancers aren’t going crazy with steps before the performance. A few tendus. I mix ronds de jambe En l’air and petits battements. I would do ronds de jambe à terre and fondus together. I could do a 20 minute barre and a ten minute center. In center I would combine tendus and pirouettes. I would do a small jete or fondu again with pirouettes. Then I would do a short pirouette combination with en dehors and en dedans. I add in 4 small jumps plus Sissonne and Tours en l’air for the men. I can fit that all into 30 minutes.

Photo by Costin Radu