Tools of the Trade
Welcome back, dance lovers, to Dancer Magazine's Tools of the Trade, where we search the world to find the best new dance-related products and round them up for you! Here's what we've found this month:
A jazzy holiday gift choice is the Red Rockette Tap/Jazz Dancer Ornament, ready to hang on the tree! This glamorous 6" ornament depicts a Radio City Music Hall dancer dressed in red with a Santa's cap. Get several of these so you can give some away-or keep them all to yourself. This cute item is offered by www.dancextrastore.com.
Do you have a ballet fan on your gift list? This wonderful Mini Ornament Set offers eight dancers from The Nutcracker. The set includes Clara, the Nutcracker Prince, Drosselmeyer, Mouse King, Sugar Plum Fairy, Arabian, Chinese, and Russian dancers. Each ornament is intricately painted with beautiful detail, 2.75" tall and made of polyresin. This set is sure to be a hit with anyone who loves "The Nutcracker." Offered by www.dancextrastore.com.
A new production of La Bayadère is now available on DVD, featuring dancers Svetlana Zakharova and Roberto Bolle. It tells a story of romantic conflicts set in an ancient Indian setting; love and jealousy, intrigue, murder and revenge abounds in La Bayadère. This DVD presents the 2006 revival of Natalia Makarova's 1992 production for Teatro alla Scala. Makarova's choreography is based on the original creation by Marius Petipa with music composed by Ludwig Minkus. 126 minutes, 2007. www.dancehorizons.com
Dancers' feet take quite a beating, and need extra care. For the relief of extra dry skin, Curél has a new product; Targeted Therapy Deep Penetrating Foot Cream. This highly emollient cream has shea butter, rich coconut milk and naturally healing vitamin E to help smooth and soften feet. In a two-day clinical study among women with extra dry skin, Curél Targeted Therapy Foot Cream significantly increased the women's skin's moisture content. Smooth it on dry, cracked feet every night to wake up with softer, smoother skin. Available in a 3.5 oz. tube. Look for this item at your local drugstore. Check it out on www.curel.com.
With the new year coming, dance teachers will want to spruce up their CD collection for class. Bring in the new music with “Points on Pointe" by Stephanie Marini and Allan Greene. This CD offers original and familiar piano melodies arranged for a beginning pointe class. It starts with music for a barre warm up, moves on to pointe work at the barre, progresses to center work and then ends with four extra tracks for traveling steps in the center. All of the barre work tracks are repeated. This CD includes pieces from the music of Mozart, Chopin, Liszt, Beethoven, Minkus and more. This great CD can be found on www.danceclassmusic.com.
The golden era of Hollywood musicals is captured in this fun new item; Great Movie Dance Couples Paper Dolls by Tom Tierney. The timeless glamour of famous dance partners such as Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron and others are featured in this delightful paper doll collection. Other dancers include Cyd Charisse, Rita Hayworth and Judy Garland and others, all as lavishly costumed dancers depicted from "Top Hat," "The Band Wagon," "Show Boat," "An American in Paris," "Three Little Words" and 16 other famous films. Full size 9 ¼ x 12 ¼, with 32 costumes on 16 pages. Offered by www.dancextrastore.com.
Wintertime is cold and flu season and you don't need any downtime with the sniffles. You can help keep germs away with the new Aloe & Witch Hazel Hand Sanitizer by Burt's Bees. Cleanse your hands without water and eliminate up to 99.99% of germs while making your hands smooth and soft. This 100% all-natural hand sanitizer has a unique formula combining the germ-killing strength of corn-based alcohol with moisturizing aloe vera, plus witch hazel to soothe skin. Simply squirt the sanitizer into your hands and rub briskly until it dries. This product comes in a 2 oz. fluid plastic bottle, good to keep in your dance bag. Ask for this item wherever you buy Burt's Bees products. www.burtsbees.com
The Thundervolt Purple Backpack by JanSport will carry your dance duds in style and keep you iPod connected at the same time. It has a handy bungee cord gear stash and side compression straps to help manage the load, plus AirCore shoulder straps to provide comfortable carrying. The Thundervolt is fully wired with a headphone cord port and integrated remote control of iPod functions, so you can listen to your tunes without removing your iPod from the pack. Nice shade of purple, too. Look for this item at sporting goods retailers carrying JanSport products, or on www.jansport.com.
It's time again to get a new calendar, and the 2008 Breaking Bounds Calendar is a nice choice. You'll enjoy 12 months of black and white dance photography by Lois Greenfield. Published by Chronicle Books, it displays images of dancers in mid-motion portraying the beauty of modern dance. It measures 12" x 12" and opens out to a wall calendar. This gem was discovered on www.amazon.com.
Here's an essential calendar featuring the great ballet stars of today; American Ballet Theatre's 2008 Wall Calendar. Grace your wall with beloved ABT dancers such as Julie Kent, Marcelo Gomes, Gillian Murphy, Alessandra Ferri, Herman Cornejo and more. These stunningly beautiful photos will delight you all year. By Universe Publishing, 24 pages, 12" x 11.7". Check it out on www.amazon.com.
Be sure to check back every month to find the best new dance-related products- only in Dancer Magazine! Questions? Comments? We'd love to hear from you! email dventurella@danceronline.com