MORE middle-aged and older women are starting to study classical ballet or are taking classes again for the first time in a long time.
These women’s dance groups have also been created, taking into account that these women’s bodies are typically less flexible than those of children and young people. There is even a competitors just for adults who want to perform on stage because dancing has grown so common with mature women.
During a week in mid-June, 14 ladies gathered at a dance class operated by party clothing company Chacott Co. in Chuo Ward, Tokyo. The majority of the females were over 50. They followed her instructions and cautiously moved their body, stretched their hands, and raised their feet after professor Mai Okabe instructed them to place their fingers and toes directly ahead.
Among the kids was a 55-year-old poet from Tokyo. She was 47 when she started taking dance classes, which she had dreamed of doing since adolescence. She is already occupied with her work and caregiving.
” When I’m dancing, I can be absorbed in it and forget all about my daily life”, she said.
Okabe has been teaching dance for 20 times. ” There are many people who are serious about wanting to improve”, she said.
” Their joy is tremendous. They take information while asking me about subjects of interest.
About 30 % of the students in Chacott’s nine producers are in their 50s, according to the company, which operates them nationwide. About 40 % of the people who joined the company were in their 50s or older when the company ran a campaign for new users this past spring. The oldest is approaching her 80s.
Due to the people decline of children, who make up the majority of individuals, and other factors, the number of people taking dance lessons in Japan is on a downward trend. According to a study conducted in 2011, 2016 and 2021 by Showa University of Music’s dance research centre in Kawasaki, the total number of students decreased from about 400, 000 in 2011 to about 250, 000 in 2021.
However, when looking at the age breakdown, the percentage of classes that included students in their 60s increased from 45 % in 2011 to 65 % in 2021, and those with students in their 70s increased from 10 % in 2011 to 36 % in 2021.
Individuals who begin taking dance as an adult are now taking classes in response to these extremely motivated middle-aged or older students.
One such establishment is Otona Ballet Academy, which was founded in 2018 and today runs six colleges, mostly in Tokyo. About 800 of the kids are people in their 50s. The class has started a beginner’s class to teach kids the fundamentals of dancing, such as the primary base positions and how to stretch the bones, in a just and attentive manner because there are many beginners as well.
” I have the impression]of our kids ] that they have started dancing classes, which they’ve longed to do since their youth, because they’ve finished raising their children and have some free time and money for themselves”, said teacher Keiji Ino, who serves as the head of Otona Ballet Academy. They might discover it energizing and pleasant to take on a new challenge once they have reached a certain age.
Some adult learners are not happy with performing in a theater. According to Shiho Yamauchi of Marty Corp., a Tokyo dance and party wear manufacturer,” there are many people who have a solid desire to party on phase.”
The first competition the company’s held in spring of 2023 was designed specifically for dancing beginners who had grown up. The opposition in May this year had 30 members, about 70 % of whom were in their 50s or older. Mature students were appreciative of the competition because they were happy to work toward a target, Yamauchi depressed.
” Age is just a number, so please try]ballet ] if you’re interested”, said Kumi Oyama, the head of Showa University of Music’s ballet research centre and the executive director of the Star Dancers Ballet.
However, mature individuals become susceptible to injury if they push themselves very difficult, such as leaping large, Oyama said. ” I recommend to students to reacquaint themselves with dancing by taking note of its nature, which is about being beautiful and expressive, more than improving technique”, she added. — Yomiuri Shimbun/ANN