I started following Mathilde Froustey, Principal dancer at SF Ballet, on instagram. More on her in a future blog post-she is adorable!
Let's look at this dance which is part of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. (if the name Tchaikovsky sounds familiar, he also composed the Nutcracker). I have seen several versions of the difficult 4 cygnets dance, and this version from the Paris Opera Ballet is really beautiful. Even if you aren't into ballet, you can appreciate how perfectly they dance together, how close, and how much they manage to look the same.
This dance, also known as "Dance of the Little Swans," was choreographed by Ivanov in 1895 and has stood the test of time. 122 years later, this dance imitates the way little swans huddle and move together for protection. The four dancers cross their arms in front of one another, grasping the next dancers hand and move in near perfect unison.
Mathilde is the second from the right. You cannot appreciate it from just the photos, so please watch the one minute video below. The music is catchy too!