Want to get to know what it’s like living as a male professional ballet dancer? Want to get to know more about the world of dance, and what joys (and pains) it contains? Tights and Tiaras is the place to be.

Tights and Tiaras provides a unique insight to the life of a ballet dancer, Henrik Lamark, and his endeavours to live life doing what he loves the most, dancing. It also contains lots of interesting tips, resources, reviews, comments, guides and more to anyone interested in dance. Tights and Tiaras is a blog not only for dance professionals, but a blog on ballet, for anyone.

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Henrik Lamark as ‘Ego’ from Youri Vamos’ Carmina Burana, Hungarian Opera House

Following you will find some backstory on the writer, Henrik Lamark. If you are looking for a more traditional CV, please contact Henrik on email.

Name: Henrik Lamark
Born: 5th April 1986 in Bodø, Norway

I started my education as a ballet dancer at 4, but things didn’t get really serious until much later. Raised in Bodø, a small town in northern Norway (let’s just say that it’s closer to the north pole than to Covent Garden) by two parents – though endlessly loving and supportive, not really “in the loop” on the whole ballet-thingy – there were some issues. My first 10 years of training were good for one thing: learning how to love dance. Although now I regret (some might even say I’m bitter, but that’s someone else) not leaving town for a more serious school earlier, what I learned is also probably the reason why I keep doing it: the love of dance.

In 2005, I graduated from the local high-school, with a specialization in dance. Already, I had been traveling to Oslo and the opera-school for weekend-courses for two years, but now I was finally free to go there and join the national college of ballet! I was, by then, sure: When I grow up, I’m going to be a ballet dancer.

Just they didn’t take me..

Turns out, nobody cares how much you love what you are doing. With my technical disadvantages at the moment, they just didn’t have a spot for me at the school that was going to take me to fame and fortune. Bummer.

I was devastated, but not about to give up! That is one of my strongest assets: I’m stubborn as hell! Be that good or bad, it brought me (with a little help from my friends…) to Hungary, and the Hungarian Dance Academy. They were willing to give me a shot (for a prize of course, but luckily, there are banks and loans and interest and.. shit..) at what I wanted for so long: A real ballet education.

School was hard! But I was motivated like no other, and came to like both Budapest, now home away from home, the people and the school. When I graduated, I was a completely changed, both as a person and as a dancer. Since then I have been dancing in and for several companies all around the world, still persuing my dream, still developing.
I’m currently dancing with the Hungarian renown company, the Győr National Ballet, performing neo-classical pieces in Hungary and on stages around the world.

I write with my own voice, and although it’s english, I am, after all, from the northern Norway. I’m straight-forward. Might even be harsh. My father calls me disillusioned. He’s probably right. Living in the world of ballet (or rather on the planet ballet in a galaxy far, far away) is not kids play. It will do things to you!

Tights and Tiaras featured on other sites:
10 questions with… Henrik Lamark on 4Dancers.org
Behind the blogs on Scribnia.com

Tights and Tiaras won the title “Best Dance Blog 2010″ by the contest of the same name, hosted by DanceAdvantage

All pictures used on Tights and Tiaras are mine unless credited otherwise.

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