Worried that your tyke will embarrass you at the holiday table? Miss Manners recommends a trip to The Nutcracker.




If junior takes to the spectacle like a swan to water, s/he can be enrolled in Advanced Etiquette:



Happy Holidays, all!

I have never seen Miss Manners write about ballet. It fits, though, because in ballet class you do learn manners and respect as well as ballet steps.

I especially liked the "ballet class run like a Siberian labor camp" bit; could be an almost apt description in some cases!

our teacher, when he is in a good mood, threatens to send us on a bus to siberia! personally, i think ballet is a good remedy for everyone, any affliction

Actually, CE, from where you are, that's doable! What, a couple hundred miles and a ferry trip and you're there?

I think that even in the most even-tempered and mild-mannered lower grades classroom, ordinary mortals are absolutely fascinated with the seriousness and application of the students. It can be a revelation, as Miss Manners says, in "disciplined formality". We've grown so used to it, that we're somewhat immune to the impression, but just let an outsider see, and...WOW!

Very true, very true. High discipline and good etiquette seem so commonplace to us dancers after a while; it's the rest of the world that has no respect or self-control! I've always said that ballet is something that everyone should experience, if only for that very reason.