The Legacy of Tanju Tuzer: Dallas Ballet Pioneer T heDallas dance scene took amajor hit onNovember 18th with
the loss of Tanju Tuzer, a pioneer for bringing ballet to theDFW
area.Mr. Tuzerwas originally fromIstanbul, Turkey, and he
dancedwithmany renowned companies, including the Turkish Ballet, TheRoyalBallet in London and theHarknessBallet inNew York,where hemet hiswife Patricia. Together, theymoved toDallas and opened the Tuzer School ofBallet in 1977. Their influence has been felt bymany students, includingDallas native and former professional ballerinaMargotMartin.
I
spokewithMs.Martin about her experience as a pupil at the Tuzer School, and asked herwhat Tanjuwas like as a teacher. Margot stated bluntly, that Tanjuwas a “teacher, dad,mentor, influ- ence butNEVERa friend” as she reflected on her relationshipwith her
teacher.Margot joined the Tuzer Schoolwhen shewas six years old, enrolling in Jazz classes. Itwasn’t until Patricia noticed her amazing potential as a ballerina, that she urgedMargot to enroll in ballet
classes.At age eight,Margot cautiously enrolled in ballet. She didn’t have a lot of buy-in to the art-formbecause up until that time, Jazzwas her life. So, shemade a bargainwith Pat; shewould enroll inBallet if she could advance a level in Jazz.OnceMargot took a ballet class, shewas hooked.
Tanjuwas unapologetically hard on his students, for a fewnotable reasons. For one, hewas hard on the students he felt needed that level of discipline.He also had an “unparalleled respect for the art- form” andwould accept nothing less than the best fromthose studying under
him.Margot recounted theways Tanjuwould enforce firmdiscipline,which included a strict rule disallowing leaning on the barres, yawning and holding crossed-arms. To Tanju, these physical practices exemplified a lack of caring and discipline. If youwere caught indulging in one of these habits, youwere asked to leave the studio on the spot.While this could be quite humiliat- ing and traumatizing for a young dancer, itwas a small example of the love and respect Tanju had for ballet.
In addition to being a strict disciplinarian, Tanju also possessed an amazing capacity for capturing and explaining the subtleties of bal- let to his students.Hewould often speak to his students about sub- tle femininity. Tanjuwas not a fan ofmakeup or nail polish.He would explain to his students that a dancer could be femininewith- out being so overt and obvious, and since ballet is the epitome of
Pictured: Tanju Tuzer teaching.
femininity and grace, his teachingsmade a lot of sense to his stu-
dents.Margot told of an imagery tool Tanjuwould give his students to help themfind proper alignment of the spine. “Don’t stick your butt out, don’t tuck it under, just let it be.” Tanjuwas not denying that the human formhad a rear end, but that it shouldn’t be flaunted or over-manipulated in an effort to showitwas there. This is an example thatMargot still remembers and uses today to stay in proper alignment.
In addition, Tanjuwould often speak for 15minutes at a time on the subtleties of ballet. The hand, cheek, chin or any other small body part could have a large effect on audience perception.He explained that bymaking specific adjustments, the dancer could greatly influence howthe audience consumes and relates to a per- formance.
The trainingMargot received fromTanju, led her to enjoy a success- ful career in ballet, initially joining PacificNorthwestBallet, before moving on to join the SouthCarolinaBallet,where she performed for 12
seasons.Margot has since retired fromthe stage and relocat- ed back to her hometown ofDallas,where she operates her own studio,
BalletBurn.Margot also often serves as a guest teacher at various studios, including the Tuzer School ofBallet.When asked if she applies any of the teachings that Tanju usedwith her,Margot quickly replied, “I teach exactly like Tanju, butwith a bitmore underlying lightness.Disciplinemust be there. If a dancer does not possess the discipline that ballet demands, theywill not stickwith it andwillmove
on.Adancer stayswith balletwhen they persevere through the discipline.”
The fact that the loss ofMr. Tuzer has been so deeply felt bymany, speaks to howmuch of an immense influence and driving force that hewas for ballet in theNorth Texas area.We owe hima sin- cere debt of gratitude forworking so hard to preserve the traditions of ballet and for helping tomold such amazing dancers.Wewill always remember his legacy of excellence and in helping to shape the future of ballet.
Formore information about The Tuzer School ofBallet and enroll- ment, please go to theirwebsite at
http://www.tuzerballet.com/
Pictured: Tanju Tuzer in class. page 16
Formore information about theBalletBurn, please visit
http://theballetburn.com/
February-April 2018
www.thedancecouncil.org DANCE!NORTHTEXAS a publicationof the dance council ofnorthtexas vol. 21 •no. 1
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