sugar plum fairy

Two Decades At Colorado Ballet

December 17, 2015 by 4dancers

by Sharon Wehner

“What does it mean to you to be celebrating your 20th season with the Colorado Ballet?”

This is a question I have been asked over and over again since our season started this past July—a question asked by my colleagues, by board members, by our marketing department, and by numerous members of the media. I have spent hours pondering it, and each time I am asked, it seems I have a different answer.

It is a big question, and quite honestly, I dread it, because it sends me spinning into a myriad of memories and growth periods—both beautiful ones, and those that were, well, more challenging. My first response is to say that it feels like any milestone birthday. On the one hand, it’s could be viewed as just another number. From a pessimistic perspective, it could be seen as the inevitable passing of time—one year closer to the end. Dancers love to bemoan how old they are getting and how old their bodies feel, a tendency that starts about the age of puberty. But from another perspective, a milestone birthday could be an opportunity to feel blessed—one more year to be able to be and do what I love.

What does it mean to dance for twenty years in the same company? As every dancer knows, choosing this as one’s profession means accepting some unique parameters:

Dancing is a career with a limited lifespan—retirement does not mean turning 65.5 and collecting a pension. Longevity in one company may earn a small amount of seniority, but nothing like the retirement benefits of a company in the corporate world.
Being a professional dancer requires a particular lifestyle commitment. Because our body is our bread and butter, what we do outside the “office” affects our ability to be at the top of our game. Simple things like food, sleep, rest, exercise, and play are all intimately connected to our performance. And as the years pass, maintenance on the body becomes an increasingly refined and conscientious balance of these elements.
Dancing can be a very transient kind of lifestyle. Those who freelance must weave together a patchwork of gigs, supplemented by other kinds of work to pay the bills. They must be able to adapt quickly to new bosses, colleagues, an environments. Even those dancers who want the stability of a company, will often switch companies several times during the span of their careers, for a number of reasons.

Given all of these tendencies, why would someone commit the bulk of their dance career to one ballet company for 20-plus years? When I ask myself this question, there are a multitude of answers, which brings up the question “What are the advantages of such a commitment?” [Read more…]

Preview: Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker

December 5, 2015 by Rachel Hellwig

Alessa Rogers and Brandon Nguyen as the Snow Queen and King in Atlanta Ballet's Nutcracker. Photograph by Charlie McCullers. — Alessa Rogers and Brandon Nguyen as the Snow Queen and King. Photograph by Charlie McCullers.

by Rachel Hellwig

This year’s Nutcracker season is both an exciting and bittersweet time for Atlanta Ballet. It marks the 20th anniversary of artistic director John McFall’s version of the beloved holiday classic as well as his final Nutcracker with the company. After leading Atlanta Ballet since 1994, he will retire at the end of the 2015-2016 season.

Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker, which runs from December 11-27, will be performed at the historic Fox Theatre and accompanied by the Atlanta Ballet Orchestra led by principal guest conductor Gary Sheldon. The Georgia Youth Choir will sing during Act I’s Snow Scene

Atlanta Ballet’s Alessa Rogers, now in her ninth year performing as Marya (the production’s Clara/Marie equivalent) began portraying the part as a student. A couple of years later, McFall decided to change Marya into a role for a company dancer. “I think when he choreographed the updated Marya, he definitely considered his own feisty young daughters,” says Rogers, “He also took a lot of input from company dancers who were performing the role. We all bounced ideas off of one another. Atlanta Ballet has a very open and collaborative environment so we really molded the role together. But each Marya retains the right to tweak things and interpret the part in the way that makes the most sense to her.”

In McFall’s Nutcracker, Marya plays a more active role up than she does in other interpretations. “She has a lot more to do than stand around and open presents,” explains Rogers, “In the first act she has a bit of a flirtation with Drosselmeyer’s nephew. At the end of the battle scene, she takes the initiative to defeat the Rat King using a sword she steals from a rat.”

In that climatic scene, the Rat King’s costume increases his height to a towering eight feet and the Nutcracker wears a two-pound mask as he combats against him. “Dancing with the giant sword isn’t easy with a lot of people on stage,” says Miguel Montoya, who is debuting as the title character this year, “But those moments are still fun parts that make the scene more interesting and the role more challenging in a good way.”

Alessa Rogers at Marya and Rachel Van Buskirk as the Sugar Plum Fairy. Photograph by Charlie McCullers.

Also making a role debut this year is Yoomi Kim, who will be dancing the Sugar Plum Fairy. “This has been my dream role since I was a little kid,” she says, “I used to watch The Nutcracker with my parents during the Christmas season and I was fascinated by the magical Sugar Plum’s kingdom. Ever since I started dancing the role, my love for Sugar Plum has grown deeper.”

In Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker, the Sugar Plum Fairy dons an unconventional burgundy tutu and shares her iconic solo with Marya. “Sugar Plum is like a role model to Marya and that is illustrated through the choreography,” says Kim, “Each movement of the variation is mirrored by Marya, which makes for a very beautiful and special moment on stage between the two characters.”

The choreography for the variation of the Prince, the Sugar Plum Fairy’s dance partner, also has a unique twist in Atlanta Ballet’s version. “McFall grants us permission to make our own variation,” says Jacob Bush, who has been dancing the role of the Prince for six years, “You can challenge yourself. It’s fun!”

As with any production that’s presented annually, The Nutcracker offers its performers new challenges and opportunities for growth. How do dancers build upon roles they’ve revisited for many Nutcracker seasons? Bush focuses on enhancing movement quality and artistry. “I have been dancing with the same Sugar Plum Fairy, Tara Lee, for a while now,” he says, “Each year, we talk a lot about how we can finesse the movement so we are as calm as possible. I think that gives it the regal look we both want the characters to have.” For Rogers, it’s about dramatic content and recreating seasonal enchantment. “The challenge of doing any role for nearly a decade is keeping the interactions spontaneous,” she says, “Especially because Marya is a young girl, I have to remember the feeling of Christmas morning when I was a child–that effervescence, that joy and exuberance and sparkle. But Marya is such a joy-filled character and performing for those people in the audience who have never seen a ballet before–that is a magic that keeps me motivated.”

Tickets start at $25.00. Purchase here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ysb2elWK2E

The Nutcracker – From Student To Professional

December 20, 2014 by 4dancers

Cara Marie Gary backstage before Nutcracker

by Cara Marie Gary

Over the past twenty-three years I have gathered many memories around Christmas time, but the one that stands out amongst the others starts with a magical event that has forever made an impact on my life and has left me with new found feelings of eagerness and desire.

The time had finally come, the chilly December air made the girls run quickly through the green backstage door of the Peace Center in Greenville, South Carolina. It was the night of The Nutcracker performance and I, along with other aspiring young dancers, were waiting for the curtain to go up.

After anxiously skipping up and down the long hallway filled with dressing rooms, the moment had finally arrived where the burgundy curtain was lifted and Tchaikovsky’s music filled the theater. I wore a red and black solider costume adorned with strings of gold and stood backstage between two tall curtains. The joy of the holidays filled the air and crept back to the small spot where I was standing. I experienced a feeling of awe as I observed the older girls dancing before me. The tall girl with a radiant smile and a blue dress, who had the role of Clara, stood out to me. She moved with elegance as she danced across the stage; I longed to dance just like her one day.

As I executed my role during the battle scene I attempted to keep the graceful vision of Clara in mind. Staring out at the anonymous silhouettes of the strangers in the audience, I felt as if everything was perfect. The feeling of wonder bubbled inside of me as I took that final bow. I knew from this December night that I wanted to pursue dance, and learn how to leap and twirl like the tall girl in the blue dress. For me this memory combines the joy of Christmas and the motivation I had discovered to pursue a new found passion. [Read more…]

Naked Dancing: A Cautionary Tale

August 28, 2012 by 4dancers

by Lauren Warnecke, MS

In 2010, Alastair Macaulay seriously pissed me off.

His gross review of NYCB’s Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier, and specifically his comment on their waist sizes, sent shockwaves through the interwebs. I wouldn’t say that he’s necessarily done it again, but there’s a little buzz beginning on the social media about his new editorial on naked dancing.

437px-Bakst_Nizhinsky — Naked or nearly naked dancing is not new: the bare-chested Nijinski shocked his 1912 audiences with the overtly sexual L’Apres Midi D’Une Faune

I’m hardly shocked that Macaulay’s first paragraph, and most of the essay, are comparing modern experimental dance to porn and strippers. To be honest, I fully expected to be writing another rant about sensationalism in dance writing….. but I have to say, I’m aligned with Mr. Macaulay on a couple of points.

Dancing in the buff has serious implications that you can’t avoid (no matter how much we want them to). It’s an artistic choice that instantly personalizes dancers and makes them into real people, with legs and hips and – other parts. Depending on the degree of naked, your costume (or lack thereof) also creates the distinct persona of sexual beings, and if that’s what you want, then go for it.

But…

Naked is not a decision you should make lightly as a dancemaker, or, in my opinion, frequently. That’s not because I don’t want to see naked people; it’s because the one thing that you think is so extreme and unique and impactful is actually quite overdone. It’s sort of like making a dance to Barber’s Adagio. Like it or not, most audience members are going to have preconceived notions about nudity. Maybe you can prep them in program notes and pre-show talks to depersonalize the dance and see the beauty of the human form in motion, or maybe you’re okay with the influence of the giggling twelve-year-old boy in all of us seeping into the overall impact you want your piece to have. If not, find another way.

I’m not frustrated by nudity in dance because I find it offensive. Rather, I’m put off by the fact that the choreographer couldn’t find another way to represent vulnerability, or truth, or love, or whatever. Getting naked isn’t as extreme as you might think… I’ve used it (more than once), along with almost every dancemaker in my acquaintance.

My point is: Go ahead! Get naked if you have to, but recognize that there will always be that guy giggling in the back comparing your art to a strip club. Just, whatever you do, please don’t make a naked dance to Barber’s Adagio…

Contributor Lauren Warnecke, M.S., is a Chicago-based dance artist, educator, and writer. She trained at the Barat Conservatory of Dance before earning a BA in Dance at Columbia College Chicago. In 2009, Lauren completed her MS in Kinesiology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, with a concentration in Motor Control and Learning. Lauren is a Visiting Instructor for the department of Kinesiology and Nutrition at UIC, and teaches master classes and seminars in ballet, modern dance, creative movement, and dance pedegogy. She is certified in ballet by the Cecchetti Council of America and a member of the American College of Sports Medicine.

In addition to teaching at UIC, Lauren owns and operates Art Intercepts, under which she creates, informs, and writes about dance. The primary mission of Art Intercepts is to bridge the gap between the scientific and artistic communities to present programming that is informed, inventive, and evidence-based. Lauren is a freelance writer/blogger and maintains monthly columns at Danceadvantage.net and 4dancers.org. and was featured on a panel of nationally reputed dance writers at the 2012 Dance/USA conference. She also works periodically as a grant writer and production/stage manager for artists in the Chicago dance and performance community, and volunteers for initiatives encouraging Chicagoans to engage in local, sustainable, and active lifestyles. Lauren likes to hike, bake scones, and dig in the dirt.

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