If The Shoe Fits

Wow...I have certainly been MIA with my posts. Much like many things that get back put on the back burner so did my blog.
As I sit here snow falling to beat the band (again) I think about all the time that has passed since my last October post. As the cliche goes the more things change the more they stay the same. Since my last post we have finished the first half of our company season with 4 great performances of the Nutcracker. Nothing beats the feeling of a first time child audience member asking for a dancers autograph and seeing the admiration in her eyes. As the company goes we are now just 2 weeks away from production....CINDERELLA. I have a special fondness for this ballet because I have a clear memory of the moment I was first "lost" in the moment on stage. I had of course danced on stage and projected before and even been "in the moment" but never lost myself. It's hard to pin point how this particular role, this particular ballet and that time in my life brought that all out...perhaps it was just the intertwining of all these things. I had been close before in the role of Aurora but it was just out of reach for but this time I felt it. I remember during the 2nd Act just as the curtain opened with me sitting asleep at the table it happened. I felt the lights on me I heard the music I felt the music I even saw the audience but it was as if there was no one there I didn't worry about dancing for the audience I just Danced. 10 years have passed - I can't believe it! I am nervous and excited to be dancing Cinderella again.

Turning the Pages

I am not a great reader. When I was younger I would have to re read pages over and over before it actually sunk in. Even now I don't read as much as I should. When I do read guess what I am drawn to??? You got it dance books. Anything from manuals to historical accounts but what I love most are biographies and auto biographies. I believe it is the perfect blend of history, the integrity of dance tradition and person accounts. Some of my favorites include the popular Dancing on My Grave )Gelsey Kirkland), Holding Onto the Air  (Suzanne Farrell),  Black and White (Baryshnikov), Push Comes to Shove (Tyla Tharp) Once A Dancer (Allegra Kent) The Art of Making Dances (Doris Humphrey) Martha (Martha Graham) My most recent and definitely a favorite is Every Step You Take (Jock Soto)

I love this book because it touches you with dance but also beyond dance. It is about the steps you take through life and how they shape you as a person. In dance, every step has powerful meaning and commitment behind it from the dancer and portrays a story to the audience. This in my opinion is such a hard lesson to teach students. I am always saying to my kids "it is not what you do it is how you do it that will make it dance"  In life, the steps you take tell your story, but do you always understand how you got there? 

In the iconic movie Ferris Beuller's Day Off Ferris says  “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it”. And that’s exactly what happened in Jock Soto’s case. As a principal dancer with the NYC Ballet, his life consisted of dancing and nothing else. It is his honest look at his life and some of the things he missed while in the grueling position he held with the ballet for so many years. This reflection helps him accept and embrace his past, his heritage, and his choices. As humans we all struggle with the questions of  ”did I make the right choice”, “what does my life mean” and “is it worth it”? Jock’s stories tell how he faced these questions at first with fear, but after taking the time to research and think, faced them with an open heart. He says “Did I even know my own life?….Can you figure out where you are going if you have never paused to consider where you came from or where you have been?” It definitely makes one think deeply. 

Jock’s story teaches us that it is ok to dream big and go after those dreams. It’s ok to sacrifice for your art. Just remember to take the time to look back and appreciate everyone and everything.

Beyond the Barre

Last week I caught up with  a friend at York Beach. I met this friend when I was 14 and 20+ years later she is still one of my dearest friends. I'm telling you this because where did I meet her.....DANCE of course. Although she now lives in Baltimore and the last time I actually saw her was in 1998 (Crazy!!) It's funny how some people in your life just fit whether it has been 10 days or 10 years. I am so grateful for meeting Kerry through dance and continuing our friendship through time.

This week I organized an "NECB BEACH DAY" I always think about my students and parents as extended family and I love the beach so who better to hang out at the beach with than your extended family? What a beautiful day we had. i loved seeing the kids bury each other in the sand, boogie board, and I particularly loved seeing the "older" girls playing with the little ones. My sisters and I always joke about our "village" references "It takes a village to raise a child" but on this day I truly felt like this could not be more true. In the studio I am an all business kind of teacher. I expect a huge amount from my students, I push them and tell them with kindness the way it is. But on days like these I am able to be more relaxed and put the "teacher/director" hat away and just enjoy and I see the same in the kids. In class they are in their work mode. They listen, they push and even have their guard up a little. At the beach they were care free, playful and very chatty! But the day did end in a bitter sweet way our beach day was the last day we would get to see Chelsey. Chelsey is a senior who is leaving for Indiana University this week where she will major in dance. I'm so excited and proud  of her! What a great time! I am already looking forward to next summer's NECB BEACH DAY.

Check out more pictures on the NECB website

Quantity???? Quality!!!!

I realize that when you blog it is just supposed to be thoughts that are coming into your head, "as I see it" type commentary but I can't help but wonder how anyone would be able to follow my random thoughts leaping (pun intended) into my brain these days. Well here goes let's see who will give it a try.

We have just begun our second summer session and even though there are still roughly 5 weeks left before the school year begins it feels like the school year is already upon us. We (all the teachers at NECB) have had such a great time this summer seeing some new faces and working with so many talented students it always makes me a little sad to see this come to an end. I have heard so often over the past year how middle and high school students have such a hard time balancing their school commitments, work commitments and dance commitments. I hear so often how to be on the "elite" team or "A" team students have to take X amount of classes per week and participate in X amount of competitions etc etc and if they choose not to their dance experience is not nearly what it could be. Don't misunderstand what I am about to say-While I do think commitment is very important, vital even  and competitions certainly provide positive experiences and knowledge students (and parents) can only commit to so much as a parent and the wife of a high school teacher I see this first hand. To say that a dancer HAS to take 20 (just a random crazy number) amount of hours of class or participate in 5 (again random) competitions I feel is just over the top. What ever happened to QUALITY over quantity? I believe so strongly that you can tailor each student's class schedule helping them achieve their goals and still keep the balance in their schedules. That being said it makes sense that of course a student who is wanting to pursue dance as their livelihood would clearly want and need a certain amount of training but I believe its all about your goals, how badly you want them and how hard you are willing to work for them - I love ballet and dance for this reason.....you can not be a lucky dancer not sustainably anyway. You can have a lucky day but in your career what you have you work for and work with! 1 class/3 classes/7 classes the number almost doesn't matter if the effort behind the numbers are not there.

The other day I walked into my living room to find my daughter watching Dance Moms on demand....I cringe. I can't understand the obsession with this show watching the Director and parents hash it out every week the caddy behavior between these mothers and the poor children who are being belittled, devastated by the "pyramid" assignments and constant comparison of each other. Teachers (and dance) are supposed to ignite passion and inspire people (young and old) Parents are supposed to foster and encourage their children's dreams does one need to win a gold medal to receive that? Does over working young muscles and packing their weekly schedule with X amount of classes achieve this?

It seems that this is not the popular view point but it is my point of view. I want so badly to have students achieve their goals, push themselves and feel good about their hard work WHILE STILL feeling the passion and being inspired I might be crazy but I think it can be done.

Kids' Summer Fun Dance Camp

Here we are half way through our week with the Kid's Camp. It's so fun to see the kids come in on Monday kinda shy and reserved. By Wednesday....BAM their true personalities are beaming through. I mean this in a good way. Today is Pajama Day and it seems to be a favorite. We have decorated breakfast cups and shaked our sillies out just in time to "roll out of bed" during our obstacle course.
It is always so rewarding to see not just the "little ones" having a ball but also our great mentor volunteers. Haleigh has been our "photographer" Sarah our "reader" and Jess and Katie floating around helping kids during craft time. All 4 girls have been so wonderful engaging with the kids during our free dance time, playing "telephone" etc.
Tomorrow wraps up this week with Superhero and Princess day!

Who felt the joy most?

Yesterday Debbie and I took our Performance Ensemble to Class Inc in Lawrence and Presentation of Mary in Methuen to perform for some very special people.
Our first stop was at Class Inc. Class Inc is a day facility providing services to individuals with disabilities. This is our second trip to Class Inc. The students performed a 30 minute presentation of dance - everything from ballet, tap, jazz, musical theatre and contemporary. The adults watching the performance were smiling great big smiles, clapping and cheering. What a great feeling we all had leaving the facility. The girls were saying "I feel so great now" "Performing in this setting makes me so happy" Seeing them feel joy from bringing joy to others is what dance should and can be about.
Next we arrived at Presentation of Mary in Methuen where we were to dance for the retired nuns. Another wonderfully rewarding experience. These women were so welcoming and excited to see the girls perform. They too were clapping along and tapping their feet to the beat of the music. Many of the nuns were surprised by  the students' ages and years of dance experience.
The day was full of joy and fulfillment. As NECB's school director I have always wanted to broaden the students' performance opportunities and now with the help of Debbie and the creation of our performance ensemble we are on our way.
Seeing the girls' take pride in bringing joy to others through their dance was such a sweet beginning to summer!

Here comes the break......gasp

Here comes the break I shudder at the thought Why???.....The last few weeks of our school year I have been pushing my girls....intense core work in jazz.....pointe upon pointe upon pointe.....to their tunes of "why do you hate us so much???"  after 100+ leg lifts and "wow I am terrible" upon completion of frappe with releve/on releve etc etc. It's big girl panty time I say over and over and you know what..............I LOVE IT!!! I love to see girls pushing to places they never imagined, love giving the opportunity to "younger" dancers to play with the "big girls" and the "big girls" the shocking realization that you have to keep pushing to reach new heights-there is always someone behind you who wants it just as bad if not more. Complacency is the curse of death. Well okay maybe not death but it is the curse of stale plateaued  dancing. Get out there and push yourself in class, on break, in life!