Chronos Project
Photo by: Bennyroyce Royon, Dancer: Erik Wagner
Hello Wingers,
Just wanted to share with you something I have been working on for the past month. I am producing a show called “Chronos Project” which is a shared evening of choreographic works between me, Nilas Martins, Monique Meunier, and Brian Gibbs. There are THREE evening performances (7:30pm) in April (22, 23, 24) at the intimate Speyer Hall at University Settlement on the Lower East Side (184 Eldridge Street).
The project will serve the creative needs of the Lower East Side community (Manhattan) by providing a high caliber contemporary dance performances, offer a job & performance opportunity to a group of talented and wonderful freelance dance artists, and support the creative needs of four emerging choreographers to cultivate their artistic voices.
I will post more information as time comes along. But please do keep in touch on Twitter, Facebook, my YouTube page! You can search me on all of these networks by typing “Bennyroyce Royon.” Also, please go to my website: www.bennyroyce.com.
Watch this one minute teaser video: Chronos Project Teaser Video
Enjoy!
“King of all Nutcrackers”?
I’m running errands about town and happened to chance upon this.
According to its inscription:
“This Nutcracker is believed to be the King of all Nutcrackers. Found in Saragosa during the 17th century, it is the oldest Nutcracker ever discovered.”
(Marquis Lorenzo Leonard)
So functional, non?
Working in Washington
So I am in my third week with the Washington Ballet and my third week as a professional dancer. I arrived in DC a week or so before my contract started to get settled in and take the company’s optional “get-in-shape” classes. Taking class with out a dress-code and getting paid weekly are two things I am really liking about the company life. Everyone I have met has been so nice and the other dancers have been very welcoming and helpful while I adjust to my new life. Right now we are working on Don Quixote (staged by Anna-Marie Holmes) and a few light rehearsals for the world premier of Septime Webre’s “The Great Gatsby”. Being in a smaller sized company compared to SFB has given me 0ppurtunites to learn many parts in one ballet so I have had my brain full learning 4 different roles in Don Quixote. I have never really been around another company besides SFB so it is interesting to see how a “ensemble” or “non-ranking” company like The Washington Ballet works. In some rehearsals dancers will be doing a principle part then in the next rehearsal be in a corps spot while someone else gets there chance at a soloist role. It creates a atmosphere where everyone feels equal and part of a team.
The website of The Washington Ballet has been re-designed and launched last week. The new site is really great and has some cool videos and photo galleries to check out (….as well as my bio and headshot). Pretty soon we will start rehearsals for ballets in programs after Don Quixote in October.
To summarize the 09-10 season:
Don Quixote (October)
The Nutcracker (chor: Septime Webre, December)
The Great Gatsby (chor: Septime Webre, February)
Bolero(+) (with Nicolo Fonte’s Bolero, Karol Armitage World Premier and Edwaard Liang’s Wunderland)
Genius3 (with Twyla Tharp’s Push Comes to Shove, Mark Morris’ Pacific, Nacho Duato’s Cor Perdutand George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments)
I hope to keep you updated soon on how everything is and what is going on. Until next time!
[Enter stage left]
Stage Door to Yale's University Theatre.
Well, not quite. After a full year of working behind the scenes and being tucked away from the world in a corner full of theories, case studies, histories, visions, ideas and concepts, however, I am definitely feeling somewhat … exposed.
As a second-year management student at YSD, I was presented with the opportunity to spend a term away from the School and at a professional setting (determined by the faculty). The motivation behind this–the Arts Management Fellowship–is that, in the performing arts, theoretical knowledge alone cannot, and does not, suffice; it must be applied and practised upon before it can be of use.
Michael Kaiser expressed a similar thought in his most recent article, published Tuesday in The Huffington Post:
Arts management is a young field. While wonderful impresarios have operated for centuries, serious codification of the rules of arts management began less than fifty years ago. And while we have a number of academic programs offered by universities across the nation, there are simply not enough of them, and several are too academic in their approach. Arts management, after all, is a practical field, like medicine, and must be taught through real-time, real world experiences.
And, thus do I find myself back on the Pacific Coast, this time in Seattle, Washington.
View of the Seattle Center and the Space Needle from the apartment.
I’ve just completed the first week of my Fellowship at Seattle Repertory Theatre, where I will be working closely under the guidance and mentorship of the managing director (a theatre’s counterpart to a dance company’s executive director). I’m very much looking forward to learning how Seattle Rep manoeuvres around the challenges presented by the economic downturn as well as to studying how the Theatre uses the attributes unique to itself to further its defining vision. It’s only been four days, but I am already impressed by the consistent deference made to the art. (In many, though not all, of my past situations, I sadly witnessed the opposite–the art was compromised before all else.)
Of course, the other wonderful thing about being in Seattle for Fellowship is that I am wonderfully close to PNB, which is located on the same block as the Theatre. I’m looking forward to progressing my recuperation from inside the studio as well as enjoying firsthand what promises to be a great season for PNB.
It was raining when I arrived in Seattle last weekend. (Surprise!) As I drove in from the airport, this rather large building housing a business called 1-800-WATER-DAMAGE did not go unnoticed.
Vail Round 3
I am about to take off for Vail… for my third time.
I was a wee one when I first came to Vail. 16 years old to be exact and studying at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy for a months time. I remember fondly watching Damian Woetzel in the “Stars Gala” dance Balanchine’s Stars and Stripes with Alexandra Ansanelli. It was a memorable summer.
A young Hallberg in training on the Ford Theatre stage circa 1998 (age 16)
Fast forward 8 years later and I made my return to Vail, now dancing in the “Stars Gala”. It was surreal… to be back as a professional and to be dancing in the program that I watched on the other side of the stage.
Fast forward 3 years after that and I am back… dancing with some great dancers.
Carla Korbes, ballerina with Pacific Northwest Ballet and Ashley Bouder, ballerina with New York City Ballet. The rep includes George Balanchine’’s Apollo and Black Swan Pas de Deux, respectively.
The divine Ms. Korbes (aka Terpsichore) fellow Wingerer.
Ms. Bouder in her powerful glory…
It is always great to come back to a gala more than once. And now with Damian holding the reigns tight, Im happy to return.
A Glimpse of My Year
I can hardly believe it… it’s been a whole year, and then some! As you can see, in my previous posts, it’s been so hard to keep you tuned in with all the changes in my life. I don’t think I will ever be able to catch you all up with everything that has happened in the past year, but hopefully giving you a glimpse will suffice.
The first tour for les Ballets de Monte-Carlo was to Ljubliana, Slovenia with Jean-Christophe’s, La Belle (Sleeping Beauty). When I think back on the tour, I felt like I was going to the first day of school after summer vacation. EVERY situation was new. New people, new places, new ballets, new teachers, new system, and a new way of working – everything was new, new, new!!! The change was scary and exhilarating all at once! The only comfort was knowing that others were going through the same thing with me. With every tour and new experience after the first, came the realization that change was inevitable, and it WAS the thing that sparked my move to BMC in the first place. I, of course, made comparisons from my past life to my new one, but eventually came to the understanding that in a change, nothing is better or worse – it’s just different. And that thought alone has opened up my life!
I guess if I were to talk about an initial hardship, it would be the language barrier. Simple everyday tasks like going to the grocery store or bank turned into a guessing game. I found myself (and still find myself at times) freezing up, and then asking, Parlez-vous anglais? Thankfully, a lot of people in the south of France and Monaco are english speaking, but in the long run it will not help me learn the language faster. I guess in the course of a year I can say that I understand French pretty well, but I don’t speak it - and this will take years!
In terms of company life, things are amazing! Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo is remarkable. The work, the creativity, the people, the places… the list is endless. Jean-Christophe is a definitive artist. I could say a whole lot more, but feel I don’t need to. I just know BMC is a good fit for me!
On a whole different note - Those of you who are close to me know that I am an avid believer in “The Secret”, and for the last two or so years I have been using its principles to shape my life. Now, I am not here to preach it, but I will say that I believe in it whole-heartedly. The power of positive thinking and knowing how the laws of attraction work have forced me to look at my life (and future) with a fine-toothed comb. And in return, have made this past season, and also my future endeavors, quite clear. I guess my point in even bringing this all up, is that it has made my transition into this les Ballets de Monte-Carlo pretty seamless. If you haven’t heard of it, I highly recommend the book or DVD.
I don’t want to make this post too lengthy so I will try to show you through some pictures what I’ve done & seen. The world is definitely your oyster, and life is what you make it. If you crave change or are contemplating something, just do it. The outcome in learning is golden.
This is a picture from the our first tour. It is the set for JC’s La Songe (A Midsummer Night’s Dream). There is a very modern approach to all of the sets of his ballets. I love it. I feel it brings more attention the the dancers and their intentions.
This is a picture from the theater in Bologna, Italy. The picture doesn’t capture the beauty of this enchanting space. This is where we performed JC’s Romeo et Juliette. It was also my first time dancing on a raked stage!!! My turns were never so bad, but by day three I started to get the hang of it.
We traveled to two small cities on the north of France, and along the way (on a free day), a small group of us stopped in Paris for a day. This is my impression of Mary Tyler Moore in front of the Louvre. Oh, yeah, and the Louvre is not pink, haha.. it was a setting that the camera was on!
Earlier this year, I posted pictures of La Belle in Japan. Here is a fun picture from that tour! It was of one of the best tours this season - sometimes I don’t think I will ever grow up!
Me & Nathalie Nordquist before our debut in JC’s Altro Canto. This is one of my favorites of Maillot’s! This was in Valencia, Spain
On our last, and potentially best tour, we had one free day to explore. The dancers took it as an opportunity to go to the Dead Sea & Jerusalem. We packed on black mud from the earth all over our bodies (like a mask), then rinsed it off, and went to literally float in the salty water of Dead Sea. It was UNREAL. I wish that I could post more pictures from this tour - Performing La Songe, and experiencing Israel… la vie est belle!
And now, this is what we are currently doing. JC’s new creation, Men’s Dance for Women. It’s been wonderful to work on a “creation” with Jean-Christophe. The dancers are still fine tuning the choreography in this piece, and we always will be. Jean-Christophe has an intention for every step in this ballet which does two things - one, makes it easier to have an objective so we know why steps are executed in a certain way. And, two makes it a challenge to focus on that objective. It’s great fun!!
Hope you enjoyed my glimpse! Next for me is a small vacation & then a guesting with Ballet Hawaii!!! Very excited! Stay tuned…
Room with a View - Tel Aviv, Israel
We are currently in Tel Aviv, Israel on our last tour of the season. We just got in yesterday, and I have to say I was amazed at our surroundings! I will write more later about what we are dancing here, but in the meantime, here our some pictures from my hotel room. The beach is very reminiscent of Waikiki.
So You Think You Can Dance
Hi Wingers!
Sorry I haven’t posted for a while, but I have been keeping busy with So You Think You Can Dance, and since I wasn’t able to blog about that, I really didn’t have much to say!
Anyhow for anyone who missed it and wanted to see it, I’ve found some clips of it on youtube and I thought I would post it.
And for those that are new to the Winger, welcome! I blog here about dance and if you would like to keep updated on my season at Miami City Ballet, come check out the Winger!
Miami Audition:
Vegas Week:
Elimination:
Finally, I also wanted to thank everyone for being so supportive of me - Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
The Dance Community Needs Your Help
Help save this beautiful company before it is too late!
As we all know money and businesses from every sector have been experiencing difficult times recently. Unfortunately the ballet world is no exception to this fact. I want to bring to your attention an issue that is very important to me personally; Oregon Ballet Theatre needs your help. If we all don’t pull together and help this company it will have to close it’s doors. Not only do I have close friends in this company, but it is also a company that the ballet world cannot afford to loose. I urge you to take action on this issue. If you can donate any amount please do! ( Click here for information on how to donate to OBT)
As you see from the poster above they will also be holding a benefit performance.
Here are a few links with more information on the company as well as the current issue:
http://www.obt.org/news_links/features/5-27-09_Oregonian_onthebrink.html
In the studio with Arthur Fink
heidi and jeff
(All images in this post: Copyright © 2009, Arthur Fink)
Lynn Peterson
Jeff Lyon and Brigitte Mitchell
We are less than one week until opening, and really, truly excited! We had company in the studio yesterday.. Along with lighting designer, Kate Ashton, taking a peek at the pieces, we had photographer Arthur Fink sharing the space with us. His intense interest in the process of creating dance is such an inspiration. Many people only get to see the final product, and Arthur’s work helps bring a perspective into the studio.. to see what its like as a group of bodies work together and create the ephemeral things that, typically, only we experience. Since an integral part of SYREN’s mission is bringing dance to the general public, it was certainly an inspiring first session with Arthur. We just worked and worked, and he just kept shooting and shooting. It was great.
me
Hope to see you all NEXT WEEKEND at Ailey Citigroup Theater (55h and 9th). Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8pm each evening.
Tickets: www.smarttix.com
(and remember to use discount code “winger” for discounted tix!)
