Romeo et Juliette in Seattle
Last week PNB opened its 2009/2010 Season with Les Ballets de Monte Carlo version of Romeo et Juliette, choreographed by Jean-Christophe Maillot. I think it was a perfect opener to the Season. The company looked so wonderful in all four shows last weekend. It is inspiring to see all the dancers so devoted to their roles. It felt to me that people were not just performing yet another Romeo and Juliet, but instead the dancers became the characters. And I believe the energy was felt not just onstage but also in the audience. People that I know that came to the ballet felt so moved and touched by the entire production.
For me the opening of the season was emotional in many levels. First, it was my premiere in the role of Juliet. Second, this version is so dramatic and intense that by the end I felt like I had merged with the character and I couldn’t help but feel upset, angry, sad and at the same time wired and happy; it was the most disoriented I’ve ever been after a performance. And at last, I was supposed to perform Juliette in the beginning of last year, but because of a back injury I had to cancel my shows two weeks before opening night. So in a way I have been dreaming about this character for the past 18 months, and getting a chance to finally perform Romeo et Juliette was overwhelming! But all these emotions are a good thing: it means that hard times do pass and that dreams can turn into reality. And that dance can be so powerful it can change an artist forever.
For those that are in Seattle and that have not seen the production yet, I would really advice that you don’t miss this one. We have only 5 shows left starting tomorrow and ending this Sunday, Oct 4th. You can find more information on our website, www.pnb.org. And also you can check out new videos for the season on PNB’s you tube channel. Here is a taste: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnCCGCUFjco
Finally, I will leave you with these beautiful pictures Angela Sterling took of Lucien Postlewaite and me during a studio rehearsal/photo shoot for R&J.
And one more thing, I have never finished a post like this before (it feels like the Oscars or something!) but I really would like to thank Lucien for been such and amazing partner and friend through this process; thank Peter for bringing this version back so soon and thank everyone else that have been working so hard to make this production a success!! And of coarse, thank you Angela for the beautiful photos
Seattle Dance Project
Joseph Anderson during the Weeping Solo in Orpheus. Photo by Zebra Visual
This weekend I went to see Project Orpheus, performed by Seattle Dance Project. Seattle Dance Project was co-founded in 2007 by Julie Tobiason and Timothy Lynch. Julie and Tim both retired from PNB as Principal Dancers and are now teachers at PNB. After retiring, Julie decided to explore dance around Seattle, where she performed with different dance groups for a couple years. In 2007 Tim and Julie decided to put together their own group, Seattle Dance Project, where they could hire high-caliber dancers who had past professional experience and who felt passionate about performing again.
This weekend was the premiere of the company’s second production, called Project Orpheus. They chose to create a modern version of the story of Orpheus and Eurydice. What was unique about this version is that Julie and Tim asked three well known choreographers in Seattle — Wade Madsen, Eva Stone and Olivier Wevers — to create the piece. Eva focused on the furies and underworld scenes. Wade choreographed the party, snakebite and request for Eurydice scenes, while Olivier took the dramatic part of the story where Orpheus is devastated by the death of his beloved Eurydice. It was amazing that these three unique choreographers were able to create a full-length story so well developed and connected. Each dance smoothly transferred to the next scene, and the variety of movement made the evening balanced, well rounded and interesting to watch.
Project Orpheus started this weekend and will play until Oct 4th at the ACT Theater in Seattle. The dates are Sept. 19, 20, 26, 27 and Oct. 3 and 4, all shows at 8pm. I encourage everyone to come see this creative performance, and maybe I will see some of you there. I definitely want to see this again!
Also check out the Seattle Dance Project web site at www.seattledanceproject.org to find out more about the dancers and their mission as a company.
Hope everyone in Seattle can experience Seattle Dance Project.
And last, take a look at the making of Orpheus on YouTube.
Young Talent
I woke up late yesterday morning for my 7:30am PT appointment. I jumped out of bed, washed my face, put on some comfortable clothes and drove to Proformance Rehab (www.proformancerehab.com), where I get PT for my back, in a really BAD mood (I hate rushing in the morning). Somehow I arrived at the clinic early and when I saw my pt, Anne Marie Trombold, she said she had something to show me. She tuned on You Tube and played this amazing video by her 17 year old son, Zach Perry. Before I saw his video I thought my day was going to be one of those off days where you can’t do anything right, but after seeing his video I was so moved I couldn’t help but smile and feel the change it had created in me.
So I thought I would share with you this young talent.
Zach made this video for the Speak New Words Contest, which requested the contestants to write a song about change. He wrote the lyrics, played the guitar and the cello in it, sang the song, and he put together this video in two days over the past weekend. Truly amazing.
Enjoy it.
In case you want to find the video on YouTube you should type “zachpeary”
After Vail
What a great way to come back to the stage. After six months of recovery my first performance back couldn’t have been better. I dance The Orchard, music by Philip Glass and choreography by Damian Woetzel. The piece was choreographer on Tyler Angle and me and it premiered last year at the Vail Dance Festival. A couple of months ago I received a phone call from Damian asking me to dance his piece again at the opening Gala for the Vail Dance Festival. He also added that Philip Glass and Wendy Sutter would be playing for the performance. I can’t even describe how I felt. All I can remember was thinking: I hope I am back dancing at that time!
And I was. That was my first show back. Dancing along with Philip Glass felt surreal. Both, he and Wendy Sutter, are amazing people to be around. Their energy and the sound they create together makes you forget where you are. Also, it is always a pleasure to share the stage with so many other talented dancers from different companies. Among them were the Paul Taylor Company, Wendy Whelan, Craig Hall and Fang-Yi Sheu.
My other shows, one with PNB and two for the International Evening of Dance, were also great. It was such a pleasure being onstage again without major lower back pain. I was very careful in class and rehearsals, and by the time I had to perform I even forgot I was just coming back from an injury. It felt so natural and exciting to me.
Colorado is a wonderful place and the Festival Damian Woetzel created was a huge successes. I fell lucky to be able to come back to the stage this way.
I will keep you posted about our exciting new season coming up in September with 2 World Premiers by Twyla Tharp.
Company class on stage at the Amphitheater
Peter Boal teaching class. This theater is really magical.
PNB rehearsing Concerto Barroco with the Fancy Free set on the back. Principals Miranda Weese and Carrie Imler leading the show.
Philip Glass rehearsing for the opening Gala of the Vail Dance Festival. This photo was taken by Principal Dancer Louise Nadeau. She took beautiful photos of our rehearsals in Vail. She’s got the touch…
For more photos of the shows, rehearsal and for videos please check back at www.vaildance.org and at http://www.flickr.com/photos/vaildance/
New stuff is updated everyday until the end of the festival!
Enjoy it!
vaildance.org
Hello everyone,
So I promised some photos from Vail and news when I got back to Seattle next Monday. However, as you all know, technology is amazing these days and you can see everything almost instantly on the internet.
That’s why my post is a bit sooner (which is a great thing!)
Damian Woetzel has posted many pictures from the opening Gala at the Vail Dance Festival website. The pictures are from Erin Baiano, and they are beautiful. He also posted videos on YouTube. Photos and videos can be seen at vaildance.org and on Flickr.
Damian will be posting new photos everyday, so everyone can experience this incredible Festival.
I danced the opening Gala on Sunday and I will be performing again tonight with PNB, and so far my back is doing great! I will write more details about this trip when I get back to Seattle. So far it has been magical to be back on stage performing with Tyler Angle, along with the amazing Philip Glass and Wendy Sutter.
Look for my post next week with more updates and my photos from the Festival.
Winding Path
Life just keeps giving me opportunities to continue to grow as a person. Last January, I was rehearsing Juliette with Lucien Postlewaite for PNB’s new production of Christophe Maillot’s Romeo et Juliette. I was thrilled that I was getting to dance this amazing ballet and I was getting to work with Giovanna Lorenzoni and Gaby Baars from Les Ballets de Monte Carlo. I knew my back was in trouble but the idea of letting go of an opening night as Juliette seemed impossible to me. A week and half before opening night my body shut down. Like coming out of a dream, I was awakened to realize once again that nothing is more important than my health and that it was time to let go. It was an experience of letting go of control. The pain was very humbling. My body was injured and I had to help it to heal.
So here I am. Six months have gone by and my back has mostly healed from a compressed fracture in one of my vertebras. I have returned to dancing (as of this past week!). But this past six months have been very valuable to me. What I can remember from my past injuries is a lot of frustration and depression from not being able to dance. But this time was different. After realizing I wasn’t going to be able to perform Juliette, my mind, body and soul felt open to see what else I could do with myself besides dance.
The first thing I did was to enroll in a class at Seattle University. Until now, I never had an honest desire to go back to school, but since last year the idea of studying again seems wonderful to me. So I took an English and a Philosophy class and loved every moment of it (or almost every moment of it!!). I loved the fact that I was learning new things and I loved seeing myself as a student. It was very easy to dedicate myself to every task. I also started to take singing lessons. As a kid, my Mom and Dad sang with a choir and my older sister had a rock band. They all have incredible voices. We used to sing all the time. (We had songs for Beer, Meals, Chimarrao tea, beautiful sunsets) So I found Ann Evans, my Voice teacher, who has reminded me of how free one can feel when singing. It’s been healing to me to sing again and remember my times in Brazil singing famous Brazilian songs with my sister.
And one of the most important lessons from this injury is how much I have learned about my body and especially my back. Ever since I moved to Seattle I have been interested in the wonders of the human body and how it all works. I have taken Aston Patterning courses in movement and alignment to try to understand as much as I can about the body. Through this injury I got to work with great physical therapists, from traditional to holistic, Naturopathic doctors, Aston patterning, and acupuncture, etc. All of them added something to this enormous puzzle in my head about the body. I enjoy learning and working with the body so much that it makes me wonder if perhaps I will pursue something in this field when I retire from ballet.
But for now I am back to ballet and ready to be onstage again next Sunday. I will be doing four shows at the Vail Dance Festival. My first show will be at the opening night Gala, Sunday July 27th. Damian Woetzel choreographed a piece last year for Tyler Angle (NYCB) and I, and we will dance along with Phillip Glass on the piano (how exciting is that!). My second show will be with PNB, where I will be dancing Fancy Free. Then I have two more shows for the Vail International Evening of Dance with Batkhurel Bold.
It can be so easy to be completely hypnotized by the excitement of being onstage again and to get mesmerized by the magic ballet can create. However, I need to remember: ballet is my eternal love, but my body and my health is still the most important thing because without it I wouldn’t be able to dance.
Writing this post will help me remembered that!?!?!?
See you all after Vail. Hopefully I will have some nice shots from the tour and good news about how my back is doing!!
MPG, Mondetta Performance Gear
Hello Wingers!
I would like to share with all of you this great sports clothing company, MPG, Mondetta Performance Gear from the Canadian clothing company, Mondetta!! Here at the Pacific Northwest Ballet we are lucky to have direct contact with MPG’s clothes and development because one of our soloists, Chalnessa Eames, is married to one of the principals and the CEO of MPG. Chalnessa has shared with us dancers her husband’s passion in creating fashionable and at the same time comfortable clothing for all types of people with an active lifestyle, and of course for us dancers.
MPG’s clothes are great for ballet or doing errands around the city. All the pants are flexible and fit nicely on the body and the best part of all they always look great. Their shirts and jackets are perfect because they keep you warm in class and in rehearsal but they are breathable so you never feel too hot or the opposite, wet and cold. As well as using many of the dancers as models, MPG has created a SOUL card program, which gives a discount to athletes and professionals that embody the dedication, drive, and passion that the creators at MPG respect. If you are a dancer or a professional athlete check your mail boxes to see if you have received your SOUL card. If you didn’t get one, contact Tony Lavilla, Brand director of MPG, and he will get you one. His e-mail is: tony@mondetta.com . You guys can also check their clothes at their website: http://www.mpgsport.com/
But wait, I still have more to tell you about MPG. To add to their incredible clothes, MPG is also reaching out to help the world. This feels very important to me and I want to make sure people are aware about their efforts. The more people that reach out for others the better our world can become. Here is some information, from Tony Lavilla, about how MPG is helping many families in Africa.
GIVES BACK PROGRAM
MONDETTA CHARITY FOUNDATION
At MPG, we believe going forward includes giving back.
From our beginning, we have dedicated 1% of gross sales to the
Mondetta Charity Foundation (MCF), a completely separate entity from
the Mondetta Clothing Company. The MCF was established to provide
assistance to ease some of the suffering in Africa due to devastating
problems such as AIDS and the ravages of poverty.
Four principals of the Mondetta Clothing Company were born in Uganda
and Kenya and have deep-seated emotional ties and a strong allegiance to the African Continent. While the problem of AIDS remains enormous,
MCF aims to tackle the hardships of life in these regions by taking
action where it counts, and push toward the vision of a better,
healthier future for those nations.
Tony Lavilla, Brand Director
Bravo to them!! Here is what our dancers are saying about MPG:
“I can stretch, keep warm and show clean lines. MPG has brought fashion into
performance.” Chalnessa Eames
“MPG is so multi-use, so fashionable you wouldn’t expect it to be
comfortable too.” Rachel Foster
“Knowing the background of the company, I love that MPG is created by
people who are passionate about creating high quality clothes and
giving back to their community at the same time.” Kaori Nakamura
“Up until now, you couldn’t move in beautiful clothes. That’s no
longer true with MPG. I feel comfortable, totally at ease, and I look
amazing. MPG is going where no one else has gone.” Olivier Wevers
Hope you guys enjoy MPG as much as we at PNB (dancers, ballets masters, employees, all our significant others) are enjoying it!!!
Chalnessa Eames
Casey Herd
Kaori Nakamura
Peter Boal teaching class. Sorry about the blurry picture, I didn’t want to disturb class too much and one try to get the picture is all could do!!!
Ben Griffiths posing to show off his MPG shirt before class. Jordan and Seth are also at the barre wearing MPG.
Kaori Nakamura watching rehearsal.
PNB is off to Vail, Colorado!!
Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 2007 Summer Vacation was definitely a quick one! We got back 2 ½ weeks ago to get ready for our tour to Vail, Colorado, where we will be performing at the 2007 VAIL INTERNATIONAL DANCE FESTIVAL. Damian Woetzel was named the new artistic director for the festival and we are very honored to be invited to perform during his first Festival. PNB will perform three shows, July 29th and 30th and August 1st. We are bringing incredible ballets to Vail, from Balanchine to Nacho Duato to William Forsythe to Twyla Tharp. These performances should be very exciting.
Additionally to these shows I will also be dancing on August 3rd and 4th at the International Evenings of Dance, an evening Damian organized that will show stars from the Royal Ballet, New York City Ballet, Alvin Ailey, Pacific Northwest Ballet and many others. Bold and I will dance a Pas de Deux from Rassemblement, a Nacho Duato piece, and Balanchine’s Diamonds.
And I will also be dancing on a very exciting night. The premiere of Morphoses, Christopher Wheeldon’s new company. The performance will be on August 10th, and a preview on the 8th. I am so excited to be able to dance Polyphonia with his new company. Thank you Chris for inviting me to be part of this special evening.
And if all this preparation wasn’t enough I had some time to do a photo shoot with Angela Sterling this past weekend. Angela and I had a great time together. Angela was shooting for a promotional shoot for PNB. I think I have given the winger readers her link before, but for the ones that haven’t got a chance to see her work you can go to www.angelasterlingphoto.com to check out her amazing photos.
Hope some of you can make it to Vail. It is going to be a very exciting festival.
Packing up our costumes, shoes, thights, headpieces…….
PNB’s programs in Vail.
Angela Sterling doing her magic!
From the Archives - v 6.17
David Hallberg
Performing in Vail in the Summer of 2006
Carla Körbes
Performing at Jacobs Pillow in 2006
Kristin Sloan
Performing at Central Park’s Summerstage in 2005.
Cathy Godeghesi
Performing at the Festival at Campos do Jordão, Brazil
More next Sunday…
Swan Lake in Irvine, CA
About a month ago Casey Herd and I were invited to dance Swan Lake in Irving, CA. As some of you might recall Susan posted one picture she took in the wings during our first performance.
So yesterday I received some pictures from Ben Majors. Ben is a dancer and he, like so many of us, is recovering from a serious injury. So to keep himself busy and working he has decided to share with the world his other talent: taking photographs of dancers. Well his pictures are beautiful and by seeing them yesterday I got to relive my experience in California. This trip was special to me in so many ways.
In February Casey and I premiered in Swan Lake together. Dancing this ballet for the first time was for me more that just a physical challenge. It was also a spiritual and mental challenge. Since moving to Seattle I have discovered this dancer that had been tied up inside me for a couple of years. I have had the opportunity to dance all these roles that I had no idea I was capable of dancing anymore. And Swan Lake is just one of the ballets that have awakened this incredible strength and artistry in me. After a rigorous preparation and hours in the studio rehearsing with my Elaine Bauer and Peter Boal, Casey and I only got to perform the ballet two times. So coming to Irving to dance Odette/Odile with Festival Ballet Theater was a big gift to me. I feel lucky to have had the opportunity to recreate what we had created back in February.
Another great thing about the trip was the people I met in Irving. Salwa Rizkalla founded Southland Ballet Academy in 1983 and in 1988 she started Festival Ballet Theater, a company where the dancers can inspire people and also be inspired by the many internationally known artists that Salwa brings to perform with them. Salwa was a great person to work with and we both felt very welcomed by her and her dancers. We also met Sayat Astryan, the most creative do it all person I have ever met!! And Ben, of course. And Dave Friedman, the company’s photographer and he is also a race car photographer. And it is always a pleasure meeting all the dancers and the people that come watch the shows.
Last but definitely not least. A beautiful part about the Winger family is that we artists get to learn about each other and eventually even meet each other. To be able to go to Irving, a place I have never been before, and have someone like Susan calling me wanting to meet with me felt welcoming and exciting. I absolutely loved meeting her. Even with the small amount of time I got to spend with her I could see that she is everything she appears to be at the Winger. Generous, passionate and always willing to help the dance world. I hope I can continue meeting my winger friends and also the people that so passionately read our posts every day.
I am glad I get to share these pictures with you and a little bit of my experience of dancing Swan Lake and being in this world.
