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JUSTIN PECK |
Ok here are some of the shots (by the talented Gwyneth Muller) that did not make it onto the initial ‘Mama G’ post. Some are too funny to leave out, while others are simply just too frightening to stop staring at . Enjoy
A NBA basketball player’s Tendu Efface
Disgruntled Mama G (make-up removal process)
Gwyneth [the flower] and Me [the, uh, er, drag queen?]
There you have it.
Laugh, Cry, Eat, Drink, Be Merry
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JUSTIN PECK |
I would have never imagined that I would be earning a salary by parading around stage in full drag make-up with 8 kids hidden underneath my oversized woman’s dress. But hey, anything is possible.
It turns out that this Nutcracker season at the New York City Ballet, I have been cast to perform the role of Mother Ginger. Here are the bizarre and unusual circumstances that involve playing the part, with photos shot by the beautiful, talented, and air-biting Gwyneth Muller:
Step 1: 40 minutes of make-up.
Each show I have to head down to the make-up room to get my gorgeous “face” painted on by make-up guru Michael Avedon (the head of the make-up department at NYCB who has a gift for the art of make-up application). This involves a heavy caked-on layer of foundation, painfully intricate eye lining and shadowing, and layers upon layers of outrageous fake eyelashes (step-by-step pictures of the process are shown below). I find getting my make-up done by another person to be unexpectedly therapeutic. However, I definitely don’t enjoy the added weight and discomfort of having fake eyelashes prodded and pasted onto my eyelids. Once the make-up is completed, I have my wig+bonnet strapped on before heading down for stilt application…
Shots of the Process:
Me, petrified of the make-up extremities to come
An ace bandage is tied around my head to cover up my hairline and for eye brow application
thick layer of base. My eyebrows have to be covered with bee’s wax and then painted tan in order to hide them
LASHES
The raised eyebrows
Final Product
Step 2: Stilts
The stilts are actually a fun perk of performing ‘Mama G.’ They give me an added 2 feet on top of my 6’1” body height, making me feel at home with the likes of Yao Ming, Lebron James, and Shaquille Oneal. The stilts themselves are actually more like metal platforms, and are surprisingly easy to walk on. I always do a warm up lap on my stilts around the backstage area, as sort of a good-luck routine, before heading over to the wings to watch a bit of the second act. I’ll just put it this way: no one standing in front of me in the wings will EVER obstruct the views of an 8’1” super-giant.
Step 3: Dress (I feel pretty)
I’m not quite sure how heavy the dress is, but it feels like its around 50 pounds. Its strapped onto my shoulders and upper torso using a harness, and sits at hip level. There is a top that goes on separately, and gives me the appearance of having a ‘D’ cup bra size (Sexy, eh?). There are all kinds of fun props attached to the dress to play with on stage, which include a tambourine, a mirror, a powder puff, and a fan.
Step 4: Oh, kids these days……
So there are 8 little girls that travel with me under my dress, as I attempt to maneuver the 50 pound, 9 foot long dress around the stage—all while on stilts. I’m always cautious of stepping on the kids, being as I have no way of seeing where they are under my dress, but the occasional child-squashing does occur (don’t worry though, no severe injuries to date).
Step 5: Choreography
NYCB is surprisingly relaxed about what sort of choreography one does on stage for the part of Mother Ginger. What they do is give some general guidance regarding cues and placement in relation to the music. All of the time in between, though, must be filled with one’s own creativity and imagination. Therefore, I am attempting to throw in new por de bra choreography for each performance, based on a new famous ballet each time. So far, I have incorporated the likes of Ballo Della Regina, Serenade, and Tombeau De Couperin (all Balanchine ballets). More to come soon!
So there you have it. A day in the life of an 8-foot-tall, 10-foot-wide, extremely fertile (8 kids! Ah!) drag queen. If anyone is interested in catching a performance of my Mama G, the days I am performing the part are listed in the casting section of NYCBallet.com.
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KRISTIN SLOAN |
From the archives… a backstage photo by Doug in 2005.
My face and lashes may thank me for my recent decision!
I sincerely apologize for taking my time in letting you all know about my recent transition. I’ve been trying to make this decision for many months, and once it all started happening I became so completely wrapped up in it (as I tend to do) that I couldn’t find the time to properly let you all know about it!
As of November 13th (approximately 3 weeks ago), I have taken on the role (or I guess I should say we have begun creating the role) of New Media Director for the New York City Ballet.
As many of you are already aware, I’ve been dealing with hip injuries throughout much of my career as a ballet dancer. Most recently, I have been fighting against the latest incarnation of pain my body has decided to throw at me, and have been unable to return to dancing after a year and a half of physical therapy and cortisone injections, and three prior surgeries. (Ballet is tough - it happens.)
But with the trust and freedom the company has so wonderfully given me over this time period, the amazing opportunities I have been offered to help the company in new ways, and the tremendous support many of you have shared with me, I have been able to further explore other artistic avenues within the dance field.
Through all the hard work, self-education (and fun) involved in these projects, I began to realize a new creative interest and passion for dance that didn’t require my body to be able handle the physical stress of ballet technique.
This summer I sat down with two of my (and everyone’s) guiding forces within the company, and was given all the options and encouragement a dancer and artist could hope for. The interest in my dancing abilities and potential was reiterated, after which the idea and option of a new position was raised. It was made clear that I was valued and wanted, but it was up to me to decide what I wanted to do.
It was thoughtfully stressed that I should take time in making this decision. I’ve spent the last three and a half months thinking about what I want to do, what my body will allow me to do, and where I want to go in the future.
Even though I will miss dancing more than I could ever predict at this point, I am so excited about this new opportunity. It is incredible to be able to research and think creatively about things that I am already so interested in outside of dance, bringing that passion together with my passion for dance and NYCB.
Anyhow, I’ll still be at Lincoln Center, running back and forth between the offices at the theater and WSD’s physical therapy across the street. I am still hoping to heal my hip to the point that I can dance in some capacity and be active in the future.
I will continue to post about my journeys and experiences in the dance world, from a slightly new perspective. Thanks again to our family of Winger readers for all your support (and of course my own family and friends who have helped me through this tough decision)!
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CANDICE THOMPSON |
So summer and vacationing is officially over for me and after going to the Jersey shore, Newport Beach and visiting my family a couple of times in AZ, I am back to school and working overtime! (like a true New Yorker:-)
Monday was a perfect example of my new fall schedule:
Having performed on Sunday at the Dancenow Festival at DTW with ad hoc Ballet, I was sore on Monday morning and so headed to a Pilates private session first thing in the morning at the Kane School. Elizabeth Brown, also of ad hoc Ballet, trains me and when she becomes certified and open for business, the wingers will be the first to know! Then I went downtown a few blocks to PMT Studios where I was rehearsing dancers for SIDESHOW, choreographed by Christopher Hutchings. It will premiere at Dixon Place in October 19th and 20th. And while I am sad that I am unable to perform in it due to travel plans, I am so excited about getting to work as a rehearsal director/ballet mistress. I love the problem solving element of coaching dancers and this piece is particularly fun because it involves some old pals from my class at NYU.
Photo: Breanne and Eric working on SIDESHOW.
From there I went to my first day of school at Creative Arts Studio. On Mondays I teach Ballet 3, Advanced Ballet and Pointe. We did a lot of placement, stretching and talking about goals for the year. It is very exciting to see new faces as well as the familiar faces who are brave enough to come back for another year of hard work.
And lastly, I finished out the night at a rehearsal for LORDS OF CHAOS, a new short play by Eric Sanders, directed by Julie Rossman. I am working on the makeup and costume design and consulting on all of the gorey special effects. It runs this Friday and Saturday at Jimmy’s No. 43 (43 E. 7th Street, btwn. 2nd and 3rd Ave.) at 8p. It is part of the larger Binge Festival presented by Working Man’s Clothes and should be a really good time!
Photo: Michael Mason, Cole Wimpee, and Eric Sanders getting ready to rehearse. Lords of Chaos is about Norwegian Black Metal. For photos that are really mind-blowing and capture the essence of this subculture much better than my camera phone, check out the Brooklyn photographer Peter Beste at www.peterbeste.com
In addition to all of that I was fielding calls from my factory for LOLAstretch, trying to make the most of fashion week and what PLUM being in means for dancewear, working on costume sketches for the upcoming New Chamber Ballet show with two world premieres, and tallying receipts from the last show I costumed, YOU MAY GO NOW which just opened Sunday night at the 45th St. Theatre. That show runs for three weeks and has really beautiful writing, directing and acting. And for this Wednesday and Thursday nights, tickets are half off at theatremania.com so you really can’t go wrong!
It was a long day to say the least! But there is really some exciting stuff happening in dance and theatre and fashion this week and in upcoming weeks so here is my recap for now:
1. SIDESHOW
5. LOLASTRETCH–PLUM IS THE COLOR FOR FALL!
xoxo
Candice
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| Posted by David
Hallberg
So… The season has officially finished and we are now touring in California, OH sunny CA!!!
It was a busy, fulfilling season, sprinkled with some pleasant surprises, and not shy of much hard, grueling work.
Some highlights included:
1) Dancing almost my whole season with the incomparable Gillian Murphy. From Romeo, The Dream, Othello, Swan Lake to Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. It was and is always a joy to work with her.
2) Doing Sleeping Beauty with Diana Vishneva. She is in her own right, a truly individual artist, which I can only learn from.
3) Making my debut as Solar in La Bayadere… One of the hardest classical roles for the male and working with Natasha Makarova.
4) Lastly and most importantly… seeing Ferri’s farewell to the stage with ABT. An ABT farewell is like nothing else, and seeing someone like Alex retire is truly unique.
Here are just a few photos to re cap the season…
The Met on the opening. Gearing up for two months of fatigue.
A rare photo before my second performance of The Dream.
A side view of the Met with Avery Fisher straight ahead. I love the geometry of the buildings. Very 60’s..
And lastly, Ferri stands alone on the Met stage, taking her final bows, with the company in the wings.
Posted by Sloan | via mobile phone
It’s 15 minutes before the show and the power is out. Actually, it keeps going out, but now its been a few minutes and it hasn’t come back on. Makes it challenging to do makeup!
Delicious/tag/wingmark
