The past few weeks for me have been focused on one thing: Rami Be’er’s Touch. Just after returning from work from our tour in Italy, I started rehearsals for a ballet that would become one of the most rewarding ballets that I have danced.
Rami Be’er, a well known and respected choreographer, set this ballet on The Croatian National Ballet in the summer as part of their summer festival. One of the dancers left the company leaving one empty spot. Well, who else to fill a spot other than yours truly? I was thrown into rehearsals with a company that was already familiar with the choreography and had already gone through all the training for it. For me, it was all foreign. I had to learn the steps as well as understanding the style and movement. The challenge was not only hard but tough on the body too. I would go home at nights with bruises and barely being able to walk. I had to keep thinking that I am apart of something artistically unique and special.
The performances went well. It is a very technical show but all of my fellow dancers had already performed it and aware of the space and lighting. I was thrown into performances with only two rehearsals on stage. With each show, I was able to grow. In fact, the piece as a whole has taught me so much. I learned a completely new way of moving. In this ballet, I had to move every part of my body in funky yet coordinated ways. It was also a special show for me because this was such a hard ballet to get through that we all needed each others support to get through it. There was such a feeling of comradery. At the end of the ballet, all the dancers pull down the curtains, stagehands sweep the snow off the stage and the audience gives a roaring applause in recognition and appreciation for all our hard work. It was a truly special moment to be bowing before an audience after giving everything you had to them. It made this whole experience very special for me.
So I walk away from Touch a stronger dancer and artist. I may have soreness, bruises and cuts all over my body but I think of them as marks of achievement.
