Tonight was many things to many people. For everyone it was the perfect end to a great run of Nut, arguably our best yet. To some, it was the opportunity to look towards a bright horizon. There were tears of joy and tears of sorrow, but also many triumphs. Tommy and Rick stepped in for Joe in Arabian and Snow King and each, with Nicole and Jaime, was outstanding! As I looked out on to the stage, I was overwhelmed with pride at how beautiful everyone look and just how hard they worked to be there. I had a surprise of my own as well. During the curtain call, I turned to see Bob West walking towards me with a bouquet of flowers! I was so surprised! I gave him a huge hug and turned to thank the audience once more. After that I became overwhelmed with emotion and had to fight back many tears. They were tears of joy of course, but also tears of sadness because, as a senior, I am unsure where the wind will take me. As I say to the seniors in high school: for a new door to open, an old one must close. Perhaps this was a close to a chapter in my life, perhaps not. Either way, it was a perfect ending. Congratulations to all, I’ve never been more proud to be a member of the Brandywine Ballet.
BUMMED!!!!
Okay, actually more than one word. I am rather disappointed that we will not perform today, but I would not want any audience members to miss out because they could not make it in the snow, or worse if they were hurt getting to the theater. We will do our best to have a make up show in a timely fashion and I’m looking forward to performing tomorrow! As of now, I will go make my Christmas presents for my flowers and secret santa!
One of the most challenging aspects to Nutcracker is how it lands right at the end of the semester! This past week I struggled to balance the end of year school crunch with my time in the theater, but I have managed to accomplish everything on my list and find time to enjoy myself! Next week will be yet another challenge, but I’m looking forward to 3 PM on Friday when I am officially finished the semester!
Well, our first week of dress rehearsals is officially over and we begin our weekend of performances. This year I am dancing the same parts in both casts. I feel that I am much more relaxed because I know that I have double the opportunity to do well. I am confident and excited to perform for my family and friends this weekend!
This weekend during rehearsal for the Nutcracker, I fell and hurt my ankle. I was careful to put ice on it immediately and that night I kept it elevated and continued to ice. I was very worried that I would be too hurt to dance in the Nutcracker, especially since I did not have any understudies! Thankfully the next day I was able to dance for the entire day. I taped my ankle for support and used a heating pad and legwarmers to keep it warm. All of the strengthening exercises we do in our warm-ups really helped me prevent a serious injury. I can’t express how relieved I am that I will be okay!
This Thanksgiving I have something to be truly thankful for!!!
The Nutcracker has always been one of my favorite ballets for a few reasons. First, there are so many parts that dancers from the age of 6 to 60 can participate, and dancers in the company have the opportunity to dance in many roles. I also love the Nutcracker for the traditions. I have been dancing in this ballet since I was in the second grade and I can count on one hand the roles that I have NOT danced!! We perform the Nutcracker in the middle two weeks of December when the holiday season is reaching its peak and I usually get to dance on my birthday, which I love. To me the holidays and the Nutcracker go hand in hand and I hope to always dance some role in this wonderful ballet!
As a dancer and performer my goal is to reach out and speak to the audience with my movement. I have learned through my experiences on the stage that it is nearly impossible to speak to everyone at the same time. Instead I focus on one person usually a friend, a family member, or a professor from school. This person becomes my audience of one. I project and speak entirely to them, which brings clarity to my message. When my intentions are distinct and focused, my movement can be understood by everyone in the audience. This weekend I’m looking forward to sharing my passion for dance with some very special people…James
