You can be updated by email when I post new blogs. Join the email list here... http://eepurl.com/h3qE
Monday
We had class with Carlos Lopez. He is the ABT Studio Company Ballet Master. We were in the GG-4 studio which is really big and has this super cool brick wall. The downside is the floor is not too great. :( It's basically just Marley on a wood floor. It was also very slippery today. With that said we didn't really do a grand allegro which I like better than petit allegro.
We then had Harriet Clark for pointe. She has so much energy when she teaches and I love it.
After lunch we headed back up to the same studio. We were in it all day. We had jazz class. Okay it wasn't really jazz but it was still pretty fun. I failed at the last combo though!
After "jazz" we had rep with Gabby Brown. Right now during rep we are basically just cleaning it and making sure we have the musicality correct. For the most part we know the steps.
Tuesday morning we started out with Pilates/yoga. Our scheduled said yoga but it really isn't yoga. We basically massage out our muscles, stretch a bit, and do some core work. After Pilates we had class with Gemma Bond again and I thought class went well. I enjoy her classes! (For those of you who don't know she has a British accent!) Leslie Browne then taught our pointe class. Honestly it was pretty rough because I was wearing new shoes. Typically new shoes will rub on my bunions and make them sore.
During lunch the past few days my friend Spencer has been helping me sell my Merde shirts! He sold them so fast! He now has a whole bunch of people who want them. Thanks so much Spencer! ;) You can get them at www.balletfreak.com . We also ship international. ;) There are a few different styles and sweat pants coming soon!!!
For an hour and a half we had character class with Olga Dvorovenko. Some of the younger boys were in our character class this time. Leslie brown then taught us the Dawn Variation from Coppelia. I did this variation over a year ago for a student show so I pretty much already knew it. Some things were different but I like this variation a lot because there is a variety of things mixed into it. Watching this video I feel like I have definitely progressed in the last year!! If you haven't seen my youtube channel it starts at age 10 . You can subscribe here http://www.youtube.com/mydancetv
Wednesday
For technique class we had Gabby Brown. I love her class because she knows how we feel and what we are going through. She is also very entertaining. We also had pointe with her and she let us start in center. Honestly, I do not like doing pointe at barre.
After lunch we had pas de deux class for and hour and a half with Ethan Brown. Before pas Austen Acevedo and I filmed some whip turns.
When I got home Wednesday I stretched for a bit and used my bunion reformer because my bunions were sore. They usually bother me when I start new pointe shoes.
Thursday
Thursday morning it was actually a bit cooler walking to class and I wasn't prepared for it. It was nice though. First we started out with Pilates and then had class with Charles Askegard. His class was challenging because it had quite a bit of fast foot work, but I really like it.
We then had pointe we Mr. DeVita. Our shoes had all this white powder on them from the studio we had pas in. I think it was something to help make it less sticky.
After lunch we had another ballet technique class with Miss Clark. At first we all had the barres pulled out but she told us to put them away. We basically did all of class in the center. I was happy for that because I prefer center over barre. Our last class of the day was modern.
Friday
Since it was Friday and we could wear colored leotards I wore my newer Yumiko. (The brown and green one in the style Denise). We had class with Kate Lydon and I loved it. She gives such GREAT corrections and I love her as a teacher. We also had her for pointe class. After lunch we had rep with Mrs. Brown and continued cleaning La Sylphide. Our last class of the day was Pilates.
Saturday
On Saturday I slept in and then met up with Audrey. We headed to the Yumiko store. On the way there were all these police and people around. Police were setting up blockades. Apparently the president would be going by that street because he was seeing a show.
Nothing really stood out in the Yumiko store so I might go check back in a couple of weeks. A really, really, great and super nice person sponsors all my Yumikos. Thank you Yumiko Sponsor =))
Audrey and I got some really yummy fro yo from 16 Handles.
I absolutely love this cat. The kitty lives in a pet store by the dorms.
On Sunday I took Mr. Ellison's Steps class which was hard! Later in the day I auditioned for his year round program. I thought the audition went well, but it was very crowded. The studio was also not extremely big.
My friend Rosemarie was in the city. She was at Lincoln center so we met up with her after class.
Thanks for reading about week four in the city at ABT. I hope it helps other dancers know what to expect and gives everyone an idea of what we do all summer!
You can be updated by email when I post new blogs. Join the email list here... http://eepurl.com/h3qE
I wanted to add this video because I love the photos that Kyle Froman takes and am a big fan of Ezra's videos too. Kyle used to dance with New York City Ballet. Here is the Vanity Fair Article about him with a few photos CLICK HERE .
I have his book "In the Wings" . You can get it HERE
Week Three - Summer Intensive Update: Year round audition for JKO School, Final show casting, New Gaynor Girl Status and more fun photos!
You can be updated by email when I post new blogs. Join the email list here... http://eepurl.com/h3qE
On Monday we had technique and pointe with Lupe Serrano again. Lupe Serrano has taught at The Juilliard School since 1997. She also currently teaches company class for American Ballet Theatre, ABT’s Studio Company, Eliot Feld’s Ballet Tech and The Metropolitan Opera Dancers. She joined ABT in 1953 as a principal dancer and was awarded prima ballerina status!! The class went well and once again I find myself just completely blown away by the staff that is teaching our classes! I think I said this before but that should be a deciding factor when you are choosing a program. Class size and teachers.
Photo: Lupe Serrano in The Combat. Photo courtesy of ABT Archives. www.abt.org
After lunch we had another technique class with Rosanna Servalli (Danced with ABT for 11 years and reached the rank of soloist). I really liked her class and she was very entertaining. During the class she had sheets of paper and seemed to be writing things down. I think it was for people who were auditioning for the year round program at the JKO School (Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis) which is attached to ABT and often feeds dancers into ABT Studio Company and then the company. Acceptance is by audition only. After class we then had variations with Kate Lydon. Kate is the Director of the ABT Studio Company. We learned Aurora act 3. She said she would just mix and match different versions together. I had fun learning this variation and I really enjoy working with Kate and look forward to when she is teaching class.
On Tuesday we started out with Pilates in the morning. We then had class with Gemma Bond, a Corps de Ballet dancer with ABT. It was really cool because she was wearing one of my Merde shirts! She is really nice and I enjoyed her class. Next we had pas de deux class! Pas would have to be my favorite class. It was taught by Charles Askegard. I partnered with Shaakir (a year round student at the JKO school) and Austen Acevedo again. After pas class we stayed in the studio and practiced for a bit. After lunch we had Ballet History class again. She showed us some videos of Natalia Osipova doing Giselle and also Tamara Rojo and Steven McRae doing La Sylphide.
Here is a video of Shaakir and his twin brother Naazir. Misty Copeland is featured talking about them! >> Click here
After history we had rep (repertoire) . Casting was finally decided for the final performance at the end of week 5. I am in the corps and I get to do a short variation with another dancer. I am happy with my parts and excited for the performance. My friend, Austen will be the male lead in my cast.
While walking to the Subway Wednesday morning I saw this nice little Tesla. I love to drive and I love cars!
On Wednesday we had technique class and pointe with Ms. Seravalli. I thought it was a good class! Also, this past week I have been talking with Paige from Gaynor Minden. They are starting this new program called Gaynor Girls and they asked me to be a part of it. They have invited less than 20 pre-professional dancers to participate. I am really excited because I really do love my Gaynor Minden pointe shoes so I'm happy to promote them! I feel honored that they chose me. It's a great opportunity for me.
After lunch we had character class. It was a pretty challenging class. The teacher liked to move through combinations fast. If you don't have character at your home studio your summer intensive may be the only place you get it. This is the case for me and I have been lucky enough to have it every summer since my first intensive at ABT NYC at age 12. Character is like folk dancing and appears in classical ballets like Coppelia, The Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty. The SAB website says it also appears in contemporary works and companies are doing more and more contemporary these days. So you better learn it =) If you are not familiar you can search it on youtube.
Our last class of the day was variations class with Harriet Clark. We learned Copellia Act 3. We did the version with the toe hops. I like this version but I also like jumping a lot so doing it with jumps would have been nice too.
On Wednesday night I went to go watch the Sunset. It was soooo pretty!
Thursday we had class with Melissa Bowman. I REALLY love her classes and teaching style and I remember liking them even back when I was 12. I had a real dedication to my Russian teacher then and it was not often that enjoyed anyone else's classes! We also had pointe class with her. During pointe class I was doing a combination in my group and Kevin McKenzie, THE Artistic Director of ABT, watched it in the doorway! It was to the left and we were about to do a pirouette. I did a triple to the left! My friend Spencer said Kevin McKenzie watched his whole pas class!!
After lunch we had music class with one of the pianists who plays for ABT. Our last class was rep. In this class I didn't do too much because the teacher was working with the other cast. Also she let us go early because she needed to work with the soloists. I stayed and watched because I had to stay for the JKO year round audition. JKO is the associate school attached to American Ballet Theatre.
The audition was originally supposed to go from 5:30-7:30 but they changed it to only an hour! Franco De Vita, Principal of the JKO school, taught the class and Melissa Bowman watched. I was number 22 and there were a few other girls from my level auditioning with me. I thought it went really well! The combinations were pretty simple and it went by fast! I don't think we find out until after the program. Waiting to hear is so hard!
:(
On Friday we get to wear colored leotards! I decided to wear my long sleeve pinkish Yumiko. It's one of my favorites. I have a very generous person that sponsors ALL of my Yumiko leotards and I am very grateful. =) I'll be making another leotard collection video soon! I can't always reply to all the comments on my youtube videos but I do see the requests!
Me and Sheridian, a girl in my level, were twinning. Well basically it was just reversed so I guess we were mirroring. :)
We took these pictures at the end of the day.
After class on Friday I headed to the Gaynor Minden store, which is super close to ABT. I met Paige and some other girls that worked there. They were all very nice and helpful. I told them I wanted to try a custom pair so they are going to cut down the sides and tweak some things. I should get that pair in about a month and will make a video about the process and how the shoes turn out. It's really difficult to even attempt custom pairs when your foot is still growing because you have to wait for them and you don't know how they will be. My feet are done growing... well they better be. I have big and wide feet.
Since I needed to get a new pair anyways I got this pair pictured below. It is a bit different than my current pair. It is a 5 box and medium width. I like them a lot and can't wait for my custom pair!
On Saturday my roommates and I went out to breakfast and then basically chilled the rest of the day. Later in the evening Melissa Chapski and I headed to So Ho to try out this gelato place. We both got this hot panino with cookie dough gelato. It was incredible. I met Melissa at Ellison Ballet a few years ago. She's a great dancer and you've probably seen her modeling for a lot of ballet products and Discount Dance. She placed top 12 in Senior Women at YAGP Final Round NYC 2015. You can find her on Instagram @ballerinachi. We like to eat! One of my first photos with her is at a bakery eating a giant piece of cake!
I love the little dumplings filter for photos ;)
On Sunday I took Mr. Ellison's class at Steps and it was surprisingly not as crowded as the week before. His class is popular, just like him. I met some girls going to his intensive and they told me they watched some of my YouTube videos! They were really nice and I loved meeting them!
After Steps class my friend Audrey and I headed to Brooklyn. We went to the New York Transit Museum. It was cool because we got to see all these old subway cars!
Probably my favorite subway car.
Audrey doing some ballet in the Subway.
Some interesting color choices!
Audrey and I honestly had no idea where we were going but we eventually made it to the water. We met this cute little poodle along the way! I love animals =)
Some pictures by the water.
I eventually headed back home. I did some laundry and attempted to sew the rest of my new pair of Gaynors. I can't believe there are only 2 weeks left. I really do not want it to end. I am loving this intensive!
Thanks for reading about week three in the city at ABT. I hope it helps other dancers know what to expect and gives everyone an idea of what we do all summer!
You can be updated by email when I post new blogs. Join the email list here... http://eepurl.com/h3qE
Week Two - Summer Intensive Update and Pics from the City
You can be updated by email when I post new blogs. Join the email list here... http://eepurl.com/h3qE
Me and Audrey at Steps for Mr. Ellison's class.
On Sunday I took Mr. Ellison's Steps class with Audrey and some of my other friends. The class was hard, as expected! It was really nice to take his class again, I really missed them. After the class I stayed and talked with Mr. E for a bit.
After I finished at Steps, my friend Jordan and I headed over to David H. Koch Theater to pick up some student rush tickets for Royal Ballet! Student rush tickets are only available to students and they are at a great price! We couldn't choose where we were sitting but I knew some of my other friends who got student rush tickets on the orchestra section. That's what we were hoping for! Once she handed us our tickets Jordan and I were in shock. We got orchestra second row to see the Royal Ballet! When I walked out of the building I stopped to take the picture below. Just after I took this picture my friends Christine and Danielle (from Ballet Arte) came up from behind and scared me! I talked to them for a bit and then headed to meet Audrey.
Unbelievable student rush ticket!
Audrey and I headed to Columbia University to check it out. It is so beautiful there! There were a lot of good places to take pictures. I loved all the trees and green areas.
Ballet at Columbia University
Audrey the photographer!
From Columbia I went straight home to to get ready for Royal. I met Jordan out front of the theater and we changed into our heels. Once we were at our seats we were already extremely excited. We were so close! We usually sit in the upper rings and it was just so amazing to be this close. We both said that is it super cool that we can hear them breathing. It sounds strange but I really like it.
I was truly speechless after watching The Royal Ballet. They were so amazing! All of their dancers are so clean and controlled and they also have great artistry.
The first piece was called Infra and it was probably my favorite. The choreography was so well done. I really liked how there was a mix of sharp and more fluid movements. It was so beautiful. I would go and watch them perform over and over again. I absolutely love The Royal Ballet and if you ever have the opportunity to see them you should.
The cast we got to see! Still in shock!
Some quick pics after the show.
With my friend, Jordan Kesler, after the show.
On Monday at ABT we had Susan Jaffe for technique. She is considered one of the leading ballerinas of her time and you can read her bio here... CLICK HERE. Her main focus throughout the class was to engage your butt and to also use your torso to help you. After class we then had Gabby Brown for pointe. She is hilarious and I really love her classes. She is also staging our rep (short for repertoire) .
After lunch we then had rehearsal for La Sylphide where we worked on the corps de ballet. After rep we headed to Pilates class and then we were done for the day.
On Tuesday we started out with Pilates class at 9am and then had technique class with Ethan Brown. We were combined with the boys for those two classes. My hip was a little sore during this class but other than that the class was good! After class we headed upstairs for anatomy. We were combined with a few other levels for this class so the room was pretty full. The two teachers used this app that allowed you to reveal different muscles. They would "take away" other muscles to uncover others and to show us which ones we use. It was very interesting because you can actually see exactly where the muscles you are using begin.
After lunch we had variations with Susan Jaffe. She taught us the second pas de trio variation from Swan Lake. Honestly, I like the first one better, but I had a lot of fun learning this one as well. Since we just did Swan Lake it was nice to work on it. The version she taught us it a little different than the one we used at my studio. This variation is challenging but I like it! After this we all headed to work on our rep piece. By this time of the day my feet were hurting and I needed to pick up some toe tape! It's always good to wear toe tape because it can help prevent blisters. My shoes were starting to rub on my pinky toes and my right big toe.
Dancers feet.
Great video! Susan Jaffe... A Ballerina's Career in a Nutshell
On Wednesday we had Ethan Stiefel for class! We were all very excited. I enjoyed his class and he gave us some great corrections. Jordan and I took a quick picture with him before partnering class. He was a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre from 1997 till July 2012. He was the artistic director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet from 2011 to 2014. You might remember him as one of the lead actors in the movie Center Stage!
For partnering class we had Carlos Lopez as a teacher. He teaches ABT Studio Company class and I believe the ABT website says he is currently the Ballet Master for Studio Company as well. It's so great to have access to all of these people! For some reason most of the older boys were not there I am not exactly sure why. I did not have a partner so I ended up partnering with Austen Acevedo because he did not have a partner either. He is really good at partnering and obviously an amazing dancer. He placed second in Senior Men category at the 2015 Youth America Grand Prix- NYC Finals and was a 2015 Prix de Lausanne finalist. Visit his website here... http://www.austenacevedo.com/
After lunch we had variations with Gabrielle Brown (former ABT soloist). She gave us a quick warm up since we just had a lunch break. We then worked on the variations that are in our rep piece.
Our last class of the day was history. I actually really enjoyed this class! The teacher was very entertaining and passionate about dance. She basically talked about the history about ABT and it is great to know especially if you ever want to dance with ABT. She tried showing us some video clips but they would not load too well because of the slow wifi. :-/
Jordan looking good in her Merde shirt! You can get it at www.balletfreak.com
Once our classes finished up I headed home to get ready to go see ABT perform Cinderella. We watched Hee Seo and Cory Stearns perform, and they were both amazing! Misty Copeland was one of the fairies. For her variation the choreography seemed very hard but she made it look so easy.
(PS she just got promoted to principal dancer along with Stella Abrera). The full list of promotions is here... CLICK HERE
Hee Seo and Cory Stearns.
Jordan and me getting ready to watch the show
Me with Spencer and Jordan (my friends and ABT SI students) before the show started. We had orchestra seats for student price again!
After the show I met my friend Scout to give her a men's black merde shirt. One of her friends wanted one. Scout is in the ABT Corps de Ballet. After I talked with her and some other JKO students I headed home. I had to be at the studio at 9am the next day.
For Thursday we started out with Pilates and then had technique and pointe class with Lupe Serrano. You can CLICK HERE to read her bio. After lunch we had character with Olga Dvorovenko (former principal dancer and ballet mistress for the Ukrainian State Academic Dance Ensemble) . It is nice to have a character class since I do not have it at home. We had rep after character. I can't say enough how lucky we are to have access to these teachers. Please read about them HERE if you have time.
Jordan and me before character class.
Pretty much almost half of our class was not there! Some were sick, injured and had family things! We all ran the two small variations. The way were are doing it is that one girl comes from each side. (We cross over each other) They do it this way to make sure everyone gets to do something. After about 45 minuets or so she told us to take off our pointe shoes. For the rest of class we attempted to figure out our spot places. It was difficult because a lot of people were missing! My spot got changed and so did a few others. She said you should basically know every spot cause you never know what is going to happen for performances! In La Sylphide it is not too difficult because it is the same step, but one person is facing front and one is facing back. She said the spots could change, so nothing is really set yet.
We had Friday off for classes due to the Fourth of July weekend. My hip felt a bit "stuck" so I decided to not try and take a class elsewhere. I ended up meeting Spencer and his mom later in the afternoon. We headed to the Chelsea Market and got some crepes.
As we were walking around the city we walked by this car. I thought it was pretty cool! I like classic cars ;)
Before I went home I stopped by Bed Bath and Beyond to grab some sort of a bucket for icing my feet. I ended up just grabbing a small storage bin that was big enough. It works just fine and was way cheaper than a normal bucket! It is a great idea to ice your feet every night no matter what.
I tried to sleep in on Saturday but I woke up around 8:30. :( I didn't actually get out of bed until later though! (Hehe) at around 11 I met Audrey in Columbus Circle. We stopped by Juice Generation before heading to Central Park. We saw one of those stands and both thought the same thing..to buy a pretzel! We found the rock to sit on under some trees. It wasn't too nice out but I still loved sitting outside. Audrey decided to start feeding the birds some of her pretzel. I did the same! I actually loved feeding the birds. Some were brave and came really close to us! There was this one chubbier one that we would try to give bread too, but he seemed sort of lost and the other birds would steal the bread! You shouldn't really feed bread to birds because it fills them up and then they don't eat what they are supposed to so we didn't feed them for too long . But I'm thinking they must always find all kinds of "people" food in the city .
After Central Park we headed to Bed Bath and beyond. This may sound strange but I really love this store! I picked up some Icy Hot for my hip and hair color. Audrey wanted to get her hair cut so we called a couple of hair salons to see if any were open. We found one that was open and had available appointment.
We were a little early for her appointment so we decided to stop in Claire's which was a block away. All of their Jewelry was on sale for super cheap! I came across this set of earrings and I had to get it for Kyla and me. ALL CATS! We are huge cat freaks.
Audrey and me before her appointment.
(Notice her hair before)
After! I think she looks super cute with her hair this short! I would never be able to pull that off! Later in the day we met up with our friend, Spencer, and hung around in Tribeca.
Statue of Liberty is very small and on left side in the photo
Palm tress inside a mall. Not exactly California but close!
After hanging out with Spencer, Audrey and I headed to my apartment so I could dye my hair.
We didn't feel like going out again and decided it would be too crowded so we watched some of the fireworks on TV. I have spent the last few summers watching fireworks by the Hudson River. We did pick up some fruit because we were really craving it and wanted something healthy.
On Sunday I took Mr. E's class at Steps and it was pretty crowded. He gave me and some of his year round students some good corrections afterwards. He had us repeat after him, "I can, and I will."
He was saying if you want 180 middle splits, for example, you can get there, but you have to work for it obviously. If you really want it you will make it happen. Mr. Ellison has always been a great source of motivation for me. I think everyone should train at Ellison Ballet at some point. If you can make it happen you should definitely do that.
Audrey met me at Steps and we grabbed a salad from Fairway market and headed to eat in Central Park. We found this really nice place to eat.
It was so pretty and very nice out on Sunday!
After we ate we went to Trader Joes to grab some groceries. My arms and shoulders were a bit sore from carrying my groceries back! City life problems.
Some pictures from the sunset Sunday night.
Thanks for reading about week two in the city at ABT. I hope it helps other dancers know what to expect and gives everyone an idea of what we do all summer! I have to say that I am LOVING the ABT summer intensive and am excited for the coming week.
You can be updated by email when I post new blogs. Join the email list here... http://eepurl.com/h3qE
