Between Worlds - Carinne Binda, Artistic Director

We had our final in-studio run of Romeo and Juliet yesterday and we move into the theater tomorrow.  I feel between worlds today with both a sense of sadness, yet tremendous excitement. I cannot begin to express how wonderful the hours in the studio have been these past 5 glorious weeks. Rehearsing dancers is an amazing job that I am passionate about. It is very much about creating an incredible tapestry where all the pieces must come together at just the right moment. Watching this ballet evolve from January 4th to a completed work ready to be performed, is always a journey of discovery.  We work with very dedicated dancers, so it is never about inspiring them to work hard, it is about providing them with all the information so they can be bold, free and excel beyond their own expectations. We set high expectations and expect greatness. In the studio we seek perfection. Everyday, I have experienced joy as I see a dancer open up new levels of emotional truth, while at the same time, perfecting the steps they will dance. 

Several individuals asked me during our final three in-studio runs if I allow myself to cry at the many harrowingly dramatic scenes in R&J.  Actually, one of the hardest aspects of my job is to remain emotionally neutral in rehearsal, because my job is not yet done. Ron and I still have to be sure every look and every move rings true to the story. We must be extremely critical editors and not allow ourselves to get lost in the dramatic and beautiful dancing in front of us. But next week, yes, I will cry many times in every performance.  As you have read in previous entries to this blog, we have three exquisite Juliets and two casts of very passionate Romeos, Mercutios, Tybalts and Benvolios. There is a richness in interpretation and detail in each artist and I highly recommend you consider seeing this impressive tapestry of dance, music, love and death more than once. 

Yes, I am sad that the studio phase I so love has come to an end. Today, I have reread weeks of  notes that I had written as the dancers rehearsed and threw out hundreds of pieces of scrap paper on which those notes were written. The rehearsal phase is over. Tomorrow I will feel all the excitement the dancers experience as they step onto the stage to begin that phase.

Theater week is one of extraordinary intensity. Between Monday when we move into the theater and Thursday's opening performance, there will be moments of chaos, many OMG's, and much hard work. The spacing of every dance sequence always feels different in the theater. Instead of dancers looking at a mirror in front of them, they now look out into a black void with extremely bright lights focused on them. The artists begin rehearsing on stage at 4pm Monday and by Tuesday evening we are already doing a dress rehearsal with full costumes, makeup, lighting, and scenery.  Our Juliets must learn how to run down a flight of stairs from their balcony with no railing while hopefully not looking at their feet. Theater week always speeds by.  Suddenly it's opening night, and in a blink of an eye, the ephemeral performances have come to an end.  

A few days after our final performance of R&J, the entire process begins anew with the first rehearsals of Icons & Innovators.

- Carinne