My first taste of ballet was in St. Paul University. I was under the tutelage of Ms. Pam, Fr. James B. Reuter’s dance choreographer for his theatrical play “Women with a Heart” .
Every single person in that production, particularly the cast, were placed on rigorous training every day after classes or work. For serious ballet enthusiasts, a girl as young as 3 years old is placed on ballet training. The reason behind this is that it helps their muscles and bones form in accordance to the discipline of the dance.
If I’m not mistaken, I was already a junior in college taking up Communications by the time I auditioned for Fr. Reuter. Fr. Reuter was already one of the Philippine’s renowned theater play writers, so you could just imagine my delight when he accepted me in the cast. But being accepted in the cast was not even half the battle, we had to prove ourselves on stage. I struggled with the dance. Ballet is not as easy as they make it out to be. I still adore the dance and have mad respect for those who perform it. Ballet is an art form, and the training no question, involves stamina fit for an athlete.
A ballerina’s legs are strong as hell. When they dance, they may have the grace and elegance of a swan, but those legs are like that of a powerful stallion’s! I hope my sketch captures the force, energy and restraint of these artists. Powerful, fit and tough, a ballet dancer’s legs are a force to be reckoned with.
