Now dancing is well and good. After all, don't you find your self bopping your head, tapping your feet or breaking out into a spin out of nowhere? OK, maybe the last one was just me then. But even when we were young, my parents taught us to appreciate dance, especially different styles, cultural, modern and formal.Which would probably explain why I love watching ballet.
I have always believed that appreciating ballet was a combination of factors. There is the artistry and the technique by each individual dancer and the company as an ensemble. You can see the effort that has been put in by each individual as well as the backroom staff to make the production seem effortless. Each precise movement, formation, even the smallest gestures can be awe-inspiring.. Then, there was the story and and it's interpretation.I have always been a romantic and found the love stories really interesting when put to dance. Which is why ballet, especially at it's highest form moves me. It just brings out a pleasant feeling of childlike wonder in me.
Perhaps that's how my father felt the first time he saw live ballet. To this day he calls it the best $10.00 he ever spent. Pa worked on merchant ships in his younger days and on one particular journey, he had a stop over at New York. Usually, they would get a free day for shore leave, just to have some free time. Pa decided to explore the ciy and ended up taking shelter at what appeared to be a theatre. It turned out that it was Radio City Music Hall. Having nothing else to do and wanting to kill time, Pa decided to pay the $10.00 (which was a lot even then) and see what was on offer.
He sat through a couple of comedy acts, a Rockettes routine and a movie. He pretty much thought the show was over, but then he got his big surprise. Now you have to understand, Pa was not a a big fan of classical music or ballet at the time. It just wasn't his thing before. All of a sudden, the orchestra revealed itself, the music began to build and the entire ballet company took to stage. My dad said that whenever he listens to classical music, it brings him back to that very moment, seeing the dancers move to the music in a most elegant fashion. Which is why to this day he has a great love for ballet. And he this is why he has shared that with us, the family.
Sometimes, I can be a bit too honest when it comes to watching performances. My aunt Prima used take up ballet herself. This aunt of mine is my dad's cousin and was pretty much closer in age to my brother and I.We had just moved to the Philippines at this time. Her ballet school had a big performance, so we all went in support. We had seats up in the front, along with all the camera toting families. Now, ballet was pretty much the realm of the upper classes. It shouldn't be surprising as lessons and shoes would have cost a fortune. This however lead to some kids taking up ballets even if they had little or no talent, nor were they physically adept to handle this sort of dancing.
So, there we were, sitting in the audience, the music blaring, flashbulbs blinding us with each picture taken and every family applauding their respective family member or friend as they took to stage. I sat and looked to the stage with a puzzled gaze. Something wasn't right. My aunt was doing fine and I thought she was doing quiet well. But I just couldn't stop myself from fidgeting around. My mother, growing impatient turned towards me and told me to settle down.
Finally, I broke my silence, talking in the loudest whisper, .
" Ma, this is supposed to be 'Swan Lake', right?" (I recognised the music and the costumes even at 6 years old.)
She nodded.
"It's not supposed to be, Fantasia right?"
She shook her head, a puzzled look on her face.
I paused for a second.
"Then why are there dancing Hippos? And they aren't very good dancers, either..."
Ma went red with embarrassment.
My grandaunt smiled broadly.
My brother giggled like crazy.
I was pretty much told to stay quiet for the rest of the performance.
I did get a big hug from my aunt afterwards.
