Day Two/Day Three

Day Two:
Our last hour of the day is a lecture series called "Understanding the Trade." On the first day I'd asked some questions about directing/operating a dance company, and today Mr. Grenke dedicated a considerable part of a lecture to that topic. He talked about his experiences running his own company and his early experiences in the Paul Taylor Dance Company. It was all really eye-opening (I won't go into detail for numerous reasons; though one of them is "I'm too tired for that level of coherency" and another is "This is the sort of stuff that you just don't share on the internet"), and it has really given me a lot to think about. And later, as the lecture ended, I realized that I just got advice on running a dance company from DAVID GRENKE HIMSELF. Wow. Talk about a priveledge and an honor.

Day Three:
This morning we had ballet class from Sharon Newton who directs the Capitol Ballet Company in Sacramento alongside her husband, Stuart Carroll. She is positively delightful. I loved her class; not only was it a good class but at 9am her demeanor was energetic and comforting. As in, "I'm super enthusiastic about what I'm teaching; yet I know you all are tired/ sore/ have a long day ahead; so I'm going to warm you up and prepare you for the day without exhausting you." It was a wonderful class, and I would have been able to enjoy it much more if my knee wasn't in massive pain. I'm looking forward to Friday's class.
I enjoy Mr. Grenke's modern class a lot. He focuses more on organic movement than on cosmetic dancing, which is something the majority of my modern training has lacked. I know, you're saying "What the f**k does that mean?" So, I will explain: Instead of saying "Your head is here, your arms are here, your feet are positioned thus;" we are told "This movement initiates from the base of your spine. Lengthen across your back. Find your neutral position." It's more about using your body-- every part of it, from the inside-- to create the movement rather than of mimicking the instructor's movement with your body. I can't explain it too well, because I'm pretty much exhausted. Take his class and you'll see what I mean (you'll thank me later. Trust me, it's great).
I have more to say, but my laptop battery is dying. I have a few more posts written that I haven't been able to post on this connection (I don't have internet in the dorms; I'm currently posting from a nifty little dive across from the campus); so keep checking the list of imported posts for when I can finally make them "live."
Off to stretch out and soak myself in Icy Hot. Until next time...