Dancer Perspectives – Siegfried & Odette
Alexander Mays being coached by Gelsey Kirkland
Alexander Mays – Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake
Can you tell us about this role?
-It’s one of my main pressures right now, it’s a challenge. It’s my first classical pas de deux and one of the longest pas de deuxs in ballet rep – which is kind of intimidating because it’s 8 minutes onstage with the whole audience staring at you. To think about it like that is enough to make any normal person cringe. But at the same time it’s an amazing opportunity because I get to work with Katia who’s such an amazing artist and ballerina for her age, so I just think that it’s a really cool opportunity that I’ve been granted. Also, to get coached by Misha and Gelsey Kirkland – like, “oh my gosh!” It’s amazing. And there are times when she [Gelsey] wants me to partner her and hold her so that she can show Katia what to do and that kind of stuff – is once in a lifetime – how many people can say they partner Gelsey Kirkland when she’s retired?
What have you been told in rehearsals for the role/character or partnering?
-They’ve told me to not be so stern as a character. Because when I’m rehearsing I tend to be focused on what I need to do and I guess I come across being very – maybe not as innocent or vulnerable as they want me to be. So that’s been hard for me to really genuinely look as if I truly love this person. And that’s always a challenge I think for me. Personally I’m not someone that gets upset easily or gets hurt easily, so for me to relate to someone who’s sensitive and emotional, it’s a challenge. And to express that without words is an even bigger challenge.
What do you find challenging or easy?
-Well, now that we’ve been doing it from the beginning to the end without stopping I’ve realized that there are so many parts where I know I can relax or take it easy. So I’ve been learning to pace myself. It’s exhausting, even though it seems slow or calm and melancholic, it’s so tiring. There’s so much lifting, so much stuff that goes on – so many details and nuances that have to be portrayed in the time that we have. So I’ve learned that I really need to concentrate on my breathing because I feel that’s been helping me a lot – knowing when to breathe more or breathe less.
Have you discovered anything about partnering or partnerships in this whole process?
-Yes, last week [April 26th & 27th] Ivan Nagy was here and he told me something really interesting – that as a partner you can’t be too strong with your partner and you can’t be soft. There needs to be some sort of level in between the two adjectives – you can’t hold someone and clench them and try to be over the top for them, but you can’t be passive and not there at all. There needs to be a line in between. That week I was trying so hard that I was gripping Katia’s arms, and when that happens she can’t do anything. So that’s been really hard to find the balance in between trying too hard and not trying hard enough.
What’s the most enjoyable part for you?
-The most enjoyable part of the adagio I think is after all of the lifting is done, which happens towards the beginning of the middle part, because after that I can take a deep breath. All of the “showy” important stuff is over and done with and I can really concentrate on connecting with Katia – just easing into the music. The music of the Pas is one of my favorite parts of the score… it’s beautiful… It’s really nice when that’s over because then you’re halfway there.
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Katia Raj in rehearsal
Katia Raj – Swan Queen Odette in Swan Lake
What are you dancing in GKA’s spring performance?
-I am dancing as the white swan Odette and I am doing the scarf dance from Bayadere as one of the soloists.
What do you feel about the pieces you are performing?
-I’m really excited and I’m enjoying them a lot. It’s been a really great experience getting to work on them.
What have you done for character preparation for Odette?
-Odette was really challenging for me because there’s so many different aspects that have to be incorporated into the role because I can’t just flap my wings and be a swan. At the same time I need to make sure I don’t become completely human and leave out any sort of sense of being a swan. So a lot of times it’s been this back and forth in rehearsals of “oh, that looks too much like a swan”, “oh, what are you doing, you’re just flapping your wings”. And then also it’s been really difficult because I’m trying to be delicate while I’m trying to be strong and I can’t let the adagio be all about sadness – I still need to be able to tell the story through it. It’s been really hard. I’ve watched a lot of videos – just to see what other people do and then working with Gelsey of course has helped me tons. She’s really helped me to find my Odette. She’s helped me to find what’s best for me.
Can you share any insights you’ve found on the character of Odette? -What’s really helped me – once I made this connection within myself with Gelsey’s help – from there I have been able to work it myself into the rest of the ballet and the steps. And it’s finding what story I’m trying to tell, which is this sort of battle within myself between good and evil, which is represented by Von Rothbart and Siegfried. And so once I figured out what I was trying to portray it was to work through each step and find a way to bring that to the audience and have them feel it.
-Well, Gelsey surprised me by walking into rehearsal with Ivan Nagy who was Gelsey’s own partner – her favorite partner, (he had done Swan Lake with Gelsey and had done it with Makarova) so the two of them – just – that whole experience – I think that we did a three hour rehearsal without taking my pointe shoes off – I was like dying and exhausted but it was just amazing. The things he said, and he’s an incredible partner and also artistically he really helped with the pas and cleared up steps so that the parts that were strange got reworked. He and Gelsey – every now and then he would try to remember what they had done, so he’d say “Oh Gelsey, come help me” and then all of a sudden out of nowhere they both – their bodies just remember it and it would be absolutely beautiful and then they’d turn to us and be like “okay, can you try it?” And it didn’t quite look like that…! Actually, it’s been one of the frustrating things – it’s so easy to look awkward – for me. And so Gelsey will say “oh, what was that step” and I know instantly because it didn’t feel right and then we try to work it out and she shows three different versions of the same step and all of them are just absolutely breathtaking and then I try to do it and it’s just like… we sort of look at each other and then it’s like “ehhhh… what was that.” But there’s been a lot of moments that I definitely have written down but also always have in me to remember.
Any particular challenges or easy parts?
-Not really anything easy… The very very last part of the ballet is pretty easy because after I come on in the coda, all I have to do is walk onstage with Alex and do an arabesque. So I guess that would be the easiest part. Other than that, not easy. There’s one part of the adagio which is the part with the splits that needs work still…for sure. And I think that the most challenging thing has been to find – to be creating the moments within each moment so that it’s never just “I’m making a step here” or “I’m flapping my wings” – there has to be meaning behind it. It’s so easy just to – once you sort of get the feeling in you – it’s so easy to enjoy it too much with the arms and the music which is just so beautiful. You just want to “flap your wings” – and really enjoy it, feel it in your body, but it’s hard to – Gelsey’s helped me to remember I’m supposed to be telling a story – I can’t just be onstage to enjoy myself, I’m onstage for the audience. So that’s been a challenge.
How has it been working with your partner?
-Good, really good. He is great to work with, he’s always willing to work on anything I need and at first it was hard because I’ve never worked with a partner for a performance before, so usually, it’s just if you do “bad” it’s your fault whereas now for both of us if something goes wrong it’s not his fault or it’s not my fault or it’s both of us – and it’s hard to try to figure out what went wrong and Swan Lake Adagio is hard because you’re so much in your partner’s hands so there has to be a lot of trust and I really trust him. It’s been really cool because usually when I’ve gotten to work with Gelsey it’s been for me, but now it’s cool to see her working with Alex and seeing him grown as I grown and seeing everything grow together, which has been neat.
What part does the music play?
-The music is hard because the music of Swan Lake is so beautiful but at the same time I can’t let the music control me. Swan Lake I feel should be with a (live) orchestra because the music really should go along with the dancer. So it’s been hard – I’m trying to have an experience and a moment onstage but then I can’t because I’m going to get behind the music, so it’s been hard because it does control you to a certain way but the music tells a story on its own so just listening to it really helps. And when I’m exhausted for the coda I can find so much energy in the music.
What’s the most powerful part of the music – the story that it’s trying to tell?
-I think the most powerful part for sure is the coda as far as music goes. The coda s just – I just want to explode when I hear that music – it’s just so beautiful and there’s so much power behind it. The adagio is sort of this back and forth which represents the battle, and you can really hear the struggle within the music and it’s more somber. And then in the variation you can feel the flight within it. And then the coda is just so much power.
Anything else you’d like to share?
-My back’s really sore between Scarf dance and Swan Lake…!
How has Scarf dance been going?
-It’s good, I’m really enjoying it. A lot of, it’s funny – everything you’re not supposed to do in the sense of trying to get your legs up and things like that – but leaves my back sort of thrown out of place. It’s really tiring – a workout for sure. Thank goodness I don’t have that rehearsal everyday – I would be dead. But it’s fun – I always enjoy working with Lawler (Alexandra Lawler) on those types of things.
What does performing mean to you?
-It’s the magic. What really draws me to ballet I think is the magic of it – the magic of the stage and being able to create magic for the audience. You know, you can only believe in Santa Claus for so long, and then the magic of that is gone. I always really liked ballet because in some ways it makes me feel like a kids again – but not in the sense of “oh I’m a little kid” – in the sense of that – I was devastated when I found out about Santa Claus, absolutely devastated because of the magic of it and I feel onstage is the closest you can get to magic.
What has it meant to you to be a part of GKA?
-It’s changed my life. It really has. It’s changed me as a person; it’s challenged my whole look on ballet and the stage and as an artist. I don’t think I’ve ever really understood how to be an artist – and I still don’t, I’m working on it. Being here has been great, and getting to work with Gelsey is just life changing. I mean, she is magic, she’s just amazing. It’s really great here, the whole vision of it and all the people, all the staff, all the teachers – it’s a special place.
Written by, Rachel Wunder
Gelsey Kirkland Academy of Classical Ballet 