First draft - Nutcracker article for the magazine

Who would have ever thought that a professional ballet company is located right here in Herricks, right in our own backyard? The Eglevsky Ballet Company has been Long Island’s only professional ballet company since 1961 when it was founded by Andre Eglevsky, premier danseur of the New York City Ballet. It is now under the artistic direction of Ali Pourfarrokh, one of the ballet world’s most sought after dancers, teachers, and choreographers. It is located in the Herricks Community Center with its affiliated school, the American Theater Dance Workshop. The Eglevsky Ballet Company celebrates the holiday season with its annual production of The Nutcracker. Becky Kalman, one of the apprentices to the company, and a student at Herricks High School, talks about what it’s like to dance with a professional ballet company, and what the rehearsal process is like for such a famous ballet.

October 3, 2009
I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many happy tears in my life. Tonight is the night that Ali Pourfarrokh, announces his casting decision for the coveted role, Clara. Every little girl wants to be Clara; She’s a princess around the age of twelve. She lives in a world where every single one of her dreams comes true on Christmas Eve. Who wouldn’t want to have the opportunity to play this part? A week ago, I had been asked to play Clara’s Prince, a role that I graciously accepted and tonight my sister, Sabrina Kalman and her good friend, Lexi Manno, were both offered the role of Clara. The role is always split by two girls to give more dancers the opportunity to play the part, and also to have an understudy just in case. I am so proud of my two little princesses and cannot wait to share this amazing experience with them.

October 24, 2009
Tonight I had my costume fitting. This is the sixth year that I am dancing in The Nutcracker with the Eglevsky Ballet Company, and every year when I try on my costume for the first time, I get a surge of dancing butterflies in my stomach and in my feet. Almost all of the costumes are used again and again, year after year, so there’s a lot of history in them, which makes it really special. Some of the older tutus still have the names of the professional dancers who where the first to dance in them stitched into the sides. Our costume inventory has costumes that were made and worn in the 1970s, but also new costumes that are being made this year.

December 18, 2009
Today is going to be a long day! We have our full day dress/tech rehearsal with the entire company at the Tilles Center Theater. It’s the first and only time we will get to rehearse on the stage prior to opening night. We have a company warm up at 9 AM, and rehearsal starts promptly at 10:30 AM. They give us a break for lunch, and we will probably run through the entire ballet two or three times. Rehearsal ends at 9:00 at night, and my friends and I think we should just sleep at the theater, since we’re going to have to come back tomorrow for the show, anyway. Even though a twelve-hour rehearsal is intense, and exhausting, I look forward to it every year. This is when we see the most bonding between company members, and when the magic of the ballet really clicks together.

December 19, 2009
We open today! Everyone is excited. We have our company warm up in the morning, and then we have two shows, one in the afternoon and one at night. My sister will be Clara the first show, and Lexi will be Clara the second show. I can’t wait to dance with them onstage. Since I’m so close with the two of them, we have great chemistry and I love acting with them. Before the show starts I walk around to the different dressing rooms and wish everyone good luck, or as it is tradition in the dance world, “merde.” When the stage manager makes the half-hour call over the intercom system backstage, I squeal in delight. When the music for the prologue of the ballet begins, I am reminded of how much I truly love what I do. I look forward to The Nutcracker every year. This year holds a special place in my heart because next year I will be going off to college and won’t be able to dance with the company that I have grown to love and admire.

It has been an honor to dance with the Eglevsky Ballet Company and to work with beautiful dancers for the past six years. I am continuously grateful to have been given the opportunity to share the Christmas spirit through the art of ballet.