In the basement of the Wang Theatre, Sarah Wroth is talking about frat parties. "I went to fraternity parties when I was 19 years old!" she exclaims. In a world in which going to college may be perceived as wasting the prime years of a dancer's life, Wroth represents at least one happy success story of a young artistic professional who also possesses a university degree.
For many students on the Tufts campus, deciding whether or not to attend college was never a problem. In the world of ballet, however, a dancer's performing lifetime may end by her mid-thirties, and the decision to delay a career for the sake of an education is significant. As Wroth explained, "I came here [to the Boston Ballet, in 2003] as a 21-year-old, and there were 18-year-olds who had more professional experience."
Wroth realizes the value of her years spent at Indiana University. "I was allowed to be an adolescent with other adolescents, who were finding themselves." When she auditioned in 2000 for the ballet program at Indiana University, Wroth scarcely believed she would be accepted. With the offer of a full scholarship to another mainstream liberal arts college, Wroth had to make a tough decision when she learned of her acceptance to Indiana.
"You've been given this opportunity," Wroth said, recalling her parents advice, "Just do it, because otherwise you'd be wondering what would have happened." She shrugs her narrow shoulders and smiles widely. "So I went that route. It's been a wonderful ride."
While at Indiana University, Wroth's zealous energy and focus enabled her to complete a Bachelor of Science degree in Ballet and Education in just three years. She took the maximum number of credits each semester while dancing throughout the day at one of the country's top ballet programs.
Now as a full-time professional dancer, Wroth admits that she fully identifies herself as a ballerina. "You can't avoid it. I identity myself as a ballerina ... I'll probably hold onto that for as long as I can." By age 27, Wroth says she'd like to have decided how far to pursue her career in ballet.
"It's all about the roles you're dancing. That's really where the reward is. It's not what your rank is, or how much you're getting paid," she said. To meet the strenuous demands of her job, Wroth must continually draw on her fundamental love for ballet.
As performance time nears, however, "the span on your day is much longer," Wroth said. "It's a different energy." As Wroth stretched out in the Wang Theatre last Wednesday morning, it was precisely this "different energy" that she was readying herself for.
Soon after this interview, Wroth took stage in the Boston Ballet's debut performance of George Balanchine's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," in the company's first performance of Balanchine's iconic choreography in the ballet's 45-year history. Performed to the music of Felix Mendelssohn and including a cast of 25 children from the Boston Ballet School, "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is a fanciful retelling of Shakespeare's humorous midsummer tale of bewitched lovers and magical fairies.
With characters including tall fairies, child bugs and Puck, the infamously mischievous sprite, "A Midsummer Night's Dream" should be a playful, energetic and ultimately joyful evening of ballet. Balanchine's choreography takes Mendelssohn's precious musical vignettes and creates a two-hour story that is a tribute to dance as a fundamental means of human storytelling.
On opening night last week, however, the necessary verve and vigor required to dance this flirtatious classic was sadly lacking. Overall the dancers seemed rough and nervous, the necessary confidence to sell the story disappointingly absent. Additionally unhelpful was a tepid orchestra, unfortunate scenery and costuming mishaps.
A few dancers did manage to rise above the jitters and appeared, at a minimum, more convinced of their presence on stage. Joel Prouty's Puck exhibited fresh energy and wild abandon, although his performance seemed at times more spirited than skilled. Reyneris Reyes' stately Oberon provided some much-welcome maturity, well complimented by quality dancing from Tai Jimenez, Pavel Gurevich and Yury Yanowsky in the roles of ill-fated lovers who, bewitched by Cupid's flower, chase the wrong partner for much of Act I.
Standing out in the entire ballet was Kathleen Breen Combes in the role of Helena, in the first display of the evening of the necessary combination of emotion, energy and skill. The only other dancer who truly seemed to capture the spirit of the ballet was the ever-beautiful and talented Larissa Ponomarenko, dancing the challenging Pas de Deux of Act II. Ponomarenko's presence on stage, as aptly described by Sarah Wroth just the day before, was an inspiring display of peace, maturity and confidence, encapsulated by fine technique and grace. With performances until Feb. 18, one can only hope that Ponomarenko's poise and confidence spread throughout the entire Boston Ballet company, so that the company can truly do justice to the lyrical beauty of Balanchine's great work.
