Eugene Ballet: At the Barre

Theaters are sacred places. They are the spaces where choreographers can tell their stories and share their art, where composers and musicians can present a score and deliver it with generous artistic consideration, or even where lectures, broadway shows, and plays have a chance to live on stage and impart their great art in a symbiotic relationship that dares to be rivaled to the same degree in other domains. So truly, there is a special nature that exists within those spaces. The art that happens to exist and grace these stages may be ephemeral in the sense that once the show is over and everyone has left, another show will take its place like clockwork. However, the people, ideas, and art that make their mark on these stages, as well as the impression they leave on us, live on within those walls well after we have all moved on, they add to the history, personality, and electricity that can be sensed and felt in the air of theaters everywhere. In todays episode, I sit down with Penny Saunders, resident choreographer of Grand Rapids ballet and creator of “ghost light” which will be featured in the celebration of the uncommon woman. Join us as we discuss the ideas behind “ghost light”, what you can expect to see when experiencing this ballet, and much more. Please enjoy. 

In today's episode, I sit down with Choreographer Nicole Haskins to talk about her ballet "Illuminations", the role that chance encounters and snapshot moments play in our lives, and so much more. Please enjoy. 

In today’s episode I sit down with Artist in Residence Rachel Richardson from ABT, one of the world's leading ballet companies. Rachel was born and raised in Eugene. We talk about her early training and her road to ABT. We discuss freedom in dance and where that comes from. We talk about class mentality and competitive dancers. I ask about her favorite ballets and what she enjoys about ABT. And finish with what it's like to be exposed to culture from around the world due to the abundances of diversity in dance. It was a joy speaking with her, enjoy the episode.

In this episode I sat down with Eugene Ballet company dancers Sarah Kosterman and Josh Downard to discuss how they have been using their time away from the company to grow closer to their art and come back to dancing life stronger than they left it. They have been working on pas de deux's from different eras of classical ballet as well as some of Artistic Director Toni Pimble’s repertoire. We get into the challenges of self-coaching, their personal discoveries, where they sourced the choreography, studying other dancers, and how having freedom to choose what they work on has invigorated their passion for dance.

The new Midtown Arts Center is truly a state of the art facility, that is made obvious by its sweeping and striking design. In this episode, we find out just how cutting edge it is. Join Alessandro for an exclusive, behind the scenes, auditory adventure from the ground up of Eugene Ballet's new home. We have never been so excited for the arts in our community. Please enjoy.