1001 Nights Rehearsal

Right now the company is rehearsing for 1001 Nights. This ballet was choreographed by Eldar Aliev, and he has been here for about 3 weeks coaching us. This week we will be moving into the theater to start tech and dress rehearsals. This ballet is challenging for 2 reasons. The style is very Russian and can be hard to grasp sometimes. Eldar has been really great about coaching all of us down to the smallest detail. This ballet is also hard because of the many many costumes changes and shoe changes. I think some of the girls change costumes 5 or 6 times in the 2 hour ballet. We all have about 3 or 4 different dyed pointe shoes and ballet slippers. Its a little crazy.

1001 Nights

Above: Gema Diaz taping her toes before rehearsal





Above: Sarah Hairston performing Marjana in 1001 Nights the last time the company performed this ballet in 2001.

Above: Tricia Sundbeck in Rehearsal for her role
as the Enchanted Bird.

Welcome

Welcome! My name is Sarah Hairston and I am a Soloist with Cincinnati Ballet. The idea behind this blog is to get information out about Cincinnati Ballet not only in Cincinnati but also around the world. This blog will give a behind the scenes look at what the dancers do on a day to day basis to prepare for all of our performances. I have always felt that the general public really does not understand what dancers do on a day to day basis. The questions that people have asked me about my "job" have made me realize that people are interested in the preparation and process all dancers go through to bring our productions to the stage. I also wanted to show how dancers live their lives even when they are not dancing. I will also do a dancer spotlight, where I will interview and highlight a different dancer every couple of weeks. This way, the community will be able to get to know all of the different talented dancers in the company. I hope you enjoy and hope to see you at the ballet!