Energy begets Energy...
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PHOTO BY: TONY BELLISSIMO AND RIED MARTIN
COURTESY OF: TREMAINE DANCE CONVENTIONS
thoughts from NYC…
There is something special about NYC. The energy there is both inspiring and exhausting at the same time. I am very sensitive to energy, especially when I am teaching or choreographing. During those times, every pore in my body is open and my every sense is heightened. Firstly because in those times I feel completely vulnerable. I am opening up my heart and soul to a mass of young dancers, not knowing how they will respond. Secondly, I am keenly aware of what is happening in the ballroom on many levels. Are the kids getting the material? How are the parents listening to what I am saying? Are the assistants doing their best to be an amazing example of my work? Why is that dancer not able to remember the steps? Did that person injure themselves? How much time do I have left? and so on… and so on…
Thinking about this reminded me of a phrase that Paula Morgan used to say to me many times over the 3 years or so that I trained with her privately when I was a young dancer wanting to make my way in the professional world. Paula is a spitfire of a woman with an understanding of the body and the mechanics of dance that is both mind blowing and inspiring! The most wonderful thing about Paula is her unique delivery of the information. She would love you fiercely and make you feel like you could do anything you put your mind to, while at the same time kicking your butt so hard that you could barely drive home because you were already sore by the time you walked the short path from her front door to your car.
Paula used to always say… “Energy begets Energy”. At the time, she was referring to the technical mechanics of jumping and turning. I interpreted it to mean that once you spark a movement with a burst of energy, it will continue to feed itself as long you do not actively put a stop to it. If you consistently keep the flow of energy, then it will continue to feed you. This was life changing for me specifically to my approach to jumping. I was not a natural jumper, but this approach helped me to understand timing and how to maintain energy in the steps between jumps, which gave me a new love for them.
In love and dance,
Keri