All photography by
Nanc Price
The sibilant consonants of excited voices and the sock dampened jump landings echo down the hall of
Shumka School of Dance on a chilly Tuesday evening. The school is brimming with energy from the collective presence of Ukraine’s
Kyiv Ballet, and professional Folk Dance ensemble,
Virsky, collaborating with Shumka for the opening of
Clara’s Dream
this weekend. Taking a stroll down the hallway, a peek inside one of
the smaller studios shows male Shumka dancers warming up their high
kicks.
Pass through another doorway in between tables laden with
healthy snacks. Enter the large studio. Young Shumka girls sitting
poised along the stage edge, students and parents sit along the walls
the studio, while the dancers from Shumka, Virsky, and the Kyiv Ballet
weave throughout the crowd with silent purpose to their starting
positions.
There is a sense of history throughout the rehearsal. The Nutcracker Prince,
Jeff Mortensen,
is a Shumka aluminist, and now a professional dancer. Mortensen is
remembered with fond memories by eight-year-old Nikolas Shewchuk when
Mortensen was here playing the Fritz character in the last Nutcracker.
“I really like hanging out with Jeff Mortensen. The first time we met he
was really fun and was one of my buddies,” recalls Shewchuk with
admiration. Shewchuk loves everything about dance from the tricks and
costumes to the collaboration with other companies. Dancing for at least
half of his life, Shewchuk has no thoughts of slowing his pace: “Dance
means everything to me,” states Shewchuk with maturity in his tone that
contrasts with his youthful demeanor before heading off to take his
place at the start of the run.
Peter Eeles plays many roles.
In addition to being the Principal at The Shumka School of Dance and
Shumka dance member, he is also a core dancer in Clara’s Dream playing
the role of the Nutcracker. While he has been understudy for the
production in the last two years, he assures me that it is no different
this time approaching the role as a core dancer. “You have to work hard
to perfect the roles you are given,” he states. There is also ample
surrounding inspiration since Eeles feels he improves the most when he
is dancing alongside Virsky: “They’re so pulled-up and they dance with
such passion and heart…it’s infectious even just being in the same
building” he says with a laugh, releasing a elation that only comes from
working alongside your role models.
I am curious about the
collaborative aspect between the dancers since Kyiv Ballet and Virsky
only arrived on Sunday. During warm-up on Sunday, Eeles shares that
there was the Shumka barre and a Virsky barre but by today the barre’s
were more mixed even though it was only the third rehearsal. I imagined
it in my mind to be like a junior high dance. The boys and girls line
opposite sides of the school gymnasium, either unsure of who should make
the first move. Before Eeles is pulled away to being the start of the
run-through promptly at 7 PM, he confesses, “I don’t do it for money… I
do it because I love it." That is his last parting thought.
The rehearsal run of Clara’s Dream begins.
The
dancers all don their character faces, as if this run-through wasn’t in
a studio, but on the stage of the Jubilee Auditorium itself. The
dancers beam with warm smiles and act with such authenticity that you
can sense their characters without even seeing their costumes. The
actors flow through the different acts from the party to Clara meeting
the Nutcracker Prince after the fight with the Mice. Enthralled by the
physical stamina and energy of the run-through, I am jolted back to
reality when a 20 minute break is called in Ukrainian.
Executive
Director, Sandra Gajic, meets with me during the break. I inquire why
Shumka appears to be a well-known organization, yet, unknown at the same
time in the Edmonton’s Arts community. Gajic believes it comes down to
awareness. ”People have not been aware of the level of the company. We
are not a little recreational ethnic dance group. We are much more than
that. We are a professional Arts organization. People still don’t see us
that way,” she states with openness.
Shumka instructors have
developed a technique and syllabus that is unique to the school.
Somebody visiting the Ukraine would not see Shumka’s style of dance
because there is a specific Ukrainian-Canadian gestural vocabulary that
they use. Gajic describes it as being a hybrid mix of Contemporary,
Ukrainian, Folk, and Classical dance forms. Shumka is also expanding as
an organization by employing professional dancers and running Summer
Intensives that have options for recreational and professional dancers.
It
is all about stories. Gajic hopes for Shumka to continue commissioning
new works that explore the multicultural identity of Canada through, not
just Ukrainian dance, but Folk Dance in general. This could include
topics such as the Ukrainian immigrant experience or collaborating with
other groups to share stories of their culture. The most important thing
is to find stories that are relevant to and resonate with modern
audiences.
“What is at the core of Folk Dance that makes it such a powerful form to convey these stories?” I wonder aloud.
“I
think the expression of human emotion through movement. I spent all my
life in the world of Opera and the human voice. I never thought I would
hear myself think, nevermind, say aloud, that what probably came first
is the movement. I’ve traveled extensively throughout the world. When
you look at how people express their joy, fear, loss. It is much more
through movement. “
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Cross-posted on
Sound + Noise
Visit the following link to see more photos from this series by
Nanc Price
Clara's Dream
January 10 and
January 11
7:30pm
Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Tickets start at $25, and are available via
Ticketmaster.
