[gentle inquisitive music] ♪ [gentle inquisitive music continues] ♪ [gentle inquisitive music fades] - Gosh, what excites me now about the art form is that it seems to be allowing for different voices, different perspectives, and different entryways into the form.

Ballet, it's starting to allow more, I think, and be more sensitive and open to narratives that are representative of different people, maybe people who weren't always as readily acceptable in that field.

Dance in general really is allowing you to crack the ceiling open.

You can really be a part of many other art forms collaboratively.

So I think it's important to do collaborations like this and processes like this that you ask the dancers, and almost you expect the dancers to have thoughts and opinions and want to speak up and ask you questions.

[lively music] [lively music continues] - So when Dean Outlaw asked me to create a new work for the School of the Arts, I thought about the School of the Arts.

I thought about Dean Outlaw, and Dean Outlaw and I both grew up in Chicago.

We both moved to New York at a very young age.

You know, North Carolina School of the Arts, dance, represented to me dancers coming from all areas of the country, all walks of life at this, like, traveling on these different roads.

So I thought this music would be perfect to work with the dancers.

Classical ballet, you know, is an art form that goes back hundreds and hundreds of years and there's a technique and there's basic steps and the arm movements go with the steps and it's very linear in a sense.

Contemporary ballet, you're still doing classical ballet, but you're taking elements of today, you're incorporating modern dance movements, contemporary dance movements, jazz movements.

- This piece is obviously contemporary ballet and it's not as you know, form fitting into a box.

So there's a lot of interpretation with movement.

Tom had us, you know, he would ask us, "Okay, what feels good here?"

And you can make adjustments to that, whereas classical ballet, there is a right and there's a wrong and you either fit into that box or you don't.

So there was just a lot more freedom with the process and I enjoy doing contemporary ballet a lot more than just classical.

- Well this is my first, well it's actually quite exciting, I do like firsts.

but this is my first contemporary piece at the school and my last piece as I'm a graduating UNCSA high school senior.

So it was really exciting to be in the room with a choreographer and it was nice to know that the UNCSA teachers and choreographers prepared me to work with an outside person coming in.

- I hope that dancers, from working with me in this process, benefited from learning to move in a different way, learning a different kind of musicality.

It's because when I go into a room working with dancers, when I'm creating, I have ideas, but I'm creating specifically for them.

I want them to shine because I couldn't be here all the time.

I had to put my work into the hands of people that I'd just met for the first time, with the exception of for Dean Outlaw, who I've known for many years and I trust her implicitly.

I mean, she's just one of the great people in this world and anyone who ever comes across her will say that.

So when she connected me with my rehearsal assistant, Jennet Zerbe, I knew that she put me with someone with who would have my back.

- Working with Tom, it was amazing.

I really enjoyed to work with him.

I feel like working with him, and I have worked with other choreographers before, and he had been the first one who like, I really like to work 'cause he cares about his dancers is, it's really good that they put Miss Zerbe into this piece.

She even say that she's more of a classical work.

- He was very clear and articulate in what he was expecting from us.

And I'm sure 'cause Zerbe took over after Mr. Gold left, and I knew that if I wasn't doing what he wanted, that she would be very articulate of what he would want to express.

'Cause she does not bite her tongue.

[laughs] - And once Toms came, I think he was also satisfied with the work because we ran the piece and then he saw it and he was, "He was like, yeah, you're looking amazing."

- Well, it's a ballet about the New York subway and it tells multiple different stories.

So one of the things that Tom had us do was create a character for yourself.

You know, whether that be you're a businesswoman or your an off-duty model or something like that.

Just really getting into character.

So there are multiple perspectives of what the story is.

- The piece is called "The Next Stop Is," you know, referring to the announcements on the subway.

When I go into the studio, I need a narrative to inform me, how are these people gonna move?

How are they gonna interact with people?

So the basic story, which is very loose, is just different people coming from different walks of life, getting on the subway and seeing people that they might not have seen in a long time or that they just saw or, you know, and how they relate to each other.

And you know, comings and goings.

And one of the beautiful things I love about living in the city is you can stand anywhere and to see these crowds and they just move in and out.

And then in between, someone's just stopped there and then another person is stopped.

So you have this beautiful kind, it's very cinematic in a way where, you know, there's a focal point, but there's all this other stuff going on and I like to see that.

So it's a loose story about relationships and I hope everyone brings their own stories and projects onto the piece what they think, because I love that too.

Everyone has a different opinion and a different idea, and those make me a better artist by hearing them.

[subway train creaking and whooshing] - [Subway PA] Stand clear of the closing doors.

[PA chimes] [gentle violin music] [gentle violin music continues] [gentle violin music continues] [gentle music swells] [driving music continues] [driving music continues darkens] [dark majestic music] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music swells] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music swells] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music continues softens] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music continues] [dark majestic music swells] [dark majestic music crescendos] [gentle violin music] [gentle violin music grows softly] [gentle violin music continues] [gentle violin music continues] [gentle music swells] [gentle complex music] [gentle complex continues] [gentle complex swells] [gentle complex swells] [gentle complex lulls] - [Announcer] This is a Manhattan-bound M Express Train.

The next stop is Marcy Avenue.

- [Automated Warning] Stand clear of the closing doors.

[soft airy music] [soft airy music continues] [soft airy music continues] [soft airy music continues] [soft airy music continues] [soft airy music continues] [soft airy music brightens] [bright airy music continues] [bright airy music continues] [bright airy music hastens] [bright bittersweet music continues] [bright bittersweet music continues] [bright bittersweet music slows] [soft airy music] [bright bittersweet music] [bright bittersweet music continues] [bright bittersweet music continues] [bright bittersweet music continues] [bright bittersweet music lulls] [soft airy music] [soft bittersweet music] [soft bittersweet music continues] [soft bittersweet music continues] [soft bittersweet music continues] [soft bittersweet music slows] [soft bittersweet music fades] - [Subway Announcer] This is a Broad Street-bound M Train via the J line.

The next and last stop is Broad Street.

[weighty music] [weighty music continues] [weighty music builds] [weighty music continues] [weighty music hastens] [weighty music continues] [weighty music continues] [weighty music darkens] [weighty music lulls] [weighty music continues] [weighty music continues] [weighty music builds] [weighty music continues] [weighty music builds] [weighty music continues] [weighty music continues] [weighty music builds] [weighty music hastens] [frantic weighty music continues] [frantic weighty music continues] [frantic weighty music continues] [frantic weighty music continues] [frantic weighty music darkens] - [Announcer] This is the last stop for this train.

Thank you for riding PATH.

Stand clear of the closing doors.

[PA chimes] [gentle music] - I come from the New York City Ballet where the founder, George Balanchine, even though people say his ballets were abstract, he always said, "You put a man and a woman on stage, there's already a story."

So I feel there always is some kind of a story, and even if there isn't, people will create their own story because that's what we want.

We want to be told a story.

- Being able to perform this at the end of a hard year is very gratifying and fulfilling and it has been such an amazing experience.

I've made so many great friends and Tom is amazing.

I hope we get to work together again in the future.

But it just means so much to me and I'm so thankful to have this opportunity and kind of just end this year on a high note.

- This opportunity means, for me, a lot because I can not only show to the faculty, but show to myself that I can dance.

I'm just really blessed and I have no worries, but I just like, I'm really blessed.

It's a huge opportunity for me to show.

[elegant music] - So restaging "Shostakovich Suite," for me, really, it was a beautiful opportunity for me to reflect on why I initially did it in the first place, which really was, again, to allow for bodies and dancers who maybe didn't have the opportunity or automatically feel associated with royalty and grandeur and the beauty and grace of being in just pure tutu, tiara, tights, and just dancing in that classical form to this grand epic Shostakovich music.

- I think the combination between the music and the, like the jazzy aspect and the brass that you don't get a lot of in classical ballet, it brings a new life to this kind of older form of dance that a lot of people appreciate seeing.

You know, kind of like a new light on old things.

And I think it worked really well.

I think a lot of people enjoyed seeing classical dance with a somewhat more modern composer.

- One thing that Shostakovich revealed about me that I really didn't know before, I think was that, you know, as dancers we have such a special sense of connection and that connections with each other, all the dancers on stage, but then also with the audience.

So you know, we're doing all of these technically hard things, all these like crazy feats, lifts and turns and jumps, but all of that is really evoking emotion in the audience or sharing a feeling with them and just creating a different kind of world that we transport them to.

- Shostakovich's music embodies something that is very regal and elegant and rich, and I wanted our dancers to feel that they belonged in that space.

- The sense of royalty that's present throughout the whole piece from, you know, the costumes to the chandeliers, it also creates a sense of just confidence, self-confidence and pride.

And I think that's something that I'll carry with me outside the studio and everywhere I go and no matter what I do.

- I really believe that all of our students and everybody who wants to dance, who wants to do anything, they need to feel that they have the right to be there.

That who they are is enough in that moment.

And if they work and push, then that's all we can ask of them.

I wanted them to be reminded of why they started dancing in the first place.

Somewhere along their journey, they made a choice to do this.

And I have to believe that that choice was born out of love, out of joy, and out of a passion for it.

There are so many things that we can do in our lives.

There's sports and there there are many other avenues that a person can take.

But when you choose to dance and it's something that is challenging and can be difficult, there are a lot of nos, there's a lot of critique, there's a lot of looking at other people and having to resist comparing yourself.

So when you make that choice, you obviously do it for some deep love and I wanted them to find that in themselves again.

- This role, it was very challenging, but it gave me a really good sense of accomplishment.

Being able to overcome the physical challenges and the endurance and being able to perform it with relative ease felt pretty good.

- One of the things I haven't really talked about as part of "Shostakovich Suite" for me was the sense of community that I wanted to create in the studio, but also on the stage.

And I wanted that to be done while everybody had the chance to really feel that they were an individual within the community.

I didn't have an audition, so I really cast based on what I had observed in classes, either from the few classes that I've taught since I've been here or from watching the other faculty members' classes.

And I was looking for people, A, who I thought would naturally gravitate towards the movement, which was quick.

And even though it was very classical, there were some contemporary moments in it.

I also looked for those people who kind of flew under the radar.

Those who I felt maybe needed most to find that royalty within themselves and that sense of confidence and the feeling that they have the right to speak up and that they had the right to be in the room.

I think all of our students, if they are a part of this program, should be able to dance, should be able to perform, should have a main stage opportunity.

And so for some of the students that I picked, the talent was not a concern for me.

It was what can I bring out of them and what can they bring out of me?

- Working with Dean Outlaw was just incredible.

She has such a unique presence that she brings with her every time she walks into the room.

She just brings out a radiance in every person, every dancer who's in there with her.

And she really helped me find, you know, that true love for dance that you find when you first start.

- It was really important for me to have a moment to be in the space with the dancers because again, it's another level of really understanding one another.

I think it's trust building.

I also think it gives you an opportunity to practice what you preach the messages that we write about or that we talk about as leadership.

- Working with the dean is really special.

She's very good at staying positive and keeping everybody super motivated.

You could tell that she really cares about each and every student at the piece.

- The rehearsals for this piece were really great too.

We did a lot of runs, a lot of breaking down the details, just a lot of practicing, but we never, I felt like we never really lost sight of why we were doing it.

[no audio] [regal music] [regal music continues] [regal music continues] [regal music continues] [regal music heightens] [delicate regal music] [delicate regal music continues] [delicate regal music darkens] [dark regal music lightens] [fluttery light music] [regal music] [regal music continues] [regal music heightens] [playful delicate music] [playful delicate music] [no audio] [grandiose music] [bright exuberant music] [bright exuberant music continues] [bright exuberant music continues] [bright exuberant music continues] [bright exuberant music darkens] [frantic exuberant music continues] [frantic exuberant music softens] [soft exuberant music continues] [soft exuberant music frenzies] [frantic exuberant music continues] [frantic exuberant music darkens] [exuberant music continues] [triumphant confident music] [triumphant confident music continues] [triumphant confident music darkens] [troubled confident music] [troubled confident music continues] [troubled confident music builds] [light triumphant music] [triumphant music halts] [soft brooding music] [soft brooding music continues] [soft brooding music continues] [soft reflective music] [soft reflective music continues] [soft reflective music continues] [soft reflective music builds] [soft reflective music continues] [soft reflective music continues] [tense pensive music] [tense pensive music continues] [tense pensive music continues] [dreamy thoughtful music] [dreamy thoughtful music continues] [dreamy thoughtful music continues] [grandiose distinguished music] [grandiose distinguished music continues] [grandiose distinguished music continues] [grandiose distinguished music heightens] [grandiose distinguished music continues] [grandiose distinguished music continues] [grandiose distinguished music continues] [grandiose distinguished music crescendos] [no audio] [wistful serene music] [wistful serene music continues] [wistful serene music continues] [wistful serene music continues] [wistful serene music continues] [wistful serene music continues] [wistful serene music heightens] [cheerful serene music continues] [cheerful serene music continues] [cheerful serene music slows] [gentle serene music continues] [gentle serene music brightens] [bright serene music continues] [wistful serene music] [wistful serene music continues] [wistful serene music continues] [wistful serene music heightens] [cheerful serene music continues] [cheerful serene music continues] [cheerful serene music halts] - What really drew me here was the fact that it kind of was a union of all of the things that I have loved and been passionate about and my career and in my journey.

- It's the training.

The training is like nothing you'll ever get anywhere else.

And it's a conservatory so you are focusing on your art the entire time.

- The training that we have here, it's amazing.

We train hard [laughs] just to show what we can do.

- I really hope to see the School of Dance going in a direction that sets them up for what the industry demands today, but also what the industry is going to look like in five years and beyond.

I want our students to be able to go out there and have the tools that they need to make and be in the business now, but I also want them to really be bold enough to think about how they're going to affect the changes that happen in the years to come.

I want them to know that it is certainly an asset to be able to be a team player, but I also want them to know that there's nothing wrong and there's no shame in the game of being someone who is a leader in the field.

- I grew so much as a technical dancer.

It really improved my technique and my strength, but my artistry also really grew.

[regal music] - Everything about what you do is visual.

We are moving visual art.

And so if you don't allow who you are to come through, you may just appear like another piece of paint on the canvas.

What makes your particular color, your hue, your essence, stand out and that's the thing that is your greatest asset.

Once again, only you can be you.

So how do you allow that to come forth?

And it may be the thing that a choreographer is looking for, it may not be in one moment, but your best shot at being seen is by actually being open and vulnerable enough to show everything about who you are.

- I love to move.

It's just in my blood.

It's something I have to do.

So, luckily, I found my voice through dance and I just feel dance is a language we all understand.

We might not speak the same languages, but we all move and we're all capable of dancing in some way.

So it's something that connects us on a deep level.

[gentle flowing music] - We are starting to more and more realize that it's one thing to set a career in motion, it's another thing to be able to help students know how to remain.

Remain viable, sustain a career, launch the career of other people that they are one day the muses and one day the makers and then they are going to reciprocate what was given to them here and keep this industry, and what we love so much, going and growing.

- I take what I've created and I transform it into who they are.

So in the end I hope that they feel joy and passion and, you know, nurtured and that I've pushed them a little with it in a good way and that they will take that with them.

- It's okay to fail.

It's okay for something not to go well and then work through that.

It's okay to to challenge and expect excellence, but to do it in a nurturing way.

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