Book Review: "Every Step You Take" by Jock Soto

 Jock Soto, who retired from his role as a principal dancer with New York City Ballet in 2005, has written a memoir that is both affectionate and affecting.  It is a sweet ode to his mother, who passed away three years ago and who was instrumental in the way his dance career  - indeed his life - unfolded.

Mama Jo Soto was a Native American who married a Puerto Rican man against the wishes of her entire clan.  Mr. Soto's reactions to her dying, her death, and the husband she left behind, play out against his memories of his own life as a professional dancer.  This is not a tell-all about Mr. B or the dancers of NYCB in the 80s and 90s.  Although Mr. Soto acknowledges his adolescent outbursts, his dalliances with older men, and his forays into New York City nightlife, this is not salacious material.

Instead the reader is rewarded with an intimate look into the world of professional ballet. Following Mr. Soto's rise from a tiny Phoenix, Arizona studio to the hallowed stages of City Ballet in New York, we see also his rise from an insecure and naive young adult to a confident yet humble man.  Throughout his life he struggled with the duality of worrying that he left his family behind because of his chosen profession and desperately needing  freedom to explore the great big world.  Although much of Mr. Soto's absence from his family's life was due to ballet, it was also in part because of the tension that existed between himself and his father over his being gay.  He admits to purposefully staying away from his family because of this - and it tortured him until his mother's death.

Personally, I was happy to read about Mr. Soto's ascension to esteemed principal.  I loved hearing about his passion for ballet, for choreography - and for his ballerinas.  I loved how he called them - Heather Watts, Darci Kistler, Lourdes Lopez - "my ballerinas." He forged several remarkable friendships with these women which was reflected in their work onstage.  The best kinds of dance partnerships are built on mutual trust, and this is also true of choreographers.  Mr. Soto had an intimate relationship with the amazingly talented choreographer, Christopher Wheeldon, but their professional partnership also resulted in thrilling work.

As a teacher, I also loved reading Mr. Soto's comments about technique and the methods he uses to teach the students at SAB. He tells male dancers to become invisible behind their ballerinas, to place their hands in such a way that the audience can't see them, and above all, NEVER drop a ballerina (a very important lesson he learned the hard way from Heather Watts).  Partnering is all about the ballerina because, as Balanchine famously declared, "Ballet is woman."  Not that we can live without fabulous male dancers!

Mr. Soto's memoir is a quick, fun read.  That he was so talented and gifted yet remained humble throughout his career, always hungry for more and never complacent, is a wonderful guideline for all of us.  As he transitions to a career involving cooking - his second love - he will no doubt bring that same passion to the rest of his life.

Special thanks to Danielle Plafsky at HarperCollins for sending me an advance reader copy.  This book will be available Oct. 4, 2011 and can be ordered at Amazon here, among other online stores.

Nota bene...

...I'm changing the name of my class at Dance Arts Academy on Monday mornings to "Intermediate" from "Beg/Int."  Nothing is changing - not one thing - but it's a better reflection of the class level.  I fear that I have had too many students come to the class thinking it's for beginners when really it's for more experienced dancers. They come once, proclaim its awesomeness, then never return.  Now, there certainly could be other reasons for this but I have a gut feeling it's because the class was too complex for them and they were too shy to tell me that.

And my current students, who are more experienced dancers, have told me that my notion of "easy" or "simple" or "beginner" is not what other people consider as such.  So, I have to go with what the real level of the class is, teach to it, and not feel pressured to make it easier just because the original class in that time slot was called Beg/Int.

So there you go.  Happy dancing~

New classes at Le Studio!

For my students who are interested in pointe work with me, you have 2 options:

Mondays, 6-6:30PM, Basic Pointe - for adults and teens who are brand new or coming back from an injury, this is perfect.  Strengthen the ankles and feet, work on turnout and lift. Mostly barre work.

Saturdays, 11:30AM-12:30PM, Pointe 1 - for adults and teens who may have some pointe experience already or newbies who are strong and can handle a full hour.  This class will focus on barre for at least half the class and then progress to some work off the barre for those who can.

I am also teaching the Teen Ballet on Fridays, 4:30-5:30PM. This is an open level class, designed for all of our student division dancers.  More experienced dancers can take it en pointe while less experienced ones can do it flat. The Senior Ballet Company rehearsal will follow from 5:30-6:30 very soon!

Can you be perfect?

Don't spend too long thinking about the answer. I'll tell you: no, you cannot.  And you shouldn't try to be.  Good things happen when you fail in ballet.  (Not "fall," that's a different matter altogether.)

One of the biggest differences between beginning ballet students who are adults and those who are children is that the kids just throw themselves into turns and jumps, usually without any regard for form.  Adults, on the other hand, are often too smart for their own good.  They think and think and ponder and then very tentatively attempt one pirouette.  They are afraid to do it wrong.  They want it to be perfect.

It ain't gonna happen.

Gillian Murphy, one of the most gifted dancers in the world yet only occasionally perfect!

When you go for a double pirouette instead of a single - and you tip over- that tells you something.  Where you weight is.  Where your arms are (or are not).  What your head is doing.  And so on.  All of those things lead you to better pirouettes the next time around.  Don't bother analyzing a thing before you try it.  Just try it and then analyze it.

One of the most important things you can do in the center is to free your mind and allow yourself to move.  The discipline we learn at the barre, the constant repetition of steps and corrections, the little voice that is me (your teacher) telling you to always lift up your hips, etc. - all of these things are important for you to incorporate and then forget when you come to the center.  You don't want to be actively thinking about those corrections; the goal is for them to happen on their own because you have done them so many times.  Then when you do turns or jumps or adagio, the dancing takes over and you give yourself room in your brain to concentrate on other things like artistry and expression.

You can't be perfect.  No one can.  Even the most gorgeous and naturally gifted ballerina will only be perfect for a moment in time.  As with any athlete, constant training is necessary to achieve even one second of perfection.