Ballet Zaida Zine

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Kate Huntington in studio shoot + Interview

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Kate Huntington

Studio shoot + interview

Kate Huntington and I have been collaborating for years. We’ve shot in New York, Washington, California, Arizona, and more.

The photos featured today are from the latest shoot that we did towards the end of 2023.

After our photoshoot I sent Kate a few questions to be featured here.

Here are her answers.

- Introduction -

Hi! I’m Kate Huntington. I am currently a senior at the University of Arizona’s School of Dance. I will be graduating this spring with a dual degree in Dance and Economics. My early training began at ARC School of Ballet in Seattle, Washington, and continued at New York’s American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, and Houston Ballet. As of today, I hold an apprenticeship with ARC Dance’s professional ballet company.

- What are 3 things you want to see change in the ballet industry? -

There are several things I would love to see change in the ballet industry. From a young age, I was fed the idea that to be a professional dancer, there is a specific path you have to take. When I decided to go the collegiate route, I accepted that my chances of a ballet career were gone. As I near graduation, I realize it is not as black and white as I had imagined. I hope to prove that achieving a fulfilling career post-graduation is achievable. I hope ballet companies shift to accepting dancers of diverse backgrounds and upbringings. In my opinion, being homeschooled and moving away from your family at 15 years old to train should not be the norm. I would love for the industry to celebrate dancers who chose to get their degrees and who prioritize their well-being. These desires may be dismissed as naïve, though they are plausible when there is a communal effort to evolve. Overarchingly, companies need to better support their dancers’ mental and physical health. The two should not have to be sacrificed to be successful in this profession. 

- Do you think it’s important for dancers to have passions & hobbies outside of dance? -

Absolutely. I think it is important to be a human first and a dancer second. I feel I would have burned out and lost my passion for dancing had I given up everything else. I would go as far as to say that personal development and fulfillment are beneficial to one’s dancing. It affects the energy that you bring into the studio and onto the stage. Finding balance is a daily challenge, however, I know that making the effort is worth it. 

-Top 5 favorite movies (just a general 5 in no particular order)

You can never go wrong with The Intern, Gifted, We’re the Millers, Surfs Up and The Blind Side. 

- Any upcoming performances you’re excited about? -

I am currently preparing to perform a student choreographed work, “Tuyo” by Michelle Fricker in a School of Dance scholarship benefit. We will perform alongside Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Ballet Tucson, and guest speaker, Misty Copeland. I am looking forward to our Dance Springs Eternal performance as well. It’s filled with Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s “Somberismo”, Alvin Ailey’s “Streams”, and other exciting works!

-3 of your favorite dance pieces? (In no particular order) 

William Forsythe’s The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude. Crystal Pite’s Emergence and The Seasons’ Canon. I grew up watching both choreographers’ works at Pacific Northwest Ballet and developed a great respect for their artistry and creative style. In the classical realm, I would say my dream role lies in Romeo & Juliet. 

You can keep up with Kate through her Instagram and keep an eye on this Zine for more of our photoshoots.

-Oliver Endahl

@K8Huntington

Instagram

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Alexandra Light - Interview and Virtual Photoshoot

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I’ve shot with Alexandra Light many times over the years and we recently did a virtual photoshoot together using the information superhighway.

Alexandra has been a dancer with Texas Ballet Theater for a some years now and recently helped unionize the dancers of the company. (Which we love)

This post features an interview I did with Alexandra as well as photos we created from our virtual shoot. You’ll see the original photo we shot through the internet using Alexandra’s cell phone, and then you’ll see my edited photo. (It’s pretty amazing what you can achieve using an iPhone and Photoshop nowadays)

-Here’s an introduction to Alexandra Light in her own words;

“I was born and raised in Washington DC, where I completed my ballet training at Maryland Youth Ballet (with summers at SAB, SFB, Kaatsbaan, Houston, etc). I spent one year in Houston Ballet II and joined Texas Ballet Theater in 2012, where I still dance now as a principal dancer. I am an emerging choreographer and consider myself an antidisciplinary artist, with movement based and visual based practices. I have done many different things, including commercial modeling and fine art gallery representation, as well as achieving a bachelor's degree in psychology, all while dancing professionally. I love ballet and storytelling through dance but I think the industry is in a lot of trouble if it doesn't start to make some serious changes. I am always an artist advocate, as well as concerned with how art can positively impact the world around us. “

-You just helped unionize the dancers of Texas ballet Theatre. Why is it important for ballet dancers to be unionized & what was the process like of making it happen?

“It is really difficult for me to imagine why, in our very unique situation as ballet dancers, both staff and dancers wouldn't want their ballet company unionized, because having dancer input and codification of existing rights benefit all.  It is so important because it essentially guarantees that dancers and staff both have the communication and the tools they need to do the best job they can. Many dancer contracts lack in huge ways, whether it be pay to increase with inflation, bodily autonomy, or gender disparity in pay, etc. By unionizing, we figure out as a group of dancers what makes the most sense for us now and how we can build on it to go forward. The process was long but honestly extremely powerful; our team at AGMA were the best and educated us every step along the way. For the group of us (and I am lucky to have had many supportive dancers in our group concerned with making these positive changes) it was really beautiful to see everyone come together, research, connect, and be in solidarity as workers.”

-Do you think being a union leader as a dancer might affect your casting & career?

“I definitely worry about it from time to time but honestly, at this stage in my career, if my doing what I think is right and supporting my fellow dancers puts me in jeopardy, then so be it. I would say to the people who look to squash those of us trying to make positive change in a career that really, really needs it, to think about the sustainability of ballet long term- staff and dancers *have* to work together to make things better. As someone who works in the arts in more ways than just ballet, it is so apparent how badly the ballet world lags behind other art forms. Unionization is a great way to address many of the huge issues ballet companies face as we enter the mid 21st century.”

-You’re a choreographer yourself. What are your thoughts on the lack of female choreographers in the ballet world?

“I would love to talk about the challenges of the under-representation of female choreographers! It is hard to feel like no one wants you doing what you want to do, and even if they don't say it, the numbers make it clear. Dance Data Project just reported its numbers for the previous season, and only 22% of works in the top 50 largest ballet companies were choreographed by women. 22%!! and that was *down*!! from something like 27% I believe in the last report! Like, what?!?! People love to ignore this issue and say 'yes we care about gender disparity BUT etc etc etc...' and then not actually take action, and I just think it is crazy. I think there is some narrative that by promoting women being the storytellers, we are saying 'down with the men', and that couldn't be further from the truth. As the saying goes, rising tides raise all ships! We will all benefit from a more holistic and inclusive ballet world, and the storytelling is a huge part of that. I am happy to be a part of the change, though I really feel by 2023 we should have had this figured out by now?!? It is very powerful after a performance I’ve put on, or a choreographic premier, pretty much every time I hear from a peer or a student that watching me create has inspired them to take action in their own lives, even if they feel alone or unrepresented.”

-As a choreographer, what’s the process of creating dance work for you?

“Creating a new dance work always starts with specific inspiration, whether abstract or more concrete. I love looking into history, science, or mythology for my works, and I am such a fan and genuinely enjoy research. Then comes the great music hunt. I look forward to working with creators of music (like my partner!) more, but often I am finding music that I can get permissions for and license when appropriate (I never want to make people work for free). Then I listen listen listen a thousand times, working out the composition of a work by writing down the phrases of the music in a notebook. From there, I get more specific with movements, sections, etc throughout the music in my notations. That is all before I work with the dancers! I like to really, really have a good idea of the bones of a work before I come into the studio. However, even with the bones laid out, once I get in there with the dancers, it's a new world. I use my outlining and notation as a great guide, but I don't let it keep me from getting inspired on the spot by the dancers, or what looks good and feels good for their bodies. I just love it, all of it.”

-Something I see often with people who want to create art, is that they procrastinate the task because they’re afraid of their creation/art being bad. Any tips how to deal with that as an artist?

“Yes this is such a thing! I deal with it too from time to time. I approach it in two ways: Sometimes, especially for ballet dancers, we think we have to do it all, always, all the time- sometimes you're not actually procrastinating, but you actually need a rest. So if I'm realizing my procrastinations are actually a tad more on the burnout side, I try to give myself nothing to do, or reconnect to nature, just take time to feel free in my mind- it can lead to the best pushes to start a new project! And for the other times, when I truly am procrastinating out of fear of "failure"- you gotta just take the jump! I remind myself that even failure can be beautiful, and that by accepting new challenges in the face of fear you build true confidence.”

You can keep up with Alexandra Light on her website and socials;

www.AlexandraLight.Art

IG: @Farbie

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Peyton Szuberla Summer 2023

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Peyton Szuberla

At the Noguchi Gardens and in studio

Peyton Szuberla and I shot at a public sculpture display called “Noguchi Gardens” located in California.

The garden sits between some business buildings and a parking garage. It’s less of a traditional garden and more like walking through an outdoor museum filled with huge pieces of art. It’s kept insanely clean and is often used for various photoshoots. (I had never shot there, but the location had been on my radar for years) While we were there, there was two wedding parties and some locals snapping photos and enjoying the sights.

There’s several very large pieces of art that each individually stand on their own, and together they all combine to form one grand piece which is the garden itself.

It wasn’t until after our shoot that I researched to find out more about the location. It turns out it was designed by renowned artist Isamu Noguchi.

Here is the Wikipedia headline info about Isamu Noguchi;

“Noguchi Isamu (November 17, 1904 – December 30, 1988) was an American artist and landscape architect whose artistic career spanned six decades, from the 1920s onward. Known for his sculpture and public artworks, Noguchi also designed stage sets for various Martha Graham productions, and several mass-produced lamps and furniture pieces, some of which are still manufactured and sold.”

( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isamu_Noguchi )

How wild that he designed sets for Martha Graham? You can see in his work that it absolutely lends itself to dance with all the curves and aesthetically pleasing shapes.

Here is more information on the garden’s from the official website;

“Commissioned by the Segerstrom family in 1979 and completed in 1982, Isamu Noguchi’s California Scenario is recognized as one of the country’s preeminent sculpture gardens and the most vital publicly accessible outdoor sculpture oasis in Southern California. One of the artist’s most important public sculpture gardens, its design symbolizes various geographical characteristics of California, incorporating indigenous plants and materials.”

( https://www.southcoastplaza.com/stories/2016/12/noguchi-garden/ )

Everything looks so beautiful and intentional at this place that at one point I thought an outdoor garbage can was an art piece. (Which I thought was especially funny since in the movie “Wonder Woman 1984” they make this exact joke as they stroll thru an outdoor sculpture garden.)


After we finished at Noguchi, we headed to a photo studio that we had reserved for 2 hours. The studio had skylights above a cyc-wall, so we used all natural light for the set up.

Peyton’s Mother, Jessica, was the stylist for the shoot. I told Jessica for colors and outfit inspiration that we wanted anything neutral for the gardens, and for the studio we wanted anything “Barbie” centric. (That movie has amazing fashion and both Jessica and myself were inspired by it)

Jessica knocked it out of the park on both themes.

Love these gloves and the lines they created with Peyton’s port de bras

This converse look was especially fun to shoot. Peyton’s movements maximized the flow of the blue top and really brought an electric energy to the look.

Towards the end of our time we started losing light, (we shot at the studio from 6-8 PM) So Peyton wore this unique white fluffy top that we paired with a maroon leotard. The white top picked up the remaining soft light and Peyton’s body was nearly silhouetted.

This was a phenomenal shoot. I was feeling extremely inspired by the Noguchi Gardens, Peyton’s movements and Jessica’s passion/great taste for styling.

Keep an eye on the Zine fore more shoots with Peyton and Jessica Szuberla.

-Oliver Endahl

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The Zine Format

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Social Media isn’t what it used to be.

Today, the number 1 way we all use Instagram is to DM our friends comedy videos and Memes. (Which is why comedy absolutely crushes on social right now) It’s the thing people want to see when they use the app.

The context in which we intake media matters. For example, the state of mind we have when we visit a museum is an entirely different state of mind compared to when we enjoy food and drinks with friends at a restaurant. The same is true with social media. It’s become a place for sensationalized videos that are designed to induce a quick reaction to garner views that generate intense feelings that are forgotten as quickly as they were forged. Social media isn’t conducive to intaking and deconstructing your feelings on art. It’s just not the place for it. (Like filling up your car with gas and at the same time trying to analyze and deconstruct the meaning of the Mona Lisa. It’s not the time or place)

Because of this though, we’re trying a new format. Specific posts on this, the Ballet Zaida Zine (Zine pronounced like “MagaZINE”)

The Wikipedia definition of a Zine is; “A zine is a small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images, usually reproduced via a copy machine.”

( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zine )

Obviously, our Zine isn’t physical. (Although it could be fun to do a physical issue sometime) But the ethos is the same.

Social Media is designed to be addictive. We scroll until we feel a rush of endorphins, and then we keep scrolling. All the while, even when we aren’t using social media, we hand over every aspect of our digital lives to tech companies that then sell it to advertisers who want to distract your mind and drain your bank account to sell you things to capture that same endorphin rush you were looking for in the first place.

Instead of looking for endorphins by scrolling endlessly through a feed filled with fast moving people, topics and feelings, this is a place you can enjoy without giving up your life to social media companies and advertisers.

This is a place where my art will be shared and you can experience it without the stress of people fighting for your attention through sensationalism.

This is a place to enjoy photography and the thoughts of myself and the artists featured in the work.

This is a place to intake and deconstruct art.

Welcome to the Zine.

-Oliver Endahl