So... in my last post, I told you guys that I was granted a new role to do with the green costume. Two days ago, I was called 1h30 before the show again for another role: "the indian slaves" To do this role, we will have to be painted in dark brown all over the body and we will wear an impressive mask. So for that performance, I had THREE roles to do. The one in green in Act 1, the one in yellow in act II and the slaves in act III. Sure it will be a bit tiring but I was so happy to see three beautiful colorful costumes hanging over my costume holder with my name on it: Impressive Kimin Kim (guest artitst) yesterday night in La Bayadere. If you watch the video in HD, you could see me! I'm so proud to be on this video!!
Last Sunday, I attended an event organised by the Chinese Students' Association of France, as part of the selection board. It was a selection for the Chinese New Year performance which will take place in February. It was a special experience and I had great fun.
At the same time, in Palais Garnier, three modern ballets are being performed. Special mention to Pina Bausch's Rite of Spring with Stravinsky's music. I watched this ballet and found it absolutely breathtaking! For this ballet they put real soil on the stage and the dancers dance on the real soil. Very special isn't it? After each performance, the staffs would clean up all the soil on stage and prepare for the next performance. Respect for their work!!!!
La Bayadere continues....... and the critical moment arrived!!!!
Yesterday night was the 15th out of 23 performances of La Bayadere. More and more dancers get injured or sick. The situation becomes more and more stressful for us, the understudies. Almost all the understudies are performing now. Me, I'm dancing in two roles every night now. At the same time, since Christmas approaches, we have performance every night or every two nights. We don't have two consecutive day offs anymore. Moreover, we are rehearsing for the next ballet Goldberg Variations in the afternoons everyday!! I start to feel seriously tired. At the beginning I was more than enthusiastic to dance on stage. By now, of course I always enjoy to perform, but pain and tiredness just make me suffer a little. Well, that's normal, that's my job after all. Sharing with you two shots from La Bayadere backstage! Recently, I went back to Paris Opera Ballet School again for practicing the pas de deux that I'm going to do in a gala in January in Bordeaux. Before I arrived at the school's front door, I was shocked by this image......
I remember that after my first Concours for entering the Paris Opera Ballet in which I failed to get accepted by the prestigious company, my parents came to visit me and my sister in Paris for the first time. Of course, the first thing that I wanted to show them is the Palais Garnier. Normally with our student card we could bring friends and family into the Opera for a visit for free. That's exactly what I was trying to do. However, when I showed the staff my card, they replied me in a cold tone that my card has expired. At that moment, I had a very tough feeling as I wasn't sure yet whether I will repeat a year at the school..... "Oh true, I am no longer part of the Paris Opera...." The next day, I had a meeting with Elizabeth Platel, the director of the Paris Opera school. After that, while I was walking away from the school, I suddenly stopped and looked back. Oh, it was a very emotional moment. All my memories in this school appeared in my mind. I stopped and looked at my school for several minutes. My mind was full of emotions, good and bad memories and nostalgia. "I left, and maybe I will never come back....." This image, this moment, profoundly stays in my mind. Several days ago, I came back to school for the first time after my second and successful Concours (I repeated a year at the school), I saw the same image. I was shocked, recalling my vision of this same image a year ago. But this time, I smiled. "Oh! Here I am, at the Paris Opera Ballet." ~ Thursday night I was invited to a free concert at Conservatoire a rayonnement regional de Paris. One of my Macau friends who invited me was playing in the concert. It's not a very long concert which lasts around one hour and a half only, so it was perfect for my tired body! The program was as follow: - Edith Canat de Chizy (1950) Couleur d'abime - Maurice Ravel, Concerto for left hand in D major - Felix Mendelssohn, Symphony number 3 in A minor Op. 56 The first one is a very contemporary music which I didn't really enjoy, I've never really liked a very contemporary music. The second one was good, a piano concerto for left hand which made me want to play piano again so badly! Mendelssohn has always been one of my favorite composers. I used to play his music a lot when I was learning piano in Hong Kong. I enjoyed his symphony so much. When my friend first invited me to go to this concert, I kind of hesitated a bit since Thursday night was my only free evening of the week. So I wanted to go home and rest instead of going to a concert. But finally I thought that I needed some music to give my busy mindset a wash, and I was right to have decided so! Having been standing on stage during the second act of La Bayadere, I have always been breath taken by this part of the ballet.
Solor variation from Act 2, La Bayadere. Hope you like it! ~
Before yesterday, I was asked to replace in a new role two hours before the performance. It is more or less the same type of role that I was doing before, which is one of Solor's friends in the story. But this new role has a bit more of dancing and technically speaking it's a little more difficult too.
Here sharing with you a photo of me in the magnificent costume of this new role!! |
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