I have a compulsion to jump off the side of cliffs. I can’t help myself…just have to do it.
My favourite job is gone. Damn. The school closed without much warning…okay…maybe there was some undercurrent warning. But for all intents, most of us expected to go back to work. Schedules were put together, curriculums were planned and then BAM…one week before the start date…no job.
Here’s the dilemma. On one hand, I could retire…I’m certainly old enough. On the other hand, I love teaching dance and I was just getting started on a new method of movement training…which was really exciting! There’s no way another school is going to hire me and allow me the same level of freedom that I’ve had for years to follow my curiosity and agenda. What can I say? I’ve been spoiled.
I like to break the rules. Let me give you an example:
Ballet is a very specific movement technique made for a very specific body type. Think of that for a moment. A specific position of the body might encompass about 5% of the population…those people who can do it easily. But what about the other 95%? No surprise that many in the industry do NOT have that specific body type. Also, not surprising that many in that industry end up with serious injuries either during or after their career.
I am the searcher of “Plan B”, although I really hate that that term or for that matter, the word “modification”. If your body wasn’t built to go into a specific shape…is it a modification? It is in terms of a technique aesthetic, but it isn’t in terms of your body type. Quite the quandary. My feeling on the subject…So what? If losing a small percentage of your hip rotation gives you a wider range of motion with less effort…go for it! As I have told my dance students for years. I seriously doubt that someone is going to give you grief over a small detail like a perfectly turned-out foot when you just brought the house down with your kickass performance. And if they do…run! That is not the job for you.
How did I become the Plan B Queen of movement? That’s a long-convoluted story for another day. Back to problem at hand. To retire or not? To take the easy route or not? See, that’s the problem with a compulsion. It looks like I’m going to have to take a leap and start something new on my own. What’s the point of having a cliff, if you’re not going to jump off of it?