Summer Diary Series – Principal Sara Webb

Ever wondered what our Houston Ballet company dancers do over the summer? Well, we asked our dancers what they did over the summer and what they are looking forward to the most in the 2012-2013 season. Check out this week’s entry from Principal Sara Webb! Enjoy!

Our Summer in Japan 2012

Ballet: Manon; Dancers: Sara Webb and Nicholas Leschke; Photo: Jim Caldwell

As the 2011-2012 Season was coming to an end with the tragic love story of Romeo & Juliet, Connor Walsh and I were preparing for another tragic and memorable love story of Manon and Des Grieux. Former Principal dancer Barbara Bears-Gadbois did a wonderful job coaching us and getting us ready to jump into the production being performed by the National Ballet of Japan in Tokyo. We had very little time once we got to Japan to work with the Company, so we had to be “performance ready” when we arrived.

The final Houston Ballet performance of Romeo & Juliet was on Sunday afternoon (June 17). Connor and I flew on a 13-hour flight Monday morning, arriving in Japan Tuesday afternoon. We were happy to see familiar faces on our flight. Fellow HB dancers, Nozomi Iijima and Megumi Takeda, and Megumi’s father were on their way home to Japan for the break as well.

While we were getting over jet lag and adjusting to a 14-hour time change we had four days, a one-hour stage call, and a final dress rehearsal to acquaint ourselves with the company and their production of Kenneth Macmillan’s Manon.

The Company and Staff of the National Ballet of Japan and the New National Theater Tokyo were very welcoming and helpful. It was a unique and wonderful opportunity to be able to perform in Japan with these accomplished Artists- one I will always remember. It was a treat for us as well to be on stage again with former HB II member Mina Bonkohara. She is dancing beautifully.

Connor and I are grateful to Karl Burnett, Patricia Ruanne, and Lady Debora MacMillan for their last minute coaching and inspiration, as well as Martin Yates for his masterful composing and conducting of the music. We had a lot of work to do in four days–we usually rehearse for weeks– but it was an enjoyable challenge.

This was my third time performing the role of Manon. Each time I have danced this role I have been in different places in my life. While I have enjoyed every opportunity, Japan will always be my favorite. I’m grateful to our director, Stanton Welch, and National Ballet of Japan’s director, David Bintley, for giving me this opportunity.

Connor and I danced two performances in the New National Theater Tokyo – an amazing facility.

What a treat it was for us to see some familiar faces at the end of our shows. We so appreciate the support of our Houston friends who made the trip to see us and cheer us on. Thank you to Jim Nelson, Akemi & Yasuhiko Saitoh and their two daughters, Machiho Yoshiyama, Charles-Louis Yoshiyama, Katelyn May, Nao Kusuzaki, Megumi Takeda and her mother.

When the curtain closed after our second show, Connor and I were officially on vacation! My husband Ryan bravely flew with our two children Joshua (4) and Lillian (21 months) to Japan just as I was finishing up my performances so we could enjoy our summer vacation together in Tokyo. We had many adventures, especially with two children in tow, and tried to see and experience as much of Japan as we could in a week. We visited the Meiji Shrine, Tokyo Zoo, Senso-ji Temple, the shrines and great Buddha in Kamakura, Shibuya Crossing, the Sumida River, and my kids’ favorite—DisneySea:

Joshua loved Japan so much that, on our first night home, he came into our room at 2:00 am in tears because he already wanted to go back. In his words, “Japan is so much funner than Texas. I want to go there forever.” Maybe not “forever,” but one day we hope to find ourselves there again for another memorable visit…

- Sara Webb, Principal

Our 2012-2013 season is almost here! We are opening our season with Stanton Welch’s Madame Butterfly from September 6-16, 2012. Watch Sara Webb return as the beautiful geisha Cio-Cio San in the love story of  Madame Butterfly.

Tickets may be purchased by calling 713-227-2787 or by visiting www.houstonballet.org. Please click here to view, print or download casting.

Ballet: Madame Butterfly; Dancers: Sara Webb and Ian Casady; Photo: Jim Caldwell

Countdown to Clear and Madame Butterfly! Are you ready?

Houston Ballet is opening its exciting 2012-2013 season with Clear and Madame Butterfly, September 6-16, 2012 at Wortham Theater Center in Houston, TX.

Dancers: Amy Fote and Artists of Houston Ballet; Photo: Amitava Sarkar

The program starts with Stanton Welch’s Clear –an abstract work, for seven men and one woman, showcasing Houston Ballet’s male dancers and set to Bach’s Concerto for Violin and Oboe in C minor and the first and second movements from the Violin Concerto in G minor (Denise Tarrant, Violin; Elizabeth Priestly Siffert, Oboe). Noted fashion designer Michael Kors created the costumes for Clear. Sleek and sexy, Mr. Kors’s flesh-toned designs focus the attention on the dancers, emphasizing the emotional impact of Mr. Welch’s choreography.

Intermission.

Enter Madame Butterfly, the love story of a beautiful Geisha (Cio-Cio San) and handsome American naval officer, Lieutenant Pinkerton is told in an exhilarating two-act ballet. Cio-Cio San renounces her faith and her family to wed Lieutenant Pinkerton, the centerpiece of the work is a ravishing wedding night pas de deux. The production unfolds dramatically on Peter Farmer’s picturesque sets, which beautifully evoke the mystery and languor of nineteenth century Japan.

Dancer: Sara Webb; Photo: Jim Caldwell

Tons of exciting things to look for September 6-16, 2012! Madame Butterfly will feature dancers making their debuts in leading roles. Debuting in the role of Madame Butterfly will be soloist Nao Kusuzaki and debuting as Pinkerton are first soloist Linnar Looris and demi soloist James Gotesky. Principals Amy Fote, Mireille Hassenboehler and Sara Webb will revisit the role of Cio-Cio San, and principals Simon Ball, Ian Casady and Connor Walsh will reprise the role of Pinkerton.

Here’s what some of our dancers and artistic staff have to say about Madame Butterfly:

Principal, Amy Fote –

“Madame Butterfly is one of my favorite ballets I have ever danced. The emotional arc that Madame Butterfly endures throughout the story is so heart moving and tragic – experiencing a first love and getting married, to defying her religion and becoming an outcast, having a child and holding on to hope for years that Pinkerton will return, to eventually taking her own life.”

Dancer: Amy Fote; Photo: Maarten Holl

Soloist, Nao Kusuzaki –

“It is an honor to portray the role of Cio-Cio San through this beautifully poetic ballet Stanton has crafted, […] I am especially excited to share with the audience the Japanese cultural heritage which speaks to me most authentically, and to tell the story of this ballet’s pure beauty, unwavering strength, and passionate drama.”

Ballet Master, Steven Woodgate –

“Madame Butterfly was my first full length ballet that I have ever set and I have now set it on seven different companies. I understand all of the characters and what they do, so I am not struggling to figure out every step; you become more comfortable with it. […] It is a challenging ballet technically dance wise and pas de deux wise.”

Watch the Clear and Madame Butterfly preview to learn more!

Tickets may be purchased by calling 713-227-2787 or by visiting www.houstonballet.org. Please click here to view, print or download casting.

Dancing Butterfly

Dancers: Simon Ball and Barbara Bears; Photo: Jim Caldwell

From September 6-16, Houston Ballet launches its 2012-13 season with Stanton Welch’s balletic adaption of Giacomo Puccini’s Madame Butterfly. The title role of the opera is one of the great works of the repertoire for dramatic sopranos. Stanton Welch’s ballet version of Madame Butterfly is also a tour-de-force for the leading ballerina, requiring a dancer who is also a very gifted actress and can convincingly take the audience on the wrenching emotional arc of Cio-Cio San’s journey: from exuberance of first love to the passion of her wedding night in the first act – to her despair at her betrayal by Pinkerton in the ballet’s second act.

The role of Cio-Cio San was first created by principal dancer Vicki Attard of The Australian Ballet in 1995. Since the work’s Houston premiere in 2002, a number of Houston Ballet principal dancers have given memorable interpretations of Butterfly, including Sara Webb, Barbara Bears and Mireille Hassenboehler.

Dancers: Ian Casady and Sara Webb; Photo: Jim Caldwell

But one dancer has a unique connection to Cio-Cio San: principal dancer Amy Fote, who has performed the lead role of Butterfly more frequently around the world than almost any other ballet dancer. Ms. Fote’s first experience with this work was in 2004 in a guest appearance with the Royal New Zealand Ballet where she performed the role 16 times and was coached by Houston Ballet’s Ballet Master Steven Woodgate, who recognized her exceptional talent and set in motion the process of her joining Houston Ballet.

“Madame Butterfly is one of my favorite ballets I have ever danced. It’s a gift to perform the title role in such a beautiful work, observed Ms. Fote. “The emotional arc that Madame Butterfly endures throughout the story is so moving and tragic: experiencing first love and getting married, to defying her religion and becoming an outcast, having a child and holding on to hope for years that Pinkerton will return, to eventually taking her own life.”

Mr. Woodgate, who created the featured role of Goro in the original production of Madame Butterfly in Australia in 1995 and has staged the work for companies across the world, gave Ms. Fote the freedom and space to discover her own conception of Cio-Cio San. “He would offer suggestions and tell you if something didn’t work, but he would let you discover the character on your own,” observed Ms. Fote. “He wanted everyone to be their own artist.”

Dancer: Amy Fote; Photo: Amitava Sarkar

When she returns to Cio-Cio San on September 6 – 16, Ms. Fote will be able to find even more depth, nuance, and power in the beautiful story of Madame Butterfly.

Tickets to Madame Butterfly are on sale via our website at www.houstonballet.org. Tickets go on sale to the general public via phone and walk up on August 6.

Article on Sara Webb in Cy-Fair Publication

Principal dancer Sara Webb recently discussed juggling a busy dancing career and family life with an 18 month old son in Cy-Fair Magazine.  Read more here.  Ms. Webb will perform the lead role of Odette in our upcoming production of Swan Lake.

Dancing from a new perspective

This blog is a long overdue follow-up with principal dancer Sara Webb, who gave birth to her son Joshua in November 2007.  In this entry she writes about returning to the world of dance after such an important personal milestone.

A good friend of mine who was a soloist for many years with Houston Ballet told me, after her first child was born, that dancing Swan Lake was harder than giving birth.  Seeing as Swan Lake is definitely one of the hardest ballets to perform, I found myself eagerly looking forward to this “easy” challenge.  After 13 hours of labor and a C-section, though, I found myself envying my friend for her breezy experience.  I also gained a new outlook on Swan Lake. It doesn’t seem so bad anymore.

If I had to relate being a mom to dance, I would say it is that rare thing dancers experience only a couple of times in their careers…a perfect performance.  While you never forget those few perfect moments on stage, the curtain eventually comes down. What I like best about being a mom is that this performance never ends.

I decided before Joshua was born that I wanted to return to the stage.  After 10 years of dancing professionally, I wasn’t quite ready to hang up my pointe shoes.  Knowing myself, I knew I had to set that goal before I met Josh.  Otherwise I would have never been able to come back.  As hard as it was to leave him at seven weeks old to return to the studio, I had to finish my dream.

Getting back into “dancer shape” took a lot of hard work and patience. Standing up straight was my first challenge.  You wouldn’t think of that as a very difficult task, but, after having a C-section and with seven layers of stitches keeping my abdomen together, it was!  I started walking around my neighborhood, Joshua in tow, every day.  After two weeks, and having a little more bounce in my stride, I went to the gym.  I tried to do some crunches and pilates moves – unbeknownst to my doctor who would have killed me—without much success.  Yes, I was crazy!  But by week four I was feeling stronger (thanks to Amy Elle at Houston Gyrotonics for helping me find my core again).

The first time I went to class, I had to remind myself every time I looked in the mirror that I just had a baby.  I was so excited to be dancing again, though, and surprised at how easily my body remembered how to do it.  My first performance back was Balanchine’s Serenade, in which I danced the role of the Russian Girl.  It was a great ballet to come back to.

I always get nervous before a show, but I was especially nervous for my first performance back.  However, just as Joshua calmed me when I was dancing with him in my belly, he continues to calm me now.  And even when a show isn’t perfect, I get to come home to a son who thinks I am (at least until he is a teenager).

Sara Webb in Stanton Welch's Falling, May 2008

Juggling a dancer schedule and a mom schedule keeps me insanely busy. It is a good busy though. While I always wish for more time with my family, I am enjoying dancing.  Before I had Josh, I struggled with being “burned out.” After taking some time to be away from it, though, I realized why my eight-year-old self had this dream in the first place. I love to dance.

It is true that you are a stronger dancer after having a baby. Not only because childbirth makes you physically stronger, but also because it changes your perspective.  You realize how short a dancer’s career can be, so you learn to make the most of the time you have to be one.

-Sara

Report from New York’s Fall for Dance Festival

Guest writer: Andrew Edmonson, director of marketing and public relations

The Lone Star State took center stage on Tuesday night at Fall for Dance, New York’s most popular dance festival which officially launches the new arts season in Manhattan.  Houston Ballet was one of five companies featured on the fourth program of Fall for Dance, running September 17-27 at the City Center in Manhattan.

Houston Ballet principal dancers Connor Walsh and Sara Webb sailed effortlessly through George Balanchine’s demanding classical showpiece Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, eliciting a roar of approval and rousing cheers from the sell-out crowd.

Sara caught the eye of Wendy Perron, editor in chief of Dance Magazine, the leading trade publication for ballet, who was beguiled by Sara’s authoritative presence and sparkling interpretation.

Immediately following Sara and Connor were Houston native Ayman Harper and HSPVA grad Mario Zambrano, who charmed the audience with their comic modern dance duet The New 45, choreographed by Richard Siegal for his company Richard Siegal/The Bakery.

Both the programming and the audience were incredibly eclectic at Fall for Dance.  Tuesday night’s concert opened with an excerpt from Cold Dagger, performed by China’s cutting-edge modern dance troupe, BeijingDance/LDTX. 

In the second part of the program, Taiwanese dancer Fang-Yi Sheu of LAFA & Artists Dance Company  held the audience spellbound with only a table as partner in an excerpt from Single Room, a modern dance solo dramatizing a woman’s loneliness in a relationship in which Ms. Sheu writhed sensuously and mysteriously.  Single Room was choreographed by Bulareyaung Pagarlava.

And an ensemble of eleven male hula dancers in grass skirts from Hawaii, The Gentlemen of H ä lau N ä Kamalei, brought the evening to an intriguing close, performing Kahikilani, choreographed by Robert Uluvethi Cazimero to music that he also composed. 

After the show, the trendiest of the crowd adjourned to the FFD Lounge for drinks, conversation with the artists and club dancing. 

Houston Ballet ballet master Claudio Munoz traveled with Sara and Connor, coaching them for their big moment, while stage manager Brian Walker insured that everything went smoothly backstage.  Former Houston Ballet staffer Carmen Mathe, in Gotham to teach for two weeks, was at the performances to cheer the Houstonians on. 

The fourth program will be performed a second time tonight, September 24.

There is no rest for the weary, however.  Sara and Connor fly back to Texas early Thursday morning for the final dress rehearsal for Houston Ballet’s program Classically Modern, which opens Friday, September 26 at Wortham Theater Center.

For more information on Fall for Dance, which continues through September 27, visit the City Center website.

-Andrew