Artist Spotlight
 | | | Elana Altman in Tomasson's Swan Lake. |
3/27/2006
Elana Altman was promoted to soloist at the end of the 2005 Repertory Season. A San Francisco native, Altman saw her first Nutcracker at San Francisco Ballet, and before she was ten, began her formal ballet training at the SF Ballet School. In the following Q & A, Altman reflects on her transition from the School to the Company, and from corps de ballet member to soloist.
What led you to ballet growing up?
A family friend took me to see Nutcracker at the Opera House when I was about two years old. She was an usher, so she took me backstage to see all the scenery and costumes. It was magical and my mom tells me that from that moment on I was hooked! I started taking movement classes shortly after that, followed by ballet lessons. At nine years old I started formal training at the San Francisco Ballet School.
At what point did you decide to make ballet your career?
I dreamed about it from a very early age, but when I was fourteen years old it started to feel more like a reality. My freshmen year of high school I started leaving early at 2pm, and my sophomore year I was leaving at 11:30am to go to ballet classes. When I started making sacrifices, I realized that ballet was what I really wanted to do.
You mention training at SF Ballet School. What was it like to make the transition from the School into the Company?
The transition was actually pretty seamless. The last two years in the School I was dancing in Nutcracker and other classical ballets when students were used in the corps de ballet. I felt very well set up for the apprenticeship. Dancing with a company is something that you learn as you go, and if you pay attention and work hard, it all works out.
Did you feel there were benefits in training at SF Ballet School?
I was very familiar with the dancers in the Company and the repertory. The repertory for this company is very unique, with a wide variety of works and styles. I feel that growing up around San Francisco Ballet, I am a bit spoiled by the great repertory, and if I had gone somewhere else I would have been disappointed.
Who have been the biggest influences in your career as a dancer?
Sylvie Guillam has always been someone that I admire. She is an amazing artist with super-human abilities! Growing up, I always admired Evelyn Cisneros and Joanna Berman. They were both so warm on stage and you could sense their wonderful personalities from watching them dance.
What are you most looking forward to in the second half of the season?
One piece I’m looking forward to is Artifact Suite. The part I’m dancing is all improvisation. I’ve never done anything like it. The role is driven by imagination and visualization. I have been given a vocabulary of movements, and I start speaking with them quietly. Throughout the piece I get louder and louder and by the end I’m shouting!
I’m also looking forward to “Rubies.” It’s one of my favorite roles. It was one of my first solo opportunities, so it has a special place in my heart.
What is your most memorable performance?
I’d say Myrtha in Giselle, the first time I performed it. It was memorable because I felt swept up into this character, who was so powerful, angry, and ultimately heart-broken.
What do you find most inspiring about being a dancer?
It’s a living art form, and no two shows are alike. No two moments are ever the same. You can always watch a performance or rehearsal and learn something; dance is always evolving.
What roles do you hope to dance some day?
I hope to dance the role of Odette/Odile in Swan Lake because of the contrast in the two characters. I would love to take on that challenge. I would also love to dance in The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude because it must be so fulfilling to dance something that difficult.
What choreographers do you hope to work with?
I’m looking forward to working with William Forsythe when he comes next week. We are really so fortunate in this Company, since so many wonderful choreographers come to work with us. Just by being here, I get to work with all the great choreographers in the world today, including the ones here at SF Ballet.
As a San Francisco native, what do you enjoy most about the city?
It’s my home, and it is where my family lives.