L’Opéra Garnier… I always dreamed to one day step onto the stage at the famous Parisian theater where so many elegant point shoes have brushed the floor in fervent fouettés… and I did. I did, and I did a pirouette on that most illustrious stage where just minutes before the dancers of the Paris Opera ballet company had been gracefully floating. I did a pirouette… aaaaand almost fell over. I almost fell over because the floor is slanted 5% and if you are not used to it, it can be quite destabilizing. This is where the terms “upstage” and “downstage” come from.

After catching my fall, I looked up to see Brigitte Lefèvre, company director, giving post-performance notes to dancer Alessio Carbone. She raised an eyebrow and said with a kind chuckle in her voice “Si vous allez commencer à faire ça, il faut venir en cours demain!”… I was literally trembling with awe and excitement. She was speaking to me! And (jokingly, but still) inviting me to ballet class!
I was lucky enough to be given a private tour of the entire, I mean ENTIRE, opera house, after the Tuesday night performance of Hommage à Jerome Robbins this past May 4th 2010. From rafters to the belly, I will share some of what I saw with you dear readers…

A lofty rehearsal room under the dome of the Opera house. I couldn’t resist a pose.