The Energy of the Process: Spring Studio Visits for Members

Earlier this month, American Ballet Theatre hosted members for the first round of Spring Studio Visits, an event welcoming members to attend closed rehearsals at ABT’s studios. Given my increased excitement each morning as I walk through the doors of 890 Broadway, I admit that what follows in this blog post stems from a biased place. However, despite my predisposition, this opportunity to experience private rehearsals is not to be missed. In fact, I find these visits alone to be completely convincing of acquiring an ABT membership. Two weeks after the open rehearsals, I am still finding myself thinking about the event and feeling energized by the experience. The proximity to such an incredible quality of work, the climate of focused determination and smart humor, and the tone set through both the verbal and the tacit dialogue is an experience unlike any onstage performance.

As an intern, I am slowly beginning to understand the enormity of an organization with this responsibility, history, and scope. ABT is a critical player in its field, which demands strategy, passion and persistence from those providing funding and energy to the organization. Just as spring brings a sense of clarity with coat shedding and sunshine, the Spring Studio Visits felt like a clarifying simplification. This first-hand view of what ultimately fuels this terrific organization was nothing short of extraordinary. With all of the moving parts required to keep an organization relevant, it was striking to boil it all down to the movement—the art that drives the fundraising, the enthusiasm that sparks the marketing, the details that motivate the training, the work that charges the education, the thrill that engages audiences and the intellect that sustains them.

In our product-oriented world, it was striking to have two hours to pause and absorb the process. Of course, the polished, onstage ABT product can be truly magical. Nevertheless, spending a morning reveling in the process of how this magic grows has been a highlight of my spring, and I cannot recommend it enough.

Molly Gibbons

Institutional Support Intern

Spring 2014