Me And Baryshnikov

Cedar Lake Dance With Fly Magazine
This has nothing to do with me and Misha, but it is Incredibly inspiring. I’m in love with Fly these days. This stuff is amazing on video. Advances in tech have made it easier to mix great music and edit down. I really love.

In the city, I spent a lot of time sitting in borrowed spaces, watching my dancer friends pull it together for a night, hoping to be discovered.

Before all that, before NYC, I knew nothing about dance, but now I’m pretty aware.

One time, a (professional) dancer friend talked me into taking a ‘beginners’ class at, of all places, Dance Space, in Soho. If you’re into dance in the city, you know this place.

So I go. The entrance way was filled with dancers stretching on the bar, running, jumping, or leaping. All that crazy cool stuff you see in the movies. I had a bad feeling.

Our class of about 20 started by doing normal breathing exercises and stretches. I was like, ‘cool this doesn’t suck’. I was wrong.

The instructor herded us to one side of the long mirrored studio that, by the way, had a window view to the crowded lobby.

She began by gliding into the center of the room where she did a leap and then glided out, stopping at the other wall.

Facing us she watched as each person, who had all done this before, performed the exact same movement. I was last and I did what I could…

When everyone was finally on her side, she went gliding out again, performed the original leap, and added a twirl (or something), then each person did the same, including me, and it was embarrassing.

When everyone was finally on her side, she went gliding out again, performed the original leap and then added a twirl (or something), and added a pirouette (or something). Each one of us copied her like before.

Repeat, repeat, repeat, until I found myself in the middle of this studio, trying to perform this complex dance combination, with professional ‘beginners’ watching from the class and hallway. It was horrifying.

The grand finale was everyone interpreting the moves on their own while we all danced together, the lobby audience watching. I think I cried.

Believe it or not, I went back the next week, thinking I shouldn’t give up (? crazy). Maybe I liked the atmosphere.

While doing warm ups at the bar and trying to psych myself into staying, I hear the teacher gushing over someone behind me. She was like, ‘that’s great Misha, just a little higher’, or something like that, so I turned around and there was Mikhail Baryshnikov. Our eyes met. I thought, I can’t put me or him through the humiliation of watching me dance. I got my things and left.

Whenever I think about that time, I’m proud that I did try the second time, anyway.

Cedar Lake Dance
Fly Magazine
Dance Space
Mikhail Baryshnikov