Preparation, practice, and passion pay off for dancers in ‘Clara’s Dream’
Joshua StorieThis article follows up our story “Ballet, Med School, and ‘Clara’s Dream’” published online in December.
Alynna Lirette’s and Katrusia Pohoreski’s pulses were still racing after the curtain closed and audience departed on the opening night of Clara’s Dream.
“I’m sitting here right now and I’m just tingling,” Lirette says.
Lirette and Pohoreski are veteran dancers with the Shumka School of Dance in Edmonton and have performed various roles in Clara’s Dream over the last few holiday seasons. The show is a Ukrainian folk ballet based off Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker. Clara’s Dream opened at the Jubilee Auditorium on December 29 and was followed by two shows a day later. Half a year of preparation has resulted in Lirette and Pohoreski shedding their opening night nervousness and embracing the energy of the performance.
“It’s larger than life,” Pohoreski says of her feelings after a successful performance. For her, there is an eccentric atmosphere on stage that is inviting to the audience.
The success of Lirette, Pohorseki, and all the performers cast in Clara’s Dream certainly doesn’t occur overnight. Pohoreski says the dancers begin building their stamina as far in advance as the previous summer so that they can be physically prepared for certain pieces like the mouse dance. But the payoff for the performers is incredible.
“I have so much love for the crowd and for my family who come and support me,” Lirette says. “(I have) so much appreciation for the art and I’m so happy to be there with my friends on stage. I’m just brimming with emotion.”
This was Lirette’s first year cast in a dance called shchedryk. “(I was) kind of feeling out the stage and getting used to dancing with my fellow dancers throughout that dance,” she says. “Tonight kind of shook off those nerves and I’m really excited to hit it (again) with even more confidence.”
Pohoreski has been cast as a child, among her many roles in the show, and this year she was excited to be working with the little kids from Shumka School of Dance on stage. “(The kids) did an awesome job, and every time we work with them, I feel that there is this extra little bit of energy and a little pizazz we can add to the scenes,” she says.
Half a year of preparation, practice, and passion has culminated into a vitalizing opening night performance for the two local dancers.
“You can just feel the energy on the stage. Everyone is in unison and we’re dancing together. Our smiles come so naturally and it’s actually an amazing experience,” Lirette says.
