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Sep 23, 2020
Complexions Contemporary Ballet's Tatiana Melendez Proves There's No One Way to Have a Ballet Career
This is Pointe's Fall 2020 cover story. Click here to purchase this issue.
Talk to anyone about rising contemporary ballerina Tatiana Melendez, and one word is bound to come up repeatedly: "Fierce." And fair enough, that's a perfectly apt way to describe the 20-year-old's stage presence, her technical prowess and her determination to succeed. But don't make the mistake of assuming that fierceness is Melendez's only (or even her most noteworthy) quality. At the core of her dancing is a beautiful versatility. She's just as much at ease when etching pure classical lines as she is when boldly throwing herself off-balance.
"Selfish choreographer that I am, I want Tatiana to stay with Complexions for all time," says her boss Dwight Rhoden, Complexions Contemporary Ballet's co-artistic director and resident choreographer. "She has a theatricality about her: When the music comes on, she gets swept away." Not too shabby for someone who thought just a few years ago that maybe ballet wasn't for her.
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Training Grounds
<p>Melendez was born and raised in Tampa, Florida, where she danced from age 4 at a small recreational studio. "I did everything from ballet to contemporary, jazz to acro," says Melendez. At 8, she switched to All American Dance Factory and Classical Ballet School, studying and competing in the standard comp-kid fare of jazz, acro, contemporary and hip hop. Yet Melendez found herself drawn to ballet's clear structure. "My first ballet competition was Youth America Grand Prix in 2011," she remembers. "I did it on flat because that was my first year on pointe." Before long, she became a regular in the top five at ADC|IBC, World Ballet Competition, YAGP and New York City Dance Alliance.</p><p>Melendez says there wasn't any one lightbulb moment that made her realize ballet was her dream. But that doesn't mean the ballet world wasn't taking notice of <em>her</em>. In 2015, the Ballet West Academy had already offered 15-year-old Tatiana admission to their year-round program when she was spotted at ADC|IBC by Houston Ballet II's ballet master Claudio Muñoz, who was judging. "My eyes went right to Tatiana, because her jumps and turns had phenomenal energy," Muñoz recalls. That "raw, incredible talent" netted Melendez a full scholarship to the Professional Program at Houston Ballet Academy. After taking time to consider Houston Ballet's rep (contemporary-leaning), her connection with Muñoz (strong and encouraging), and friends' testimonials about the year-round program (glowing), Melendez moved into student housing.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQzMzMyMy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyMzgyMDkzM30.4DL8b0tNfg2MHyr2tcYz_ms7NHQ5ZF2KdISoXtHnZTw/img.jpg?width=980" id="e5690" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="9515c3a5b9b1219bb559accf6177fbfe" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="Tatiana Melendez, wearing a shiny gold leotard, stands on her left leg on pointe and kicks her bent right leg head height behnd her." />
Jayme Thornton
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<p>In Houston, Melendez saw no shortage of stage time. She was cast in <em>The Nutcracker</em> and Stanton Welch's <em>Cinderella</em>, on top of all her academy performances. She was also one of a few academy dancers picked by company member Oliver Halkowich for his contemporary piece <em>Full Circle</em>.</p><p>Between shows, she worked hard. "At my competition studio, we never had pas de deux or full pointe classes," Melendez says. "The grueling academy schedule really polished my technique." Muñoz says that in just two years Melendez transformed her own dancing: "Tatiana is the most incredible hard worker I ever saw. She became a beautiful swan, with a classical heart and contemporary soul." </p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQzMzM3OS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NjM1ODAwN30.T2MV2kWbBbZKtSM7GzA_Mt3uT__lCeEAiYjw73fAd0w/img.jpg?width=980" id="c642e" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a91f67afa0a19ff661391c53160a3d10" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="Tatiana Melendez, in a denim skirt and striped tank top, sits cross-legged on a white box and smiles toward the camera." />
Jayme Thornton
Going Pro, With Cons
<p>After graduation, Melendez headed to Fort Worth, where she'd landed a trainee contract with Texas Ballet Theater. It was a tough transition. "I went from training all day every day, to one morning class followed by standing on the side during hours of rehearsal," she says. Melendez's gifts were far from ignored, though. As a trainee, she danced in the corps of productions like <em>Swan Lake</em> and <em>Beauty and the Beast</em>, was one of six lead women in Ben Stevenson's world premiere <em>Martinu Pieces</em>, and led multiple performances of <em>The Nutcracker</em> as Clara.</p><p>At the end of the season, however, Melendez's worst nightmare came true. Her contract was not renewed because, at 5' 1", she was considered too short for the company. "My height had always been an insecurity," Melendez says. "Once, at a ballet competition, someone told me as I came offstage that I would never make it because I'm 'not built for dance.' " </p><div style="padding: 20px 0 40px;">
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From left: Candy Tong, Melendez and Eriko Sugimura in Dwight Rhoden's Love Rocks
Justin Chao, Courtesy Complexions Contemporary ballet
<p>Disappointed, Melendez threw herself into auditioning for classically based companies—only to be told over and over that, while her technique was great, her size was a nonstarter. "Being told 'no' so many times was really discouraging, because my height is something I can't change," she says. Melendez had even started talking herself into taking a year off from dance when she decided at the last minute to attend Complexions' open call in New York City. "Complexions was always a dream in the back of my head, but I never thought it'd be attainable—it wasn't even on my list of places to audition," she remembers. </p>
Taking Flight
<p>Thus began what Melendez calls the hardest, happiest two days of her life. More than 400 dancers showed up to the Complexions' open call in April 2018, but after technique classes and "the fastest I've had to learn choreography, ever," Melendez made it all the way through the final cut. By the end of the two nonstop days, she felt sure that Rhoden's daring, athletic contemporary movement was her true calling—but still assumed she wouldn't get the job.</p><p>She needn't have worried. As Desmond Richardson, Complexions' co-founder and co-artistic director says, "Tatiana clearly made her presence known from the moment she walked through the door. I remember Dwight and I saying, 'Wow, she's really something.' Her professionalism, her innate sense of musicality and the sheer force of her were quite nostalgic to me." Rhoden adds, "What made Tatiana stand out was her fearlessness. She applied corrections, dynamics and ideas immediately in the audition. She knows how to cross the t's and dot the i's."</p><div style="padding: 20px 0 40px;">
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Simon Plant and Melendez performing Dwight Rhoden's WOKE
Stephen Pisano, Courtesy Complexions Contemporary Ballet
<p>Melendez says that joining Complexions was a complete 180, in the best way possible. Because the company is made up of just 17 dancers, she and other new members were immediately thrown into learning repertoire, performing across the country and internationally, and collaborating with Rhoden in the studio. "Working with Dwight one-on-one is incredible," she says. "Performing choreography actually made on you, using your strengths, is so satisfying. Especially in this work called <em>WOKE</em> that's about issues of social justice, I've really had to dig deep and bring a different dancer out from within myself."</p><p>Though she's occasionally felt homesick for the classics, Melendez believes that dancing with Complexions allows her to dance as the fully mature version of herself. "As much as Clara was a fun role, and as much as I love watching classical ballet, I don't want to always be typecast as a little girl," she explains. </p>
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<p>After a season and a half of whirlwind touring (so far to New Zealand, Europe and throughout the U.S.) and intense creative process, Melendez's newfound routine with Complexions has sadly been put on pause in the age of the coronavirus. At home in Tampa with family, she has used the hiatus to pursue her other creative passions of drawing and photography, and to teach Complexions rep as part of the company's virtual offerings. Melendez is looking forward to getting back to work with Complexions, and to continued guest appearances with classical companies, like Italy's Roma City Ballet. "Growing up, I thought I had to focus on just ballet or just contemporary if I wanted to be good," she says. "Now I see that having kept my feet in both worlds will help me dance as many roles as I can for as many choreographers as I can to the fullest capacity I can—which is all I've ever wanted to do." We'd like to see someone try to stop her. </p>
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Sep 29, 2020
Jeremy Kyle, Courtesy Laubacher
My First Month as a Professional Dancer in the Age of COVID-19
I moved to Eugene, Oregon, in August, brimming with nerves and excitement to launch my career as an aspirant with Eugene Ballet. After months of quarantining at home in Pittsburgh because of the coronavirus lockdown, transitioning to my new life on the West Coast marked a rapid shift. But in time, it granted me newfound feelings of security. For starters, the ritual of filling up my water bottle, packing my shoes and leotard, putting up my hair and walking into the studio reintroduced a much needed flow of normalcy into my life.
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ0NzAzNi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1ODk0MzQ1M30.nwDUcHMK6QJMAufijsCo0NMPdogZHNuTnixzGsibJDI/img.jpg?width=980" id="91bd9" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="18bffb1e468372a0d68a2a48da8f5135" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="A blue sign taped to a window says "Please stay six feet apart. Stay safe and healthy by practicing physical distancing."" />
Social distancing signs like this one dot the hallways and studios of Eugene Ballet.
Courtesy Kyra Laubacher
<p>Throughout August, Eugene Ballet offered studio sign-up times so that we could give ourselves maintenance classes during the week. Dancers could choose from three 90-minute time slots per weekday to ensure availability without risking having too many people at once. As a new dancer entering the ranks after months of training in my basement, I could easily<strong> </strong>acclimate myself with the studios, dancers and overall environment without the pressure of an instructor at the front of the room. After class, we sprayed the floors with vinegar and swept them clean with microfiber towels, wiped down the barres and sanitized any other surfaces we may have touched.</p><p>Feeling welcomed by my fellow dancers, I gradually sensed my stamina gaining ground, muscles firing fully and placement reestablishing itself, and by the third week I even worked up to taking center on pointe again (hallelujah!). I became accustomed to the white squares taped on the floor designating proper physical distance, and after two weeks of dancing in a mask my cardiovascular system adjusted to the extra respiratory challenge.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ0NzA0Mi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxNTIxMTI1OH0._jkWPcPw1DT03U787TTvCR8ukX-z98rb_kvSXtOzW-Y/img.jpg?width=980" id="02134" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="89e6678bc842c06cc685f682b76ef6de" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="A male dancer stands in the center of a studio with his arms held up, with three female dancers crouched around him." />
Clockwise from far right: Laubacher with Savannah Cox, Nina Nicotera and Mark Tucker in rehearsal for #instaballet
Courtesy Laubacher
<p>When Eugene Ballet's artistic staff began offering optional company classes on August 31, I felt confident and ready. The classes, designed to help get us back into shape for our November 23 season start date, have been on a rotating schedule, split between two studios with two pods of up to 10 dancers each. By the end of the first week, my body had transitioned through yet another roller coaster of soreness, struggle, recovery and elation as I adjusted to new instructors and heightened drive. It was incredible—I hadn't done a saut de chat in five months, and suddenly I found myself flying across a giant studio surrounded by fellow dancers, each of us infused with newfound energy. Outside the studio, too, I'd secured a part-time job at a dancewear store, which bolstered the developing sense of normalcy.</p><p>I even got to participate in my first professional performance with <a href="https://instaballet.org/" target="_blank">#instaballet</a>, an interactive dance company co-founded by Eugene Ballet's resident choreographer, Suzanne Haag. We rehearsed two brief phrases in studio before presenting it to our live outdoor audience in early September, building the rest of the dance piece by piece with the viewers' input. This process of co-choreographing with the audience, while characteristic of #instaballet, felt quite new to me. But the experience<strong> </strong>rejuvenated me artistically. Even with masks on and physical distancing enforced, we were able to create something together with the community in real time.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ0NzA1NS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYwNTM5OTI4MH0.j08PXlpYysn8Z20CAIDqFf9t5JsiPhtFT0zYYu8eKGA/img.jpg?width=980" id="b647d" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="fb8116cc4c6019872de7477b8cc272e1" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="A mountain in the distance is framed by pine trees and blurred by a smoky orange sky." />
A view of Eugene's smoke-filled skies. A recent wildfire forced Eugene Ballet to suspend in-studio classes for two weeks.
Courtesy Kyra Laubacher
<p>Then the wildfires hit the West Coast, interrupting any sense of progress. Eugene's air quality spiked to alarming heights as ash and smoke turned the sky an ominous orange and made it unsafe to breathe the air, even for a few minutes. This put in-studio classes on hold for two weeks (though Eugene Ballet has plans to unveil a spectacular new building in 2021, we rely on outdoor airflow in the current studios). The sudden switch from sauts de chat across the floor to intense indoor quarantine, for new reasons this time, challenged my patience. So when the air began to clear, rain began to fall and company class landed back on the schedule on September 21, I was reminded yet again how incredibly fortunate we are to have the opportunity to dance in the studios at all. Though the future remains uncertain, I hope to use this newfound gratitude to push myself further, learn to live with change and trust in my own capabilities.</p><div style="padding: 20px 0 40px;">
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Sep 28, 2020
Erik Tomasson, Courtesy SFB
"My Plate Is Full": Sofiane Sylve on Her New Leadership Roles at Ballet San Antonio and Dresden Semperoper
Sofiane Sylve had huge plans for 2020: Departing her post as a principal dancer at San Francisco Ballet, she embarked on a multifaceted, bicontinental career as ballet master and principal dancer at Dresden Semperoper Ballett, and artistic advisor and school director at Ballet San Antonio—and then COVID-19 hit, sidelining performances and administrative plans at both companies. But ballet dancers are nothing if not resilient. In her new leadership roles, Sylve is determined to help shepherd ballet through this challenging time—and transform it for the better. Pointe caught up with her by phone while she was in Dresden.
<p><strong></strong><strong>You started these amazing new positions, and then COVID happened. How have you had to adapt?</strong></p><p>In Dresden, <em>La Bayadère</em> can't happen because of the amount of people in the cast, and the costumes and wigs. BSA had to cancel October's <em>Don Quixote</em>. We're not sure <em>Nutcracker</em> is going to happen. I can't have it on my conscience to have 25 dancers in a room, even if I do everything in San Antonio that Germany has been doing. In Germany, you have to wear a mask everywhere you go, and you can't use the dressing rooms. They open the studios five minutes before you can go in, it's only an hour class, they shuffle you out and clean for the entire hour. You need cleaning staff 24/7—no U.S. company has a budget for that. </p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ0MDI4Mi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNzk5NTMxOH0.0ZcgL2rVfn5A_qiUKZlLCTgNrGIKfP3Jf2ydoywaC3Q/img.jpg?width=980" id="3fdde" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="59445563f4db7fe0658050166a0075a1" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="Wearing black tights and shirt and a brown skirt, Sofiane Sylve stands in between two barres of ballet students, who pose in attitude back." />
Sylve teaching a master class at San Francisco Ballet School
Erik Tomasson, Courtesy SFB.
<p><strong></strong><strong>How are you juggling these pivotal responsibilities at two companies—not to mention the travel?</strong></p><p>I wanted my plate to be full, and it's full, and I'm loving it. But with COVID, the travel is very difficult—I can get into Texas, but I could get stuck because of travel restrictions. I am on Zoom all day; I've hired BSA dancers and ballet masters on Zoom, and we do a lot of classes online. You see people in their homes, they see me running around with my dogs. In a way, it's made us seem more human to each other.</p>
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Sylve with Carlo Di Lanno in Justin Peck's Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes at San Francisco Ballet
Erik Tomasson, Courtesy SFB
<p><strong></strong><strong>One of your major opportunities is building a new BSA school from scratch.</strong></p><p>That was my big draw, because I feel that education is a big part of being a company. My idea was to create a three-level school at first, which would be divided into seven or eight levels as we grow. I'm basing it on the French curriculum, which is a lot of footwork and musicality. I find that a lot of choreographers are looking for musicality, and I want to train a generation of dancers that choreographers want to work with. I'm trying to have a soft opening in 2021. In terms of COVID, Plan A is to have everything normal, Plan B is a hybrid and Plan C is bringing you everything at home. We're discussing what makes sense</p>
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