Behind the Scenes

The Dance of Life

New Mexico Ballet Company and school director Anna Bridge are experiencing record growth (100 dancers in this year’s The Nutcracker!) and a renewed interest in ABQ ballet.

Dance at its highest level can sometimes be difficult to classify. Is it art or sport?

The most reasonable answer, according to Anna Bridge, lies somewhere in the middle.

“To me, it’s a physical art form,” says Bridge, who serves as school director, artistic director, and instructor at the New Mexico School of Ballet. “The athleticism of professional dancers is just insane. The elite level of physical demands and the technique and the skill and the coordination and everything that a dancer has to have physically, is incredible. It takes years and years of training to develop that.

“But obviously there’s the artistry on top of it, too. It’s a visual art form and a performing art form. The musicality and your personality and everything as a dancer and as an artist is so important.” It’s a life that Bridge knows well. She began dancing at age seven, taking classes at Dance Arts Los Alamos and New Mexico Dance Theater, where she learned valuable lessons under the guidance of mentor Susan Baker-Dillingham. “She was the one who created opportunities and instilled a professional, pre-professional performance aspect in addition to just training, taking classes and honing your technique as a dancer,” Bridge says. “As a kid growing up, I got to perform a lot in a lot of different types of ballets. A lot of the things I performed (in) as a kid, I think most professionals don’t get to do that diverse of a rep unless you’re jumping around to a lot of different companies. That really kind of set my course and when I was getting ready to graduate from high school, I knew that I wanted to stay and do something in the arts.” Bridge majored in ballet and modern dance and minored in arts administration at Texas Christian University before working in Denver for approximately six years as a dancer, teacher and choreographer. There, she maintained a demanding schedule that included consistent 12hour days and commutes to multiple studios throughout the city. She also met her future husband, a professor at the University of New Mexico, and that laid the foundation for an eventual return to the Land of Enchantment. Once she was back in Albuquerque, Bridge re-connected with a former instructor over coffee, and she was encouraged to check out NMBC. “I’m now her boss, which is funny,” Bridge says. “Within the dance world it’s always connections and who you know. And the dance world is very small.” Since her arrival in 2018, Bridge has gradually accumulated more responsibility at NMBC. Currently, Bridge must divide her time between teaching four days a week, administrative tasks and performance rehearsals. Versatility is an asset if one fancies a career in the arts, Bridge

says, and it’s something she prepared for with a diverse course load as a student. “I knew I wanted to dance, I liked performing, I was interested in learning to teach and choreograph,” she says. “As a dance artist these days, … to have a viable career within the arts, you have to wear many hats and have lots of different skills. That definitely came in handy for me.” Bridge was already school director when COVID-19 hit, and she had to help navigate NMBC through the difficulties that accompanied the pandemic. That meant that in addition to creating the class schedules, hiring and managing the instructors, communicating with all the students and families, dealing with level placement and handling tuition and fees, she also needed to keep morale at a reasonable level during a difficult time. “Since we didn’t have any performances on the books, I kept our professional dancers in online streaming classes and organized some things for them to keep them motivated and working as best as possible — just kind of took on that leadership role a little bit,” Bridge says. “We ended up doing a film project with the company.” Just prior to the pandemic, Bridge directed a performance of “Alice in Wonderland,” which eventually led to her being offered the position of artistic director on a full-time basis. Now she also oversees the NMBC’s long standing production of “The Nutcracker,” as a well as a spring performance, the focus of which has not yet been revealed. It will coincide with a significant milestone, as the company is celebrating its 50th anniversary. “In organizing (The Nutcracker), I run auditions, I do the casting, I rechoreographed or restaged some things last year that will be repeated this year. Some choreography is existing from previous directors, and we make little tweaks every year,” Bridge says. “Nutcracker is very standard for us. “I can’t divulge yet what the works will be for our spring show, but … I have a lot of say along with the other administrators within the company as far as what we want to showcase and celebrate.” Currently, NMBC has more than 200 students enrolled — and that includes 16 professional contract dancers. Students range from three-years-old to adults and possess various levels of skill. Some attend as few as one class per week, while others might be in the studio eight to ten hours on a weekly basis. While NMBC features its fair share of dancers who are on the professional track as Bridge herself once was, those who have never danced — or perhaps have been on a lengthy hiatus — are always welcome. “We also offer beginning ballet classes for teens who never danced as a kid or adults who never stepped inside a ballet studio or maybe they danced as kids and have taken 30 years off and want to get back into it for fitness, coordination or because they enjoy it,” Bridge says. “I think dance is for everybody. It’s never too late to start learning something new. It’s not about being the best. I think the benefits of dance, music and physical fitness are the right thing for a lot of people.” At the highest levels, competition is fierce. However, Bridge would like to distance NMBC away from the sensationalized version that can sometimes be depicted in Hollywood. More importantly, she wants to encourage dancers to be vocal when it comes to managing their health and injury prevention. Longevity is rare in professional dancing (Bridge says most stop performing by their 30s), and oftentimes dancers will push through pain to their own detriment. “One of the things we try to look out for is letting dancers or encouraging dancers to have a voice and to advocate for their own bodies and health, especially when it comes to injuries and injury prevention,” Bridge says. “There’s definitely a culture of staying silent through your pain because you don’t want somebody else to take your performance spot. If you are injured, that means you are out and that means all of the hard work and hours you’ve put into rehearsal just disappear in a moment. And you don’t get to perform and somebody else gets that spot. That has led to a lot of dancers working through pain and performing through pain, making injuries worse or potentially pushing through an injury that is life-changing after that.” NMBC has experienced significant growth recently. The company moved to a new building (6207 Pan American Freeway NE) in January, which includes four studios. It’s an upgrade from the previous location, which NMBC shared with other dance groups. With a growing student and performance base — The Nutcracker is up to over 100 performers this year from 65 in 2021 — the company now can hold classes every single day. “We have more students now than we did before the pandemic hit, so that’s been really awesome to see that growth over the last couple years,” Bridge says. “NMBC is growing and looking forward to some bigger and better things. The company has been around for 50 years through many different directors. We’re hoping this season to set the tone and hoping for another 50 years.” —TRISTEN

CULTURE

A PULSE CHECK ON ALBUQUERQUE’S ART, MUSIC AND THEATER SCENE

MELTING TOGETHER

Linda Boyes’ future husband introduced her to a niche art form, which led to her taking classes and instruction from nationally known masters. Today she’s an expert instructor and creator of colorful fused glass. (p. 132)