Saturday, June 11, 2005
There's a certain attraction about dance which keeps me coming back. Thursday night's impromtu agreement to go back to SAJC to dance for the juniors' item turned into a splenderific and wonderfully pleasant experience.
Perhaps it was the studio: that good ol dance studio tucked in the ulu-est part of the campus, with its throng of carelessly thrown sneakers and slippers outside and music blaring through the absolutely non-soundproof windows. The act of opening the door is a workout for the senses in itself: Your eyes are treated to the sight of a multitude of lovely ladies (and a few gents) prancing about with perfect poise and grace, hiding the fatigue that comes with an entire day's practice. They move in perfect unison, blocking changing constantly like an ever blooming rose. And of course, in the centre of it all, perched high on the bar in the middle of the mirror, is Zaki our choreographer, his commanding presence exerting control over the dancers, his critical eyes sweeping across the floor, concentrating too hard to notice you at the door.
Your ears are hit with either the booming beats of the latest hip-hop song, or the frantic tempo of a modern contemporary piece, or perhaps the soothing sounds of a ballet item. Above the music wafts Zaki's rythimic counting, "1,2,3,4,5,6-and-7-and-8!" The air-conditioning immediately cools your skin, it has to be strong to soothe the sweat of tired dancers after an energetic item. Walk into the back room (make sure no one's changing before you do so to avoid any unpleasant surprises!) and you are greeted by the chatter of juniors who welcome you as if you were an old friend.
My turn to take the floor and dance. I execute the movements i'd just learnt to Zaki's methodic counting (5,6,7,8..), a little unsure at first, knowing that 2 years of absence would leave me rusty and stiff, but thankfully not hopeless. After a few rounds and having warmed up enough, i'd do the moves instictively, all the while staring amazingly at the mirror as i watch myself moving exactly in time with the rest, or the rest moving in time with me. Lovely. A turn here, a spin there, the freedom to travel across the studio floor as well as the rush that comes with that flight of fancy breathes life into me. For those few magical moments, i am no longer 2LT Lionel Yeo, sitting in the office and typing applications or giving stiff instructions to men, i am alive. And very happy.
Yours truly will be doing only one item for the upcoming concert at Kallang Theatre (22nd and 23rd july, if you're interested!) since army commitments dont allow me to attend many rehearsals. Unless glen wants me in his item too of course. We are doing the song Sway, a jazzy item with pretty tough partner work for a rusty old fogey like me. But it'll look fantastic if we can pull it off. Okay, so maybe its pretty dumb to participate in a concert and perform only 2 sets of eights, but that isnt the point.
Amidst the monotony of army life, you tend to appreciate the little things, like the friends, the juniors, the choreography, the freedom, the cameraderiae, the fame, the grace and the life that only dance can bring. Its that little rush in the midst of this boring world that keeps the soul alive.
he rocked the party at 6:16 AM |
