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81. Building an Expansive, Dramatic & Curious Choreographic Career with Alexandra Light
72 Plays13 hours ago
Alexandra Light, choreographer, creative researcher, and former principal dancer with Texas Ballet Theater, joins me for a conversation that weaves together artistry, identity, and the evolution of a dancer’s life. Her work has been shaped by residencies at places like Jacob’s Pillow and often explores ecology, feminist history, and the body as a site of memory and transformation.
At just 18, Alexandra moved into Houston Ballet’s second company. She reflects on the intensity of that transition, the endurance it required, and the lifelong friendships formed during that pivotal year. She shares the lessons that helped her survive a full schedule of morning class followed by demanding rehearsals and how those habits shaped her professional resilience.
For dancers who feel stronger as performers than technicians, Alexandra opens up about standing out in open calls despite feeling the same way early in her career. She walks through her progression from apprentice to principal dancer at Texas Ballet Theater, reminding us that careers are built on a blend of hard work, timing, luck, and the needs of a company.
Alexandra also talks about recognizing the moment it was time to retire, a decision influenced by both intuition and logistics. Less than a year into retirement, she explains how shifting toward choreography was the biggest factor and why watching live ballet now fills her with excitement rather than longing.
When asked to describe her choreography, Alexandra uses three striking words: expansive, dramatic, and curious. She shares how she builds work (from music-driven ideas to research-heavy processes) like her recent piece exploring the overlooked women who influenced Frank Lloyd Wright’s success.
We also discuss her commitment to making ballet more sustainable and accessible. Alexandra recounts a formative moment that drove her to create work for audiences who have never had access to ballet. She also opens up about sustaining her own creativity and the role nature plays in her artistic practice.
This episode is rich with insight, honesty, and inspiration for dancers, dance lovers, and anyone navigating a creative path.
Connect with Alexandra:
Visit Alexandra’s Website: https://www.alexandralight.art/
Follow Alexandra on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/farbie/
Links and Resources:
Get your copy of The Ultimate Audition Guide
Schedule your Complimentary Career Consultation: https://www.thebrainyballerina.com/career-mentoring
Let’s connect!
My WEBSITE: thebrainyballerina.com
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thebrainyballerina
Questions/comments? Email me at caitlin@thebrainyballerina.com
This episode was brought to you by the Pivot Ball Change Network.
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Transcript
Kaitlyn's Early Passion for Choreography
00:00:00
Speaker
And I think it's because like inside I really wanted to choreograph and I love working with dancers. I love details of work. I love everything about what we do, but also a majority of the repetitors coming in were women. So I think I just naturally like saw myself in that role more. And it wasn't until later on in my career that I really started evaluating how I was feeling. And I was like, no, I think I actually just want to choreograph.
Transition from Ballerina to Mentor
00:00:27
Speaker
I'm Kaitlyn, a former professional ballerina turned dance educator and career mentor, and this is the Brand New Ballerina podcast. I am here for the aspiring professional ballerina who wants to learn what it really takes to build a smart and sustainable career in the dance industry.
00:00:43
Speaker
I'm peeling back the curtain of professional dance world with open and honest conversations about the realities of becoming a professional dancer. Come along to gain the knowledge and inspiration you need to succeed in a dance career on your terms.
Introduction to Alexandra Leitz
00:01:01
Speaker
Hello and welcome to the Brainy Ballerina podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Sloan, and I am joined today by Alexandra Leitz. Alexandra is a choreographer and former principal dancer with Texas Ballet Theater, whose work bridges classical ballet and contemporary movements.
00:01:17
Speaker
Her work has been developed through residencies at Jacob's Pillow, Centro Pompadour in France, the Frank Lloyd Wright Martin House, the Volan Foundation, and the ORTO residency in Portugal, and often explores themes of ecology, feminist history, and the body as a site of memory and transformation.
00:01:37
Speaker
I can't wait to ask you more questions about all of your work, but let's start at the very beginning.
Alexandra's Dance Beginnings
00:01:42
Speaker
Why did you take your very first dance class? It's like the most obvious, easiest answer. It's just my mom was like, oh, little kid ballet classes. So I was three years old and she put me in class. and every year from three, she asked me, do you want to do that again? And every year I said yes. And that's kind of the case up till today, i guess. I just kept wanting to do it.
00:02:09
Speaker
What was your training like growing up? My very first classes were at a tiny school. It was called Ballet Petite. So I guess literally and figuratively tiny. From there, as a little kid, I just fell in love with it so much. So I kind of outgrew that school pretty quickly. At nine, I joined Maryland Youth Ballet, and that's where I received the majority of my training. I think the school there is just amazing. So I didn't do, like many dancers who go into companies, many people go the boarding school route, but I did the school at home, or not at home, I wasn't homeschooled, I went to public school, and you know went to the studio in the afternoons. Yeah, I'm really grateful for really amazing training. I think that there's so many great options, but not everything is the right fit for every dancer. And i think had I gone to one of those big boarding schools, I think, I don't know if it would have been
Training at Houston Ballet
00:03:03
Speaker
right for me. And then 18, I went to Houston Ballet's second company. So I kind of consider that part of my training because that's that in-between period right of like you're kind of still in school, but you're also kind of starting to dance with the company.
00:03:17
Speaker
What was that transition like for you from going from living at home and dancing at your home studio to a really major company? it was It was very intense. I think that it was also a year I'll never forget. It's wild to me that I only spent one year in HB2 because it feels like it was just this huge period of time. And the relationships I made that year are like everlasting and It's crazy the talent that was in my HB2 class. Someone I work with a lot was Chumwe Chan, who was in my HB2 class. Ben Rudison, who's a principal at National Biotherapy of Canada. Jack Long is still doing amazing things in Houston. Maddie Skelly, she's like
00:03:57
Speaker
in Estonia doing amazing things now. Silicon Kelly was in my class. Ellen Overstreet was a principal at Sarasota Ballet. Everybody in that class was like incredible. It was like such a bonding year with those people. At the same time, like it was really hard. i think that maybe people who came from the boarding school training maybe had a little bit more of an idea of what those like full, full days look like. So the transition was was definitely a challenge, but I'm really grateful to the amazing people I had around me because that they made it all all worth it and i learned so much uh sabrina lindsey was my primary teacher there and she was incredible and just i would not be the dancer i am today without her and lauren anderson was there too so that was like some of my initial you know i mean there was so much ben work happening and actually i mean of course because it's like the ben stevenson
00:04:50
Speaker
school. So and there's there's so much history there with Ben. So that year we did Ben's Romeo and Juliet and Tim O'Keefe, who's now artistic director at TBT here and Leon Lin came in and we're studying that work. So I got like a little bit of a taste for TBT while I was there as well.
00:05:08
Speaker
What were some of the really formative lessons that you learned during that time period?
Lessons from Houston Ballet
00:05:13
Speaker
like how to come in at 9am and take your class and like learn how to get through the day. That was probably like number one, because I think that's something that, especially if you're not doing all day training when you're young, it's a long day.
00:05:29
Speaker
And like learning how to navigate the stamina required for that kind of rehearsal day and that your body's not going to feel the same at 545 that it does when you get there at 9 a.m. Sometimes it feels better. Sometimes it feels worse. And I think also, you know, coming out of a relatively small school, i think Sabrina and the whole team at HB worked.
00:05:50
Speaker
really emphasize the quality that you need to stand out in such a big company and how performance quality, you know, like you can have all these incredible abilities physically. i would say i always struggled a little bit in that arena, um like just due to some like hip thing, you know, everybody's got their things, but they like really emphasized growing as an artist and I think that helped me long term, especially where I did have challenges physically. you know like I couldn't do 100 pirouettes, my legs could not, and my écarté is not that high. like you know like Everybody has their has their things, but they helped me learn how to stand out in the way that made sense for me.
Auditions and Joining TBT
00:06:31
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From Houston Ballet, what was your next step in your professional career? I auditioned that season, that audition season. because we were all encouraged to just to see what was out there. And most dancers were still kind of doing two years of HB2, but some dancers did just one. And I remember that probably being like the hardest time of year, because it's like, not only did we have like our own performance schedule, and then we're performing with Houston Ballet, like the main company, but now we were also traveling all over the place. getting on flights. I remember flying in and having a layover and then getting to my destination at like two zero in the morning and like going and taking class for two days. And yeah, and I did a lot of open calls to actually finally enough, which a teacher of mine told me when I was training, Alexandra, you're a much better performer than you are a technician.
00:07:23
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offense, which like none of no offense taken like I, you know, I knew that about myself, like, She was like, you're probably going to get jobs easier when you send performance videos than if you go to an open call. And funnily enough, my both my HB2 contract and my apprenticeship with TBT were from open calls, which is crazy. The Houston Ballet one, I'm just like, the face were with me that day. I don't know. Like I could barely do, upon graduating from high school, I could barely do 16 fouettes like clean and like nice just because that was something I really struggled with. Luckily, I got there eventually. But that day, I just like I could do it I was like, oh, my God, thank God. like i
00:07:59
Speaker
Anyway, so I went and took the open call. It was an easier one to audition for. And i got an apprenticeship. And that's when I was sort of like, like, we had meetings that year, too, with Shelley Powers and Stanton. And they were all like, this job seems pretty good and like a pretty good fit for you. and I was like, yeah, I think I'm going to take it. And they were like, yeah, we think you should. I was like, okay, cool. Bye.
00:08:22
Speaker
I mean, I think a lot of people had such an understanding of Ben and his work and that I would be a really good fit for his work. I found out that I was and I really enjoyed his work. i I love Ben's, that's choreography. Can you speak to for a dancer who feels similar to you that they are maybe a stronger performer than they are a technician?
00:08:41
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How did you use that to your advantage in an open call situation? How can you stand out in that way? Yeah, I don't know if it was ever, especially when I was younger, if I could consciously harness my performance ability. i think every opportunity I got to show myself, I just tried to use all the tools I had. And I think that the performance quality comes out in...
00:09:06
Speaker
my expression and like my approach to movement. So I think just working hard and and bringing all those tools to the table is how the performance quality came out. And of course, you know, I was like fighting to get the legs up and point my toes as hard as I can and, you know, all that stuff. But I think it's just, it's just going for it and and also trying not to, and this is something I struggled with, I think, especially when I was younger, trying not to compare yourself too much. like Everybody has their gifts.
00:09:32
Speaker
So it's like it's beautiful. And I admire the dancers who are just like incredible technicians. And I'm like, ah it's just incredible. But when I was younger, I had a really hard time not comparing myself and feeling like, well, I could never...
00:09:44
Speaker
do x y and z because i i can't get there or i have this like different physicality it was only much later and maybe into retirement now that i'm like realizing like no like ah you you really didn't need to make yourself suffer by being like oh but like i'll never be as good as them because i don't have xyz technique i think in open calls too it's like hard not to compare yourself when you're like there's like so many incredible dancers but Yeah, just trying to focus on you. And a friend of mine told me recently, she was like, envy and jealousy is like where you want to focus your attention.
00:10:22
Speaker
It's not, that's like what it's meant to do in your mind. And I'm like, oh, it's like such a beautiful way. I think she worded it even better than that. But so if you're looking at someone's acarte and you're like, oh, like my acarte sucks. It's like, no, maybe you just want to focus a little bit more on like, you know, working on your acarte, doing some exercises that can help you have the best acarte.
00:10:40
Speaker
Yeah, it's like revealing to you what you really want to improve on or what in your life. right Yeah. Yeah. It's like, okay, make a note of that. Like when I'm doing my warmups at bar, like I'm going to spend one minute on anchor day exercises and like this other thing and, you know, and they all connect together. yeah.
00:10:59
Speaker
Does the mere thought of a audition season make your palms start to sweat? Do you feel completely overwhelmed with getting everything together on top of your regular dancing schedule?
00:11:09
Speaker
I've been there, and I totally get it. As dancers, we spend hundreds of hours honing our technique and artistry. But when it comes to figuring out how to put together a resume or what to expect in a professional audition, we're often left to figure it out ourselves.
00:11:24
Speaker
That's why I put together the ultimate audition guide. This is your one-stop shop for everything you need to tackle professional company auditions with ease. No more spending hours Googling and trying to piece together a somewhat coherent audition package.
00:11:38
Speaker
With this guide, you'll be ready to conquer audition season like a true professional. We're talking resumes, headshots, dance photos, dance reels, plus info on how to find auditions, what to wear, what to expect, how to budget, mindset tips, you name it.
00:11:54
Speaker
It is in this guide. You are ready for this moment. Head to the show notes, grab your copy of the Ultima Audition Guide, and empower yourself with the knowledge to approach audition season like a true professional.
00:12:07
Speaker
Can you talk about your progression at TBT from apprentice all the way up to principal dancer? How did that go for you?
Career Progression and Retirement
00:12:17
Speaker
Yeah, it was kind of crazy. i was like a any dancer, I feel like no matter what. and It's part hard work and it's part luck. Like it's being right place, right time, the temperature of the company at the time, what they need, where there's gaps. I feel like I was super fortunate in my apprentice here We had Bronwyn Curry come in from the Glen Tetley Trust. We were doing voluntaries that year, which is a work that I ended up dancing twice. I love voluntaries. I love Tetley's work in general, but that was the only one I ever got to dance in. It was the only one we really did at TVT the time i was there.
00:12:51
Speaker
And I think they were studying the work at the very beginning of the season, even though we weren't performing it until later that year. And she picked like three or four dancers to learn the principal and soloist role. And it was mostly we weren't ranked at the time, but the apprentices were apprentices like we had our own category. She picked me to learn both those roles, which I think helped me to really stand out. Like the first few months in the company, they were like, dang, this reputator came in and is like, oh, I want her. and she's an apprentice. So I feel really grateful to her for for seeing something in me. and And I think Ben and the rest of the staff also knew that
00:13:31
Speaker
you know I was gonna work my booty off and you know I got some good opportunities my first couple of years in the season. And i think my first, I don't know, sometimes I don't count Nutcracker as my first principal roles because I'm like, Nutcracker is Nutcracker.
00:13:44
Speaker
I think I did Snowpaw in my second year, but like also you do like school shows to start. So I'm like, you're definitely not a principal dancer, but like you know it's it's a good sign of like you're on your way. And Ben's Snowpaw is like the most beautiful thing. I was just talking about it with someone yesterday who was like, oh I like really want to do Sugar. And I'm like, but Sugar, it's like the same choreo company to company. Ben's Snowpaw is so Ben and it's such a beautiful choreo. I'm like, should be so grateful. i mean, not that they're not grateful, but...
00:14:13
Speaker
Yeah, I did Snowpaw, I think my second season for school shows. And then I think my third year, i started to get some soloist opportunities in not just in school shows and not just learning things. So I did Bluebird and Sleeping Beauty and, you know, some fairy variations and stuff like that and really got to show my stuff there. i did a lot of Clara when I was young in the company too So, you know, that's like a great opportunity to kind of show your performance skills and how you...
00:14:44
Speaker
Claire is like training for carrying full length ballets because in a way you are you're the only character who's kind of like there the whole time. it was a really awesome opportunities and really helped me develop as an artist, getting to do some soloist roles and Ben works too.
00:14:58
Speaker
He has such an emphasis on partnering, which I think shows up a lot at Houston as well. Like we had a lot of partnering training and we're doing a lot of complicated stuff. So it was great to get those opportunities early in my career. so i was really prepped when it came to doing four pas de dos in a night instead of just, you know, the one nutcracker one. But I feel my first true principal role was Ben Stevenson's Dracula as Svetlana. I think I was 21 or 22. Maybe i was 22 or 23 because it was in the beginning of the season and I'm a fall baby. So I'm like, maybe I was turning 23 that year.
00:15:32
Speaker
But i just look back and I'm like, I was so young. I was just such a baby. And like, I was so nervous. Oh my God. Yeah. Like that one has such a soft spot in my heart. And 10 years later, i got to do it again. And it was so special. That was only, it was the season before this last season, which was my retirement season. And it was so special to do again.
00:15:56
Speaker
and just like with that gap of time, like having it be, like my first principal role to doing it like pretty close to the end. It was actually like around that time where I like made the decision about retirement because I never thought I was going to retire this early. i know I certainly could dance longer in the company if I wanted to. You know, it was a a lot of different things coming together that helped me to make that decision. And I now having spent almost or a little bit more than no, half a year now in retirement,
00:16:27
Speaker
It's absolutely, it was the right time and it was the right decision for me. And I'm so glad that I did do it how I did it. Even though it was not like when I was young, I was like, I'm going to dance till I'm 400. I'm going Alessandra Farie this thing. Like i want to dance forever here.
00:16:41
Speaker
Yeah, it was during Dracula this most recent time. Like it was opening night of Dracula and it just hit me clear as day. And I was like, it's going to be the end of next season. didn't even know it was on the program yet. i was just like, it's I think it's going to be then unless it's like something I hate.
00:16:58
Speaker
at the end, but I loved everything so much. I was like, I don't know. And then I ended up being Giselle and I was like, okay, this is great. Like what if i own a perfect one to to go out with. So what were some of the factors that went into that decision? i mean, beyond just like this kind of almost knowing that it was time, was there more, i guess, logistical factors or things like that, that played into it?
00:17:19
Speaker
Definitely a lot of things. i had gotten to do a lot of what I set out to do when I was young. i remember being in high school and i did a PowerPoint presentation on the Middle, Somewhat Elevated because like we were supposed to, was some like bring in an art thing and like going to this huge public school, like you know I had this sense that, like not even just had this sense, like I knew that people were like, ballet, like whatever. And I was like, no, this is ballet, you guys. What? and like all this stuff whatever and then to like later on get to I remember when the repetitor for in the middle game I was like I just want to be in the ballet I don't care if I just like lie on the ground in the side like I just want to be there i just want to be there so to get to do the Sylvie role I was you know like those were things I never thought were achievable for me when I was younger especially like my own struggle with my insecurities around my technique and like whatever and
00:18:11
Speaker
So like getting to do some of those roles, Black Swan, White Swan, and Ben Swan Lake, Odette O'Deal, like things that I never thought I would get to do. So to like already know that I had kind of, you know, I felt like I really accomplished the thing. c Citarella was another one of my favorites to dance and something that I danced in like early in my career, mid of my career, and then like dance it last season at the very beginning. So I was like, I don't know if I need to do it a fourth time. It's been wonderful. And I'm sure I would always enjoy it more and more. that being said, though, I'm like, there's other things out there. And like, I feel like I accomplished this big thing so young. And I was like, I think I'm kind of like ready. And it's you spend so long
00:18:54
Speaker
doing the same thing that you're like, what am I like without this thing? You know, like there was a real curiosity there. And then as far as logistical things, I got married in 2022 and my partner and i have both been sort of reconsidering career stuff and he wanted to go back to school. He's studying art history. He wants to be a professor. So he's now looking at PhD programs And, you know, being my family on the East Coast, you know, one day I want to be a mom, but I would say that has very little to do with the decision to retire. I always thought I would get pregnant during my career and do family stuff like while I was still dancing.
00:19:31
Speaker
So that doesn't really have as much to do with it as the fact that like, I think now having watched so many peers go into parenthood, i want to be close to my family, which I've, you know, it's been 15 years since I've lived on the East coast.
00:19:44
Speaker
I think like a lot of me just misses it. And he's primarily applying to programs over there in that part of the country. So I'm just ready to return. But I would say the biggest factor was definitely my choreographic career. and I we'll talk more about it, but yeah,
00:20:00
Speaker
Trying to be a principal ballet dancer in a regional company and being a choreographer was pretty challenging. And I haven't even mentioned it at all, but like I did, i got a degree during my career. i got a bachelor's in psychology. Nothing was as hard as trying to develop my choreographic career while dancing, like even the degree, like, yeah.
00:20:21
Speaker
I was just like, I need more time and space if I really want to develop this part of myself. So that was that was probably the biggest factor. was I was like, I'm ready to dive into that just as fully as I've been a ballerina.
00:20:35
Speaker
so what has that journey looked like for you since retiring now and getting to really focus on your choreography?
Choreographic Journey and Challenges
00:20:42
Speaker
Choreography was something I loved the same. like People are like, oh, when did you start choreographing? I never know how to answer that question. it's like I was three when I started dancing, and I feel like I was already a dance maker. like When I was a kid, i tell the story too much, but like like me and my friends were so obsessed with any talent show, anything we could find, and it wasn't just me. It was like this little group of girls who like we just wanted to make up dances and perform them, which is...
00:21:06
Speaker
you know, fairly common, but my parents actually like, and a, you know, a bunch of the adults in our life, luckily were very kind and saw that we really wanted more opportunities. And my parents and some other parents helped to set up this show at like an old folks home. And I, I'll never forget these memories of dancing for these people and then being so excited. And we were so excited and like, you know, so like i I've kind of been producing shows since I was like seven or whatever.
00:21:35
Speaker
So I think in my training, i was like, oh, but I really want to be a dancer. I really want to be a principal dancer. I really want to get to the height that I can and in this thing. And so it really fell away, the choreography thing, like during during my training, not even so much during my training, but like into my pre-professional and professional life. Like I was still choreographing my own YGP solos and YGP solos for my peers in high school. And I was always taking notes, like always writing down phrases and ideas and thoughts. And and that continued through my HB2 year and through my early years at TBT. I just became like super closeted about it and almost felt like
00:22:14
Speaker
I have to just like, I'll be portraying my principal dancerhood if I, if I do that. And like, there's a lot of, now that I've had time to reflect back on it, like a lot of reasons why I think that may have happened.
00:22:26
Speaker
Number one being that I had never up until last season in my professional career danced a work by a female choreographer. I think representation became a huge part of it. And like midway through my performance career, I was thinking, you know, more about I've always been a planner. So I was like, oh, what am I going to do after my dance career and I being a repetitor or like, you know, someone who comes in sets work or works with a trust was really interesting to me. and I think it's because like inside I really wanted to choreograph and I love working with dancers. I love details of work. I love everything about what we do, but also a majority of the repetitors coming in were women. So I think I just naturally like saw myself in that role more. And it wasn't until
00:23:13
Speaker
later on in my career that I really started evaluating how I was feeling. And I was like, no, I think I actually just want to choreograph. But like, I hadn't really felt, you know, like I it didn't feel so much like my place. And it's not that there weren't like globally, great examples of women choreographing, but it was just something I experienced less. And I think that really it's something to do with it.
00:23:35
Speaker
So in coming to that realization, which was much later in my professional career than some might imagine, it like really wasn't until right before the pandemic that I was starting to think, like should I like go for this professionally? And like how how do I do that? And i was like just kind of getting some project ideas together and like starting to get some momentum. and then the pandemic hit. And I was like, oh gosh, what do I do now?
00:24:01
Speaker
But I think for me, it was like, ah you know, the pandemic sucked. It just sucked. Like, we all know that. But I think I was fortunate to make the best out of a bad situation and really buckle down and figure out how I wanted to approach choreography and how to find opportunities near me.
00:24:18
Speaker
And yeah, the rest is kind of history. And I've kind of built this little career for myself. And it's feeling less little all the time. i think working on it so much, being in the company, and then now having the time and space to actually like pursue it has made it a lot easier. Yeah, like the transition's been relatively, relatively smooth. I think the hardest part is how unpredictable it is. the bulk of the financial support right now and, you know, what I'm making comes from working on like solos with students and gigging and working with different partners on things that aren't necessarily like real.
00:24:54
Speaker
that I classify under my capital C choreographic career, but you know, the survival jobs and the things that we do for that, so that i get to go out and and do those other things. And the fact that like, you know, it's not like a regular paycheck, like where I'm like, okay, I know how much I'm going to make every two weeks. So that's challenging for sure. But I think, I don't know, I just loved it so far.
00:25:13
Speaker
And I find that I really love, i I heard this from that other dancers when they retire, they're like, oh the first couple times I went to watch something, it was really hard. um Like I really missed it And it's not that I don't miss it. Like I do miss performing with my friends and like I miss the dressing room times. You know, I miss that camaraderie of the day-to-day life in a company.
00:25:34
Speaker
But I love going to more than I could have anticipated. Like I'm a much more obsessed patron now than ever. i don't know like how that switch happened, but I'm like, because obviously I already liked watching dance, but I'm like, I want to see TVT dancing all the time. Like I want to go watch Nutcracker rehearsals. I'm like, what is wrong with me?
00:25:52
Speaker
I never thought this would happen. Like I'm like already obsessed with watching it all the time. And and yeah, being in the in the house. Cause I didn't get that many opportunities, especially later in my career.
00:26:03
Speaker
After the pandemic, TBT's roster was relatively small. So principal dancers, you know, we would do our principal shows and then we'd have to fill in pretty much everywhere else the rest of the show. So, you know, without having a show off, I can never watch from the the house.
00:26:19
Speaker
Do you feel like you're watching performances through a different lens, like a more choreographic lens now? Yeah. I think, yeah. I think that there has been some shifts that have proven to me that being a choreographer and a dancer at the same time for me is not the same as just being just being a choreographer. I mean, that's like a little bit too vague of a statement. Like, obviously, I still dance. I still dance my own work.
00:26:46
Speaker
as I'm able to right now because I'm the cheapest hire. I don't have to pay me. Whereas I would feel bad not paying anybody else. i I try and pay me when I can, but I will refuse to not pay other dancers. I have to pay other dancers and I want to pay other dancers.
00:27:01
Speaker
How would you describe your choreographic style to someone who's never seen your work before? i think one time I had an application that like asked me to describe it in three words. And the three words I used were expansive, dramatic, and curious. i don't know if that gives anybody like a good visual. i mean, expansive, like I definitely love. And I think this was is a reflection of how – don't think my choreography is necessarily a reflection of my abilities as a dancer, funnily enough. which I think is why I don't like choreographing on myself.
00:27:35
Speaker
But I love traveling. Like i love people moving around the space. Like anytime you're taking a step, take it like 10 times bigger than you think you can. Like there's a lot of running around. Like I love running around patterns, stuff like that. Like I love to use the space and like really get all the molecules like of the space, like mixed up, you know what I mean? Curious, I think it's just like a lot of my work.
00:27:57
Speaker
is under the category of abstract narrative. It's like, there's usually a topic or an idea or a theme being explored or a person or historical event or something. I am really interested in telling like strictly narrative works. I just haven't had as many opportunities to do so yet I find that like there are little characters and little stories that kind of come out and like I feel like they are the ones that explore the but topic. And so there's this like inherently curious nature to it. I'm also just a really curious person. like
00:28:31
Speaker
I'm obsessed with everything. That's why my degree is seemingly like about randomness. Not that a psychology degree isn't helpful. i love school. I loved going to school. Or well, I love school now. I didn't when I was young. i loved just going through college, though. like i I really enjoyed doing college courses and just like expanding my mind. And then for dramatic, I i think a lot of my work is...
00:28:54
Speaker
It ends up being about pretty serious stuff and has this like kind of serious like overtone to it, which is kind of funny. When I'm in the studio, I don't like to take things too seriously. Like I i think a lot of my career as a dancer, like things seem so serious. And then like got older and realized we're running around in tights. We don't need to take o ourselves that seriously. I like to have fun in the studio. So sometimes when I'm like describing actually for the work I'm working on right now,
00:29:22
Speaker
you know like I want the guys to come in and sweep the girls off their feet, right? And I'm like, you're going to come in and just mess up their day. You know what i mean? And it's like, I'm joking around and being silly about it because I think in the process, I don't like to take it to too you seriously. But I think maybe based on the music choices and how the dancers end up performing the work, it ends up being like kind of serious, which I think is very funny. So that's where the the dramatic comes in. I'll describe the dancers like,
00:29:47
Speaker
you're in this work that we're working on right now. and like, you're, you're looking at something that you don't want to see, but you're like also too, you know, it's like looking at a car crash or looking at something you can't turn away. But I'm like, that's the feeling you should have in this walk back. There are these like darker themes, but in the studio, i'm like, wow yeah I'm just like a goofball.
00:30:06
Speaker
When you're beginning a new piece, where do your ideas usually start? Are you a music first, choreographer, an idea, concept first? What's the impetus? I would say it's kind of different every time. i would say music is often a starting place for me. It's either music or the idea, which I guess is kind of a vague answer. But musicality, I think, was something that I had real strength in as a dancer and is probably the thing that shows up the most from my own dancing in choreographing. Because I tend to choreograph like this like weightier feeling of of things. And I really am not that kind of mover. But when it comes to musicality, like it gets very precise and like I really want the movement to to reflect the music or vice versa.
00:30:56
Speaker
So I find that that's like, if not the impetus for the work, it's very early on that i I figure out what I'm doing there. In recent years, I have started to experiment with choreographing in silence, though, and I i really like what comes from that, too. so But I don't have any work that's only in silence at the moment.
00:31:14
Speaker
Could be something I explore later on. If you're a dancer who's feeling lost, overwhelmed, or even just unsure about your next career step, I am here for you. As a former professional ballet dancer turned dance career mentor, I help dancers get clear on what they really want out of their careers and build a real, actionable strategy to get them there.
00:31:36
Speaker
Whether you need help setting goals, planning for auditions, navigating mindset blocks, or or just having someone in your corner who gets what you're going through and can hold you accountable, mentorship can make all the difference.
00:31:50
Speaker
If you're curious about whether working with a dance career mentor is the right fit for you, I offer a complimentary career consultation so we can talk through your unique goals and challenges.
00:32:00
Speaker
Just head to the show notes to schedule your consultation and let's fill the dance career you've been dreaming about. You mentioned that a lot of your work explores ecology, feminist history, the body as a site of memory and
Research Projects and Community Engagement
00:32:14
Speaker
transformation. Can you talk about how these ideas have showed up in some of your pieces that you've done so far?
00:32:20
Speaker
One of the ones that was the most research-based, I think maybe my education in psychology is where I got this really like research-minded approach to just life in general. I love research. Obviously, my partner does a lot of research for the work that he does. so One of the more research-heavy works that I did was the work that I proposed for the Frank Lloyd Wright and Martin House. And you had to propose the project first.
00:32:47
Speaker
I remember like thinking, like okay, this is like so hyper-detailed. But I proposed a solo that was three movements, and each of the movements represented a woman in the history of the Frank Lloyd Wright total history. Because we really just hear about the one guy. But like there were all these people involved who it wouldn't be...
00:33:05
Speaker
possible without primarily his mom, Anna, who I was really interested in learning more about. And like his whole career as a architect was like such, she was such a huge part of it. And he was not always the best guy and got into a lot of trouble financially, whatever. So I wanted ah a work that would explore these women, including i had recently before. this proposal learned about Maymott Chaney, who was one of the women that her footnote is kind of like Frank Lloyd Wright's lover. But she had this like really complex life and I wanted the chance to, and she ended up, I don't know if you've ever heard of the Taliesin murders, but there was this like crazy event. So she got murdered at one of his houses and it wasn't by him, but her and her two young children like died. And I just like, I was like, these, these women and the life events that happened,
00:33:53
Speaker
ultimately influenced these works. Like nothing happens in a bubble. And, you know, Franklin Wright was very communicative with his partners and his mom and his clients. So the, one of the other women that is explored in the work is Isabel Reed Pathmartin, who was the matron of the, of the Martin house. And the Martins were hugely supportive of Franklin Wright's career. And she in particular just had a lot to do with, she was one of the only women who commissioned her own house. So there's the Martins had another house called Graycliffe that was like their 30, 45 minute away, like vacation home that was on the lake. And she is the commissioner for that work. So, and like, these are big deal things happening at the beginning of the 20th century. Like women, were really like they were looked at as second class citizens. So these were really important women and I wanted to explore their contributions to this huge legacy. So there's a lot of research and then it connected to the part of the house called the flora cycle, which is this really big feat of landscape architecture. It blooms all year round and it has this, it's like the semicircle, semicircular garden. and it was really a lot to do with Isabel because Frank gave her a conservatory for her plans, but she loved gardening and she loved flowers. And she was like, no, I want more. So he made she made him work with this landscape architect to create the floricycle.
00:35:16
Speaker
And there's lots of significance to the different plants in there. so that was like a really formative project as far as like getting deep into research and also ecology. i think they're just things that are really important to me. Feminism and you know what we're doing to this planet, how we can draw attention to that and both those things. And there's no better way in my mind than in art. Like, I feel like that's when people can really come together and have conversations and kind of let the other things fall away where you were born, what your life's been like. You know, it's like you bring all those things to the table, but art lets us all talk at that table, I feel. You've also spoken about making ballet more sustainable, more accessible. What does that look like for you in practice?
00:36:01
Speaker
I had this formative moment, like mid-career, where I was in New York City. i was working with a photographer. And this guy comes running out of the bodega. And he was like, oh, my God, I've never seen that before. And I was like, what do you mean He was like, pointe He's like, you say I've never seen someone wear pointe shoes, like in real life. And I like it really struck me. And I was like, you're literally in New York City. and there's obviously an accessibility issue if you can't, you know, like, I don't know, it it really struck me. I was like this, if you were going to see someone in a point you would be here.
00:36:31
Speaker
and I realized that there's like so many people who don't really have a good idea of what ballet is, or also think maybe it's not for them. There's a long history there of like, why those things exist. And I'm not really qualified to you know, like fully go into everything there. But like, I just saw it in my own community too.
00:36:50
Speaker
you know, I wanted to start choreographing more and was kind of like running up into like, okay, how do I do more than just like one thing here? Or like, how do I show the company that I'm capable, whatever. And I was lucky to have this partnership with the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, just through our larger circle of art friends. Someone was like, you need to talk to Tina. Tina Gorski, she's amazing. She's recently retired as well, but like actual, actually retired from like a career.
00:37:18
Speaker
She was incredible. And we started to talk about the accessibility issues of dance. And I was like, I want the chance to choreograph. I want the chance to pay dancers a little bit more. It's challenging um the dancer's salary sometimes.
00:37:33
Speaker
I am willing to fundraise because I want to make this free and I want to make it something that the single mom who might not be able to get childcare to go to the ballet can come and see. And you know people who've never seen it before who might be like, oh, I hate this, or they think they might feel that way, but then later on find out that they don't feel that way, don't feel like it's this like huge money commitment, time commitment, and that it's like right there. it's It's easy to consume. Because I'm like, I think that's how more people will get interested in dance. It's like that you you need to show it to them first, I think. Because otherwise people don't necessarily...
00:38:09
Speaker
They don't know what it is. And like, how how could they? You know what I mean? Like, there's plenty of stuff that I don't know about. I would like to learn everything if I could. But ah unfortunately, i don't have that much time. But I'm like, maybe this is like a way I can contribute in my own community. And coming up next weekend is my sixth one of these installments of The Modern. so We've done six weekends of this since 2021. We've done pretty much one every year, one year. In 2022, we did two, actually, which was I don't know how we even made that happen. Because it's so much work. And because I want to make it free. I mean, the modern is able to help fund a little bit. But, you know, it's not a huge portion of their budget. They they have so much stuff going on in this like world class museum. So it's a lot of independent fundraising. It's really taught me the ropes of like producing my own my own work. I mean, it's it's a it's a huge thing.
00:38:59
Speaker
commitment, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. They've all been challenging in their own ways and they've also all been really rewarding. There's always, ah like we end up serving about 500 community members per weekend, at least. It's probably more, we set out like 300 chairs, but it always ends up being standing room Yeah, it's just been really like people every every time we do it, people come up to me and they were like, I'm obsessed. i never knew this art form existed. I love this. I can't wait to find more of this. I you know, like, and so that's just been like one of the most rewarding parts of like, trying to build my portfolio ended up having this like huge community engagement element. And I am really grateful. And it's now something that I really, you know,
00:39:45
Speaker
continue to so seek out and and strive for. And I'm just super grateful to the modern and Tina. And now Tina, the gal who is new in the role, her name is Carla, and she's fantastic. This is our first year of working together on one. So, you know, I think she feels like big boots to fill it to Tina was an amazing member of the modern community and still is. People always come up to me afterward and they're like, this person hated this person and fell in love with this person. And I'm like, that wasn't my you know that wasn't in my mind, but I love that it was't like i love hearing that stuff.
00:40:15
Speaker
I don't know if it's from the psychology background, but I always treat my choreography like I call it a Rorschach inkblot. I feel like i love you know i so I made one thing or i so you know saw one thing, but I like to leave it open enough that people can kind of come to their own conclusions. Yeah.
00:40:31
Speaker
What else inspires you? How are you sustaining creativity? Or do you feel like you have constantly have ideas churning? Or do you ever feel like you would go through dry spells? I think as far as ideas, it's kind of never ending. Like I like a balance between coming in and having like no idea what I want the dancers to do and like fully writing everything out. Like I have a kind of in between where I Before a rehearsal period, I spend a lot of time with the music and I usually have have like a written portion to it for me where I like really write out counts. I've started experimenting with doing it digitally and like printing stuff out. i'm I'm a big paper person. Like I have to have like a physical notebook or paper. Like I always print it out if I am doing it digitally. But like I kind of like the idea that it's like saving all the time and I can't like lose the cloud. So yeah, I'll like really come up with like a framework. And then I get in the studio and I kind of throw it all out. Like I have some of my original notebooks that aren't as like I really wrote a lot of stuff out. And I'm like, if anybody compared the notebooks to the work, they'd be really confused. because
00:41:38
Speaker
I think once I like kind of give my ideas to dancers and see how they interpret it then I kind of start to follow that, that thread. i think sometimes when I'm working by myself and I'm not in the studio with dancers yet, there's sometimes times where I'm like, oh, like, what do I, what do I want to do? You know, like, that's where I feel like the,
00:41:57
Speaker
Like I never kind of run out of ideas of things to do, but sometimes I do run out of the framework movement that kind of comes into my mind. And I find that if I just go out and do something else, definitely nature. I'm a big nature girl.
00:42:09
Speaker
Once I'm like out there going to nature, go to a museum or do something and I come back, I'm like, Right back in I think the most productive time working ahead of gazes, the work that I'm working on right now, was when I was on the East Coast in my family's house in New Jersey. And I was going in the ocean every day and swimming a lot. And I just recently learned how to surf and I'm obsessed with surfing now.
00:42:33
Speaker
And so like, you're really like more than just swimming in the ocean, which I already love to do, like you're getting like pummeled by the ocean. And I would come back from these sessions in the ocean and I feel so inspired. It was like crazy.
00:42:45
Speaker
And I was talking to an artist friend of mine. She was like, you know, it mixes you up. Like you're literally getting mixed up. What else is next for you? Any other upcoming projects that you're excited about? I'm super excited to be on, and I'm actually leaving pretty soon because my rehearsal period is earlier, but I was commissioned by Terminus Modern Ballet Theater for their Gershwin program. And I'm really excited about the work I am doing. It's surrounds the history of the artist Florine Stetheimer, who's kind of a, today I would say she's maybe little known, but she definitely wasn't for her time.
00:43:24
Speaker
Kind of, I don't know. It's it's hard. She's one of these artists who I think was forgotten by history, maybe primarily for her gender. um and she was very ahead of her time. It's so funny because Stetheimer's work and Saville's work that's in the the modern show, that's kind of yeahre they're going to be very different pieces. But the work itself is has a very like comparable style, though. like They both have this ethereal quality to the end result that I'm like, looking at the two, I'm literally looking at the my coffee table of the coffee table books of both these artists, and I'm like, it's weird. But Florence Dahemmer, amazing. She would have been a contemporary of Gershwin's, and she has this great painting called Music, and I just think it fits the pre-war, early 20th century vibe that Gershwin's music really has a lot going on, and this artwork certainly has too. So that will premiere March in Atlanta.
00:44:22
Speaker
And yeah, my partner and I are moving to New York City to be closer to family. And I can't wait to be there. i can't wait to do all sorts of work there. So if you're in New York and you want to connect, let me know. and then i have a residency coming up in the spring, but that's going to be That'll be with the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology. i'm really excited for that. I think it's probably going to be, and I'm trying to plan it to be one of my least productive residencies as far as creation, because I feel like recently I've been like, going, going, going, going. And I want to try and step back and deepen my practice by resting, which is really hard for me to do. I'm a total workaholic. Yeah. So, yeah, I don't know if there will be anything to like show for that necessarily, but maybe whatever I'm working on um in 2026 will end up having some of that in it.
00:45:15
Speaker
Okay, exciting. Well, last question for you. If you could give aspiring dancers or choreographers one piece of advice, what would you tell them? ah something I've been working on a lot lately is to let go of what doesn't serve me. And I wish I thought about that more in my dance career and early choreographic career.
00:45:36
Speaker
And I think I'll be working on it. life I think everybody's working on it lifelong, but yeah, that's something that's really been coming up for me a lot lately. It's like you work your butt off and do the best you can with what you can control and find a way to leave the rest and not to let it hold on to you.
00:45:53
Speaker
If anyone listening wants to learn more about you or about your work, where can we find you? The easiest place to find me is probably at my website, which is just my name dot art. So that's Alexandra light dot art.
00:46:04
Speaker
I try and keep a pretty regular update of stuff on Instagram and I'm at Barbie. It's like Barbie, but with an F. Okay, perfect. Thank you so much for this. This was such an interesting conversation. I really appreciate all of your time today.
00:46:19
Speaker
Thank you. This is so fun.
00:46:22
Speaker
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00:46:35
Speaker
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00:46:48
Speaker
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