Dancing with a touch of sugar, sass, and success
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Junior Chelsea Farrer points her feet toward her future by Olivia Musial, In-Depth Editor
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8, repeat. 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8, repeat. Junior Chelsea Farrer hears these numbers countless times in a day, not in her Pre-Calc class, but in the rhythm, timing, and execution of the dance studio. Since she was three years old, Farrer has trained in dance. She now takes that training and applies it to her life in a balancing act between two AP classes, a 4.4 GPA, and lead role in the North County Dance and Performing Arts Foundation (NCDPAF) production of The Nutcracker Ballet. When the bell rings at 3:05 p.m. Farrer is off and running to the 20 hours a week she spends at Class Act Dance Studio on Spring Street. She has done it all from hip-hop to lyrical, with countless hours spent in the studio. But she has now developed a passion specifically for ballet, a discipline she’s trained in for 12 years. “I enjoy dance because it is just so beautiful and effortless looking. Many audience members don't realize just how difficult it is to really do ballet well because the dancers are supposed to make it look easy,” said Farrer. It takes grace and determination to achieve the “beautiful and effortless” look that ballet dancers are expected to present to an audience. Dressed in ivory pointe shoes, light pink tights, a purple leotard, a gray floral skirt, and a ballerina bun to top it off, Farrer is the picture of grace during her rehearsal for Nutcracker. On the dance floor that grace turns into power and precision in her execution of every lift, turn, and pose. “Chelsea is a dancer that is always there and does things full out and takes corrections and applies them. She is one of the few who has the quality, strength, stamina, and emotional maturity it takes to be Sugar Plum,” said Cheryle Armstrong, the artistic director for Nutcracker. Armstrong joked that Farrer’s nickname is “the marine” because of her incredible endurance. During her four hour rehearsal on a Saturday afternoon Farrer experienced the first awkward
interactions while dancing with a stand-in cavalier who will play her male lead. During the rehearsal Farrer’s chereographer, Brianna Haynes, an actress and dancer, gave words of advice such as, “He’s your barre, think of him as a barre” when Farrer struggled with a turn. The words of encouragement pushed Farrer to keep up her level of intensity. “Live and breath Nutcracker,” Haynes joked. By the end of rehearsal, 4:30 p.m., with two water bottles guzzled, sweat dripping, and red hand-print marks on her back from lifts, Farrer walked out of the studio having put everything she has into making her art look beautiful. With her focus set on ballet, Farrer has reached a new goal this year when she was cast as Sugar Plum Fairy, the lead role in The Nutcracker, after dancing in the show for seven consecutive years. Farrer will be playing the role opposite her little sister Sarah Farrer, who was also cast as the lead role of Clara. “I was really surprised when I got Sugar Plum! There has only been one other junior that has gotten Sugar Plum at our studio, so, it is really an honor. I am just so excited to experience being the lead with my sister Sarah by my side being the lead as well,” said Farrer. However, Farrer’s dance life extends far past the studio on Spring Street. Farrer’s two sisters, Sarah, 11, and Mikaela, 8, both have parts in Nutcracker . Farrer’s father, Whitney, is also playing the role of Mr. Staulbalm. Farrer’s parents have made it a point to encourage Farrer by supporting her decision to attend two prestigious ballet schools over summer vacation. Farrer attended Lines Contemporary Ballet for four weeks during the summer of 2010 and this past summer attended Marin Dance Theatre for five weeks which was a dance intensive that included eight hours of ballet everyday. As Farrer approaches her senior year she prepares to take the rhythm she’s followed her entire life and see where it leads her.
Pin-striped love
Photo by Jimmy De. Used with permission.
“Guys and Dolls” announced to be spring musical by Kim Boswell, Front Page Editor
The portable floors of LA3 creaked as 35 students, breathless with anticipation, awaited drama teacher Marcy Goodnow to announce the title of this spring’s musical, “Guys and Dolls” on Tuesday, Oct. 18. A flutter of excitement raced through the classroom while the Drama Club’s hearts danced to the beat of “Luck be a Lady,” one of the many songs to be bellowed from student singers, dancers, and actors this coming spring. “Guys and Dolls” follows Sergeant Sarah Brown, a missionary, and Sky Masterson, a gambling man, through New York streets full of chorus girls and craps games to dangerous Havana nights in Cuba. As their love blossoms, so does the shady lifestyle of gambling, love, and secrets. “I am excited because it is better to play humans. It’s going to be really fun,” said senior and Drama
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Club President Trinity Smith, who played Mayzie LaBird in last year’s “Seussical the Musical.” “I chose this play because it is a great glimpse into classic Musical Theater. Although many of my students are unfamiliar with the show, most of their parents are familiar with songs like ‘Luck Be a Lady’ and ‘Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat’. I am certain they will fall in love with the story and the characters,” said Goodnow. An audition workshop will be available for prospective stars on Wednesday, Dec. 14th from 5:00 6:30 p.m. in LA3. The audience will travel back in time to the days of flapper girls and pin-striped suits on May 11 to 13 and 18 to 20, hopefully in the newly constructed PRHS theatre.
Paso Robles High School
Crimson 11.16.11 |
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