Creating Beauty

An Interview With Elana Altman

Grace. Strength. Self-discipline. Elana Altman embodies these traits, applies effort, and creates beauty—a beauty unique to her chosen dance form, ballet.

A native of San Francisco, Elana trained at the San Francisco Ballet School before being named apprentice in 2000. She joined the Company a year later and was promoted to soloist in 2005. She has danced a variety of roles including Myrtha in Tomasson’s Giselle, the Lilac Fairy in Tomasson’s The Sleeping Beauty, the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Snow Queen in Tomasson’s Nutcracker, and Mercedes in Tomasson/ Possokhov’s Don Quixote. Welcome, Elana!

Many girls dream of becoming ballerinas; few do. You joined the San Francisco Ballet at the age of 17 and ascended rapidly through the ranks to become a soloist dancer at the age of 22. What is it about ballet that first attracted you? What continues to inspire your devotion?

I was first attracted to ballet after seeing the Nutcracker at age 3. A family friend took me backstage to see the costumes and I actually remember loving the vivid colors and behind-the-scenes magic. When I first got to taste the stage myself, I was hooked. That is what continues to inspire me: I love performing and feeling the energy from the audience.

You have danced such iconic roles as the Firebird and the Snow Queen. To what extent do you “become” the characters you dance? How do you know when you have given a convincing, or even magical, performance?

I listen to the music and mold my body to the choreography. In Firebird, for instance, both the music and the choreography tell the story so vividly. I try to find the nuances there to enhance it. I also prepare by knowing the story inside-out and what the Firebird would be feeling at every moment. If I feel good when the curtain goes down, then I’ve convinced myself!

Why did you choose classical ballet over more popular dance forms? What does ballet have to contribute in spirit and substance to post-modern culture? Has it a future?

I didn’t really choose. I was good at it and it felt the best, so it stuck. I didn’t have much exposure to other forms, unfortunately. Each dance form has something special to contribute. Ballet strives to make the most difficult task look effortless. But ballet is changing, broadening, and I look forward to seeing where it goes. In order to have a future, it needs to grip younger audiences.

You have fulfilled your dream of becoming a ballerina and have earned world renown. What other dreams, if any, have you had to place “on hold?”

I feel extremely fortunate to have fulfilled this dream. I have not put anything on hold. I still have many years after I’m done dancing for my other dreams.

You have said that dancers “create beauty though effort.” How would you describe ballet’s unique beauty, and what makes you willing to exert that effort?

There is an aesthetic to ballet that is completely unique. In certain sports, we can see the body and marvel in its glory. Ballet bodies must fit a specific mold, and in doing so, create beauty and emotion in everything they do. The muscles in the arm can convey wings; the articulation of a foot can make someone cry; the turn of a shoulder can be felt from the last row of the very top balcony. Ballet has sport-like qualities, but it is the art of finessing it all that gives it its power. I exert myself in order to have that effect on someone in the last row of the balcony.

You were among the first readers of my novel You, Fascinating You, which tells the story of a ballerina from another era. To what extent could you relate to the novel’s protagonist? What has stayed with you about her story?

I could relate in her devotion to the art, especially in the early years. I still marvel in her courage, tenacity, and the strength of her love.

What lies ahead for Elana Altman?

I’m excited to dance another season with San Francisco Ballet, including tours to London and Washington DC. I’m also delighted to be getting more involved with SF Ballet School, my alma mater, and giving back as much as I can.

© photos courtesy of San Francisco Ballet
 
 “From the time she started to move, Elana Altman commanded the stage with expansive movement, driving the focus through her and shaping the role to the final climax.” Ballet Alert!