My second post-PT class went better than the first. I was able to do everything up through the pirouette combination with no pain. Instead of the jump combination I did the heel raise with a ball, as described in my previous post. I thought about attempting the petit allegro, but decided to skip it and the grand allegro.
We had a few minutes left at the end of that, so we did pique turns across the floor. I've been having difficulty recently doing these on my left foot. This time I could do them without falling out of the turns, but only if I did them at about half speed.
I'm still having to really focus on what muscles I'm using any time I'm on demi-pointe, or really any time I lift my heel. It's almost like learning to walk again, and in a way I probably am. For the moment, this is throwing everything else off. However, I figure once this becomes the norm rather than something new, the rest will come back as good or better than before. Certainly my pirouettes are now more stable, even if I'm having to do them more slowly and more deliberately.
My next PT appointment is at the end of this coming week. It'll be interesting to see what he find and suggests going forward. Maybe he can fix my glissade too?
I got an email from the ballet company I performed with this spring reminding me that supporting cast auditions are just a month away. No pressure though!
I'm trying to take the attitude that the audition is mostly a formality. The artistic director of the company saw me regularly in rehearsals all spring and I performed with her on stage. The managing director of the company is one of my instructors; she sees me in class every week, and she knows about my current issue. If they want me, they already know what they're getting; if they don't, there isn't much I can do in the audition to change their opinions.
That doesn't mean that I won't try to do my absolute best at the audition. Nor will that let me escape being nervous about it. Maybe I'll be less nervous than I was the first time, since that was the first time I'd ever auditioned for a role in a ballet.
I do hope I'll get a role this fall, with the hope that it'll lead to more in the future. I really enjoy working in a team. Sometimes in class, like when I get into a small group of good dancers for grand allegro, it almost feels like we're dancing together rather than as individuals. Being on stage in Midsummer this spring made that real, if only briefly. My hope is I'll get more chances to do some sort of partner work with other dancers like the lifts we did in Midsummer. I really enjoyed that, and I think the others did too: they asked to practice several times after I thought they'd gotten it down pat.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I will be done with my current issues before the audition.
