Miranda Rubio | 22/23 Season in Review
One of our Ballet 5:8 traditions at the end of each performance season is to ask the artists of the company to share some reflections with us. A special thank you to the artists of the company for sharing about their experiences in the 2022/23 Season.
Photo by Kristie Kahns.
Q. Pick one word to describe the 2022/23 Season. Why?
A. Answered. This season has been one of experiencing the answer to many prayers. There have been some that were long-term and prayed for years, and others were quick like “Lord help me make it to the end of this tricky piece of choreography!” Either way, the faithfulness of God to hear us and respond has been beautiful.
Q. Can you share a favorite moment from on- or off-stage?
A. Look to the East [choreographed by Julianna Rubio Slager] is probably one of my favorite pieces in rep. It’s a fast-paced, high-energy, uber-technical piece and by the end, I’m usually pretty spent. After our first performance of it, once we had returned to our dressing room, one of the dancers broke out into the Doxology. We all joined in with her. It was a simple moment to praise God for the beautiful blessing of movement and being a part of sharing his beauty on stage.
Q. You performed many works this season! Does one stand out as the most meaningful or most notable for you personally? Why?
A. I really enjoyed the process of creating and performing [Rubio Slager’s] BareFace. I got the opportunity to dance the role of Ansit. She has a range of stories and emotions I have not gotten to portray on stage before. The process of getting to know her from the book and the ballet taught me a lot about how we can love people, even when it means we have to release parts of our own wants or dreams for the future.
Q. What or who has inspired you this season?
A. I've been inspired by the community within the company. Dealing with some mid-spring season injuries, the encouragement of my fellow dancers was crucial to getting me back to performing. At the worst point of injury, I was fully sitting out of rehearsal and got to watch a full run of BareFace from the front. I left the room filled up with so much joy and inspiration from watching the ballet, that even though I myself couldn't dance, it was still one of my favorite rehearsals.
Q. What are you looking forward to next season?
A. I'm looking forward to Golden Sessions! It's one of my absolute favorite ballets and I can't wait to dance it again! I'm also excited for Día de los Vivos since the music by Ezio Bosso is just gorgeous to listen to.