“You can turn the clock to zero, honey
I’ll sell the stock, we’ll spend all the money
We’re starting up a brand new day…”
~buzz buzz….sting!
He said it best, except for the turning the clock to zero part. What would zero actually feel like? The closest I’ve ever gotten is when someone refers to the time as: “0: 100 hours captain.” Actually, to be perfectly honest, yesterday was the starting of a brand new day for me. I made a pact with a loved one, that this was the fresh start, the spring chicken, the “ready set go!” of all days.
Why yesterday of all days? The question really is why not. With all of the hulabaloo of life, work, dance, family and friends reeling in the ears, a girl has got to start somewhere. If not, it’s crash and burrn time. This morning was the first morning in many mornings that I returned to one of my favorite activities in life. I was drinking coffee (in my oversized “daughter” mug that my mom gave me a long time ago) on my bed within my sunny cove that is my bedroom. With morning talk shows in the foreground, I caught up on emails, did some coding for the world wide web, and accepted the position as Choreographer for the bi-annual Spring musical at Temple Beth Avodah.
This year the troupe is producing Carousel, a Rodgers and Hammerstein classic set in the 1870s filled with creepy carnies and flamboyant dance numbers! This should be very exciting. I told my family about the position at dinner tonight, and they asked me how I keep running in to these Jewish organizations that offer really fantastic teaching jobs in the field of dance. Well, Ari said it best: “You love the Jews!”.
But honestly, most of this has fallen in to my lap. It all started when I met Eliot, a nice Jewish boy from Northern Connecticut. Little did I know that having this tidbit of Judaism in my life would lead me down a very fulfilling path. In an effort to learn more about the traditions and culture that he and his sister, my housemate and out-of-wedlock sister-in-law, Ari grew up in I interviewed for a teaching position at the Leventhal-Sidman JCC in Newton. (This was post- my first Passover). I got the job at the JCC and have since schmoozed with parents, and taught many little munchkins that love to say Shalom Miss Christina! when they walk in the door. No joke.
In fact, a couple of weeks ago I was teaching my 3 year old class at the JCC. The week before I had taught them to do a “chasse”. In ballet, this word means, “to slide”. As a ballet teacher, even with young munchkins, I invest a lot of time in teaching the terminology of ballet. It helps to interpret movements in to a language we can understand, and adds an element of excitement for children because they are learning a lot of words from another language (even if it is all action verbs in their simple form). Anyway, I asked the girls,
“Does anyone remember what our sliding step is called?”
:::blank stares:::
“It starts like, ’shaaaaa’…
“Lom!”
Close enough. Shalom, Chasse. Smart little whipper-snappers!
From my little experience in the Jewish arts community, I’ve encountered that it’s all who you know. I suppose this is true in any field or community, but within the Jewish community I’ve found more loyalty, respect, and trust when someone reccomends someone for a position, a favor, a reference, or just someone to talk to. It’s a place that I feel comfortable, and I think that people can sense my interest and open mindedness toward integrating myself more. It’s nice to see a community that really belongs to eachother and itself, and works toward progressing that community as a whole.
Here’s a shot of the movie poster for Carousel, for a sneak peak of where I’ll be venturing in the months ahead!
