{ Love Stories (a preview) }

PNB principal dancers Kaori Nakamura and Lucien Postlewaite in the Black Swan pas de deux from Swan Lake.
Photo © Angela Sterling, stolen from PNB FB page.

If you read my blog even a little bit, you know that I'm basically obsessed with all things dance, especially ballet.  Last night a couple of my dance friends (including my dance BFF Maeghan - HI MAEGHAN, SEE I'M WRITING ABOUT YOU) and I checked out the preview for a Pacific Northwest Ballet production of Love Stories.

Love Stories is a collection of excerpts from 5 different ballets, featuring the company premiere of Balanchine's "Divertimento from 'Baiser de la fee'" and Robbins' "Afternoon of a Faun", along with excerpts from Maillot's "Romeo et Juliette" ("Balcony Pas de Deux"), Stowell's "Swan Lake" ("Black Swan Pas de Deux"), and Hynd's "Sleeping Beauty" ("Aurora's Wedding").

I've never been to a preview before and it ended up being a pretty neat experience. A preview is basically a rehearsal with the artistic director, Peter Boal, who danced for the NYC Ballet for 22 years and some other dudes giving dancers pointers and corrections. We sat right in the front row, so close to the dancers we could touch them.

The dancers, of course, were fucking amazing. Even when they're mere feet away from you, they still make it look effortless and the only indication of how hard they're working is hearing their heavy breathing as they pass by you. Watching them dance was incredible, and kind of depressing because, hello, we'll never be at that level, not even a little bit (CUE ENVY). For the most, I can appreciate the dancing, the many years of training and hard work that goes into be able to perform at that level.

I wasn't sure if I was allowed to take photos during the rehearsal, but I ninja'd these two (obviously horrible) shots while the dancers were warming up.

The preview concluded with a Q&A, which was mostly adorable kids asking adorable questions like "Are all ballets about princesses?" and "where are her shoes?" (I don't even know what that means, but it was cute).

If you're in Seattle and are into dance, I highly recommend checking out these previews. The tickets are only $10 and you can find more information about this season's previews here.

LOVE STORIES runs for seven performances only, November 4 through 13 at Seattle Center’s Marion Oliver McCaw Hall. Tickets start at $28 and may be purchased by calling 206.441.2424, online at pnb.org, or in person at the PNB Box Office at 301 Mercer St.