It has been four long years since I entered you. Four years of ballet classes via Zoom, while holding onto a chair and then a portable ballet barre in my living room.
I missed having a live musician to accompany us. Sometimes the technology was pretty dodgy. It was harder to get feedback when you were just a little square on the teacher’s computer, or make your own corrections without the big studio mirrors.
But overall it has been a good run. I could take lessons from my teacher when she was in Japan, or while I was travelling in Africa. I even did a few special classes with schools in Toronto or Washington.
Tonight I was a sweaty mess by the time we finished the barre. I must have been working harder because there were others to compare myself to. No more slacking off and sneaking the occasional chocolate between exercises!
Then we moved to the centre and did turns, jumps, and moves across the length of the studio – things I have barely done since 2020 because everyone’s space was different so classes shrank to fit.
I talked to people I haven’t seen in years, except on a screen. I put faces to names. It was joyful.
My ballet barre was the best investment of the pandemic. It has served me well, but it’s time to put it away and move back to the studio. Dancing like no-one is watching can be fun, but I have missed dancing with others far more than I realized.
