Sync or Swim

Valley Dance Theatre has a multitude of dancers with a wide array of different skills and abilities. This allows our choreographers to create amazing pieces with intricate moves and steps. One choreographer that pushes the limits of every dancer, is Genoa Sperske. We are proud to showcase her pieces in our Spring Repertoire. Genoa always has incredible ideas that play with the imagination of her audience. Last spring, she challenged our dancers and stage crew to build the illusion of a swimming pool and a frosty battleground of a snowball fight. Sync or Swim, one of the dances in our Spring Repertoire this year, incorporated the use of blue exercise balls and old fashioned swim suits to create the illusion of a synchronized swimming performance. The dancers executed this piece with apparent ease, but in reality it was very difficult. The girls had to use the exercise balls to create the appearance that they were swimming. This involved some intense core and leg strength. According to Audrey Dooley, the most difficult pose was the last one, "I would always fall off the ball, and I never knew how to position my head while upside down." Who would? This piece defied all boundaries of ballet. From the props to the circus worthy balancing acts, Sync or Swim was a piece to be remembered.