Samantha Hope Galler rehearses Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake. Choreography by Alexei Ratmansky. Photo by: © Alexander Iziliaev
Although principal soloist Samantha Galler has previously performed Swan Lake, in many ways dancing Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake felt like the first time. She believes it came at the right time in her career and describes her experience as exciting, fresh, overwhelming, and fulfilling.
She notes audiences can expect a joyful, passionate, and dramatic journey. According to Galler, the production evokes emotion from both the audience and performers.
Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake, choreographed for Miami City Ballet, reconstructs Marius Petipa’s and Lev Ivanov’s version which premiered in 1895. Galler mentions this version of the ballet showcases the story through use of pantomime which requires the dancers to express meaning through gestures in time to music. It also features choreography based on the original Vladimir Stepanov’s notations.
“Alexei’s reconstruction is physically and mentally demanding on all the characters across the board. With other versions, the character of the swan is highlighted but here we portray women by night and swans by day,” Galler said.
MCB dancers in Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake. Photo by: Alexander Iziliaev.
Photo by: © Alexander Iziliaev.
Galler explains that for Ratmansky, there is a reason for each gesture. With Swan Lake, she worked with him in the ensemble and one-on-one.
Each scenario focused on specific leg heights in turns and the use of the heel down in the dancers’ preparations to provide the dancers with a different sensation going into the next movement.
“He was very clear with his pantomime and spent weeks preparing us with specifications on how to build the conversation so the audience could receive the information as if we were speaking it,” she said.
MCB dancers rehearse Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake. Photo by: © Alexander Iziliaev.
For the past year, Galler’s trained physically and mentally. She notes it takes practice finding a performance routine where you can work safely and progressively through a full-length ballet of this magnitude. Through this process, she has learned to be patient with herself and has three notebooks worth of annotations for each entrance and exit in this ballet.
The roles of Odette and Odile are especially demanding. The technical and emotional layers of each character can take months for a dancer to develop and interpret.
“I pulled from real life emotional experiences to portray the characters, especially for Odette,” she said.
Galler describes Odette as a strong yet timid character. Meanwhile Odile is luring, striking, and gives off an evil aftertaste. Odile is also the character she has the most fun portraying on stage.
“It helps to be able to relate to the character so that the audience does too,” she said in regards to portraying Odette.
Through the process, Galler filmed her dancing and miming to self-critique which she admits was difficult but very telling. She also received feedback from Ratmansky and the artistic staff on the approach to the story and musicality within the ballet.
Her conditioning schedule through the Miami City Ballet PT program increased significantly and helped her through every role she has danced in the ballet. She focused on her stamina and strength, specifically for quads and calves.
Her most memorable career moment was February 12th of this year at the Adrienne Arsht Center. Galler and her partner Cameron Catazaro took on the lead roles of Swan Lake as Swan Queen and Prince Siegfried in a last-minute situation.
She sees that moment as a milestone where she came out the other end of one of the most difficult full-length ballets and knew she gave every ounce of what she had to that evening’s audience.
“Sometimes you dream of dancing a ballet and then you go to do it and it doesn’t feel anything like you imagined. Swan Lake is everything you imagine and more,” Galler said.
She recalls studying, watching, and dreaming about the Swan Lake ballet since she was nine years old. Now, having the opportunity to dance a variety of roles in the North American premiere of Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake brings her so much joy.
“It is not every day you get to dance a ballet that will go down in history,” she said.
Nicole Stalker, Alexander Peters, and Samantha Hope Galler performing in Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake. Photo by: © Alexander Iziliaev.
Looking for inspiration and new challenges, Galler joined the Miami City Ballet as part of the corps de ballet in 2014. It was one the top companies on her list due to its range of repertoire and diverse group of individuals with a high level of artistic and technical capabilities.
“This company has given me the grounds to grow in ways I could not have imagined,” she said.
Before joining, she typically rehearsed a ballet for 5-6 weeks and then performed it. At the Miami City Ballet, there is a rehearsal and a performance season. She learns a chunk of the company’s material from August to October. Then, the company opens performances at the end of October.
Jennifer Lauren and Rainer Krenstetter in Alexei Ratmansky’s Swan Lake. Choreography by Alexei Ratmansky. Photo by:© Alexander Iziliaev.
In the corps de ballet, the main goal is to work as one. Galler remarks this aspect can be one of the hardest parts about joining a company. One must learn to watch their peers from all directions while dancing beside them. This ensures that everyone is in sync.
“At MCB, we all really understand one another and have a group that has been working together for years. We are at a point where we can tell exactly what the other dancer is going to do before she does it,” she said.
One of Galler’s first rehearsals with the company was for Justin Peck’s Heatscape. She notes it is one of his very athletic pieces.
“Both ballets form beautiful moving pictures for the audiences’ eyes. One of the most striking elements regarding his choreography is his unique way of bringing the ensemble together in his works,” she said.
She has performed in a variety of pieces since joining the Miami City Ballet, such as George Balanchine’s Symphony in Three Movements, Raymonda Variations, Romeo and Juliet, and Paul Taylor’s Mercuric Tidings to name a few. One of them was West Side Story Suite by Jerome Robbins as a Jet.
“West Side Story Suite is a fun, animated, and loving work. One of the most difficult aspects of this piece is that the women dance full out in heels,” she said.
In February 2018, Galler was promoted to soloist. As a soloist or a featured dancer in the company, she says responsibilities change and there are frequent opportunities to present yourself alone or with a few other dancers. It not only is an honor to represent the company as a soloist but you also showcase what you worked on while in the corps de ballet.
The lessons from corps de ballet carry dancers to the next set of responsibilities.
Recently, Galler has become a principal soloist, the role she will perform in next season.
A piece of advice she continues to apply today is to always present yourself as the ballerina you strive to be. If someone says you can’t do it, use it as motivation.
“To this day, the person that told my mom I would never get a job in a ballet company still stands out in my mind. If you want it badly enough, you have to keep believing in yourself no matter who is in the room with you or watching you,” she said.
Galler credits all her previous ballet training at The Ballet Academy and the Boston Ballet School for her preparation to enter life as a company member. She trained primarily in the Cecchetti method and shifted to Vaganova, Balanchine, and the French techniques. Her experience within several methods allowed her the freedom to strengthen in a particular style of dance when necessary.
While attending a class at the MCB school, she was inspired to start Miami City Ballet’s Mentorship program. As a member of the company, Galler felt a disconnect from the students. Building a bridge for students entering their future as a professional ballet dancer was important to her.
The mentorship program consists of monthly series that are planned according to the time of the season. Each series focuses on specific topics which create a two-way discussion with the students. Galler notes that over the last few years the program has solidified and grown.
“I think the students really love having a better connection with the professional world. I am so proud of every single one of them for being vulnerable, realistic, and successful in their own pursuits in the dance world," she said.