" Raised time, slipping, leaning, assembled, diverted!" At the Paris Opera dance school, Wilfried Romoli spares his class of boys in the final year who want to " be ready " for their future career, despite a year marked by turbulence.
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Between strikes and coronaviruses, the famous "little rats" of the Opera have seen since December their shows at the Palais Garnier canceled, their bodies confined and their exams postponed. In particular, that, crucial, of the entrance examination to the Ballet of the Paris Opera, the Grail for the residents of this tercentenary institution.
Receiving disappointments one after the other, the first division, the last class of this elite education, however came out with more maturity.
I quickly realized that a generation might be sacrificed a little
Élisabeth Platel, director of the Paris Opera dance schoolSome will have the right to a second chance. " I quickly realized that a generation was in danger of being sacrificed a little ," Élisabeth Platel, director of the school and "guardian" of the French style of classical dance, told AFP. " So I offered all these students, if they were not taken to Ballet, an additional year, " adds this former legendary star dancer.
Older students will not find Garnier until the end of the year for the traditional "Dance Demonstrations" (December 6, 13 and 19). For a year, " the entire school was not confronted with public scrutiny, stage fright, " recalls Élisabeth Platel.
Airy studios and disinfected bars
The little rats resumed lessons in June, just before the summer holidays: of the 150, 130 returned. Some foreigners, from Canada or Australia have been stranded at home. The boarding school has reopened, but with one student per room instead of three, the folk dance, mime and pas de deux lessons have been suspended, the studios regularly ventilated, the bars disinfected and the wearing of a mandatory mask when traveling .
We learn to work alone
Margaux, little Opera ratIn the last years, Rubens, 18, tries towers in the air and big throws. Wounded in the ankle before confinement, he resumed dancing at home, practically " from scratch ". " It was a bit like imprisonment but it allowed me to be so careful that I managed to increase the quality of my work ." Margaux, of the girls' first division, was afraid of " falling behind " during confinement. " It was hard, but you learn to work alone ".
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Courses via Zoom were organized quickly, with individual follow-ups. But for many, the conditions were rudimentary, with a window or a chair in the middle of the living room as a bar. "We had to motivate them, " admits Wilfried Romoli. But some came back changed in June: they " understood three times faster ", others " matured ".
They have to understand that they have to go up the slope, it's really their future
Wilfried Romoli, professor at the Paris Opera dance schoolIf the professors showed kindness during confinement, rigor took over in the studio. " They must understand that it is necessary to go up the slope, it is really their future ", assures the professor who however took care to ask them to stop at the slightest pain.
A "special contact"
In this institution renowned for its requirements and traditions, the crisis has also brought together " little rats " and teachers. " We had a special contact ," confirms Géraldine Wiart, professor of younger children, who monitored their work via videos.
" Do you have aches? ", She inquires in front of the pupils of the 6th division in sky blue leotards, noting that the smallest find" very quickly the form ". For each pupil, evaluation commissions will determine whether the pupil will repeat a year or if he will pass to a higher class.
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Élisabeth Platel is preparing for the start of the school year “ with caution ”. “ The momentum has been maintained; these are children who really want to dance, ”says the director. But after the pandemic, " I am worried about the future of our profession ... is this a shift? " The ex-star wants above all to prepare his little rats for a new reality and " make them understand the fragility of their profession ".
