From the Window to Walls: Emily Kikta's Apartment Ballet

September 14, 2014

Dancer problem #472: Every time you see an empty space—whether it’s a roof top or a basketball court—your mind’s eye immediately turns it into a stage.

Wowzers.

Emily Kikta
—one of the most dynamic dancers in the New York City Ballet corps—recently moved out of her old apartment and decided to take advantage of the empty space before she had to return her keys. The result is a site-specific ballet with some interesting restrictions: How do you make an exciting dance when you have to do it in an apartment the size of a postage stamp?


Choreographed by fellow NYCB dancer Peter Walker (and danced by Peter, Emily, Jackie Bologna and Preston Chamblee), the choreography makes use of the loft, windowsill and walls to create a super-cool and unique ballet that couldn’t happen anywhere else.

They had just a little bit more room in Singing in the Rain.

Shot in a vintage-y sepia tone, this dance could be the ballet interlude in a movie musical. It certainly uses the same concept as the “Good Morning” scene from Singing in the Rain: Our homes provide a natural stage. Check it out below!