Oberon's Grove: Veronika Part

Here are some of Kokyat's images of the ballerina Veronika Part working in the studio on Avi Scher's new pas de deux. I suppose it is a high compliment to refer to a dancer is "an artist to her fingertips" but I have to say that after spending an hour in the presence of Ms. Part, no dancer I have seen is more deserving of that accolade.

Aside from her personal beauty and her beautiful technique, Veronika Part has a certain poetic resonance about her. It's quite hard to define: there is an almost other-worldly feeling about her. She is a tall woman with a strong physique yet there is a kind of delicacy and mystique about her that seems incongruous - the more you watch her, the more captivated you become.

For a few minutes I was left alone with her in the studio - always a moment of panic for me to be alone with someone I idolize. She was so lovely; speaking to me in her enchantingly soft voice she seemed paradoxically both supremely self-assured and toughingly vulnerable.

In June 2008 I watched Veronika Part in an unforgettable performance as Nikiya in BAYADERE. After that I always thought of her as a goddess so you can imagine the state of awe in which I watched her at close range in Avi's studio.

In the lost days of Tsars and Crown Princes, the great ballerinas like Kschessinskaya, Pavlova and Karsavina were thought to be divine. They were showered with black pearls and white roses, dined on caviar and champagne, escaped to villas on the Caspian during the off-season. One could easily imagine Veronika Part being of that world. But as she bundled up after the rehearsal to trek forth into the frigid day, she seemed wonderfully contemporary and real.

All photos: Kokyat.

Veronika Part and Matthew Renko will perform Avi's pas de deux at City Center Studio on Monday January 11th at 3:45 PM. Visit the event's Facebook page here.

Comments

Thank you Philip & Kokyat!

Posted by: nysusan | January 03, 2010 at 02:53 PM

She really is beautiful!

Posted by: TomG | January 03, 2010 at 03:01 PM

Stunning.

Posted by: Lesley | January 03, 2010 at 03:35 PM

I love ballerinas that have an elusive, mystical, otherworldly quality. It's so rare nowadays. I'm a fan of the intangible rather than the straightforward and I think Ms. Part embodies that so well.
I know I've said this before, but Phillip you lucky duck!

Posted by: perky | January 04, 2010 at 10:00 AM

Perky, I wish you could see Part in this duet.

Yes, I really am lucky to have these opportunities and to have Kokyat, a wonderful photographer/friend to document everything.

We've just been 'linked' by James Wolcott at VANITY FAIR so hundreds of people are seeing these photos now.

Happy New Year, Perky!!

Posted by: Philip | January 04, 2010 at 11:17 AM

An enviable experience. To me, Part uses her strength and technique as a way to be sensitive enough to catch a movement as it passes through time and space. Her performances can be profoundly personal and spiritual.

Posted by: ge | January 04, 2010 at 08:47 PM