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Philadanco member Bellamy Eure is preparing for a typically ambitious program. One highlight to be presented next weekend at the Kimmel Center is the company premiere of "Pulse," a daunting dance at first.
"Our feet were going in every direction – it felt like we were learning to walk again," Eure said.
That’s because she and her fellow company members were learning to maneuver wearing only thin nylon slippers, which enabled them to glide across a slick floor.
"We run and slide – it’s almost like ice-skating," the South Philadelphia dancer said.
Even for dancers known for their agility and acrobatic style, this was a new challenge.
During the first few rehearsals, Eure often went home sore. She even took some spills, as did other dancers. But, when they perform, they’ll move with ease.
"There will be a spotlight across the center of the stage and all you’ll see is the dancers sliding across the stage," Eure said.
The program from Dec. 16 to 18 is one of the few chances Philadelphia audiences will get to see this acclaimed company. Although based in Philly, Philadanco, which is officially known as the Philadelphia Dance Company, has an international reputation and spends most of its season on tour. After the Kimmel Center performance, they won’t be back until May.
Besides "Pulse" by choreographer Danny Ezralow, the program includes two other works that showcase the dancers’ versatility. "La Valse" is a graceful, ballet-type dance. ("It’s beautiful!" Eure enthuses.) It requires considerable technical skill, with jumps, turns and numerous entrances and exits.
In contrast is the festive holiday piece "The Xmas Philes," also by Ezralow. In one portion, Eure and other female dancers portray prancing reindeers. But Eure is kept breathless as she appears in multiple scenes, which include eight costume changes during the 45-minute performance.
She’ll enjoy every minute, she said.
"It’s lighthearted, lots of fun – and strictly for entertainment," Eure said.
While fun onstage, getting ready involved serious work. The dancers spent five weeks in daily rehearsals in the Philadanco studio in West Philadelphia. Before each, Eure reviewed tapes at home. At the studio, the routine began with a 90-minute class, then a three- to four-hour rehearsal. The rehearsals were three evenings a week, plus Saturday and Sunday afternoons. That left weekdays free, but Eure did not spend them at leisure. Instead, she took extra dance classes. As a professional, she can attend other dance company classes and does so regularly. She also practices Bikram yoga, known as "hot yoga," as a part of her routine. During the 90-minute sessions, the temperature reaches 110 degrees.
"The heat helps limber up the body," said Eure, who usually walks to the Center City studio from her apartment near Broad Street and Oregon Avenue.
Recently she’s added Ashtanga Yoga, a technique that strengthens the upper body.
"Yoga really helps to balance out the work we do in the studio," said the dancer, who attends sessions four times a week.
Eure also teaches and supervises Penn State Abington’s dance company and choreographs dances, which the students perform.
WHETHER IT’S REHEARSING, teaching or performing, dancing is a top priority.
"It’s my career and my social life, too – all my close friends are dancers," she said. "Dancing is my life."
The 24-year-old Virginia native started ballet lessons at age 2.
"I always walked on my toes, so my mother decided, ‘Let’s do something about this,’" she said.
She enrolled her daughter in a small dance studio where a young age was welcome. The only requirement was students had to be potty-trained.
By 9, Eure was studying at a more advanced school in Norfolk and she continued classes through her high-school years.
"It was my second home," she said.
Eure also took classes at the Virginia Ballet Theater. In high school, she was chosen for the prestigious Governor’s School for the Arts. She danced in her first professional production by the age of l8.
She was a dance major at James Madison University in Virginia, but, after a year, Eure transferred to the University of the Arts. Here, she was awarded a scholarship and majored in jazz performance because it offered the most versatile training.
She also attended the Alvin Ailey dance program in New York for two summers.
During senior year, Eure was offered the opportunity to take classes at Philadanco. This paved the way for an audition after her 2003 graduation. When she was offered a position with the company, she eagerly accepted.
Now in her third season, Eure is one of 18 members – and one of only two Caucasians – in the predominantly African-American company.
"The company is renowned within the dance community," she said. "I love their passion and I wanted a repertory company that works with different styles and choreographers."
Even though she also was offered a position with another modern dance company, Philadanco easily won out.
"From the first time I saw them perform at the Kimmel Center, I knew this was the company I would strive for," she said.
The company, founded 35 years ago, tours extensively. Recent gigs have included the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and the Joyce Theater in Manhattan. There are dance festivals, too, such as the Jazz World Congress in Chicago in August, the New York City Center Dance Festival in September and an arts festival in Charleston in October, where the dancers performed to sold-out audiences and won standing ovations.
After the Kimmel Center, the well-traveled dancers will take off again. Their schedule for January and February includes stops in Brooklyn, Memphis, Raleigh, Winston-Salem and Tallahassee. A highlight comes in early March when the dancers leave for a month-long European tour, performing in three countries.
"Touring is always exciting," Eure said. "You get to see places you’ve dreamed of seeing and you go to cities you would never have visited on your own. And it’s especially gratifying when we’re well received by the audience in a faraway place."
But no matter how exciting the tours are, she especially looks forward to performing for Philadelphia crowds.
"Dancing gives me a way to ‘speak’ to audiences without having to say a word," she said. "Through dance, I can communicate many moods and take on different personalities. I always feel fulfilled when I’m dancing."
