Interview with HBC’s Incredible Elizabeth Rainone
Today we had the opportunity to talk with Elizabeth Rainone, an incredible new member of the HBC community! She shared her thoughts on her dance background, what it’s like to be a dancer and a student during the pandemic, what challenges we face in the dance community today, and her thoughts on HBC since joining this past fall. We really loved Elizabeth’s thoughtful comments and hope you enjoy her responses to these 15 questions as much as we did!
❤️Audrey and Amy
1. What is your name?
Elizabeth: My name is Elizabeth Rainone.
2. Where do you currently study and work?
Elizabeth: I currently study biology here at Harvard. I am also doing a little bit of copywriting for an expenditure company as well as some volunteering, tutoring and research.
3. How long have you been studying and working there for?
Elizabeth: This is my second year as a degree candidate, and I just started doing the copywriting job this past summer. The other things I started at various times throughout this past semester.
4. How has the remote platform affected your school and work experience?
Elizabeth: It’s been interesting, probably because I was already virtual last year when I was dancing full time. I would have my classes at night, and now my classes still mostly happen in the late afternoon or night, so for me, the scheduling and format of school hasn’t changed that much. I did take on a heavier course load, though, so it’s been a little bit of old and new. I think I’m fortunate because it is something I am already comfortable with. For the most part, the classes are live stream, which is so much better than pre-recorded. It’s definitely hard meeting people, so I think I’ve had the experience where I felt distant from school, but at least last year I had my ballet family and that actual human interaction. This year, the remote and virtual aspect is not really enjoyable for anyone, but I think it makes all of us that much more excited to be back on campus next year.
5. How many years have you danced ballet and what inspired you to start ballet?
Elizabeth: I started dancing at the age of three, but not strictly ballet. It was Isadora Duncan style dance, which has a very modern and free kind of movement quality. I did that style until I was 13, and then at 13 I decided I liked the ballet side of dance more. It was interesting transitioning from a very modern style and going into something with strict technique. It was actually quite a challenge because I was a 13 year old hitting puberty, and that’s the worst time to go into ballet - especially for a young woman. I also felt really behind and had to work incredibly hard to catch up on my training and knowledge from the ages of 13 to 16, which made for an intense 3 years!
6. Where did you train ballet and could you tell us a little bit about your experience dancing there?
Elizabeth: At 13 when I decided on ballet, I bounced around schools for about a year trying to find one that was a good fit for me. I ultimately decided on this little ballet studio in Westport, Connecticut. I don’t think they have the same name or artistic director anymore, but at the time there was a really amazing teacher named Christina Fagundes who inspired me a lot. Like I said, I was trying to catch up after not doing ballet for seven years and not having the right physique, so I really appreciate how she brought out the qualities I already had in order to mold me into a better dancer. I have so much gratitude for her incredible instruction. After that studio, I left and did a summer with the Royal Danish Ballet, and then I came back and finished my training with Central Pennsylvania, or “CPYB” as most people call it. My years there were a mixture of beautiful and amazing, and also full of tears because again, I was still a little bit behind on my actual technique, so I had a lot of catching up to do. My teacher, Marcia Dale Weary, who has now passed away, was a very tough teacher, but there’s something that she instilled in her dancers that was like no other teacher I’ve ever known. After that, I was a trainee and corps de ballet dancer with the American Repertory Ballet, and I danced there for a few years while also teaching part time at the Princeton Ballet School. And now I’m with HBC!
7. What do you think are some of the primary challenges that today’s dancers, or perhaps the dance industry as a whole, face?
Elizabeth: Wow, this is a loaded question. I think maybe starting from the training stages for dancers today, social media has really changed how people think they should be dancing or where they should be going for training. It’s unfortunate because when I started experiencing the ballet world, the advice I would hear was, “you just have to find your own path” and it’s very true because you are going to end up wherever you end up that will be where you will thrive. It was really good advice, just letting things take their own path, following doors that are open, and not trying to plan everything out. With social media, though, you hear everyone’s stories, and you might think, “oh that’s what I need to do to be successful.” However, that’s not necessarily what you need to do to be successful because success is so unique to each person. Additionally, you see these amazing people on Instagram, and it’s not super healthy because you’re going to compare yourself to hundreds of dancers that you follow who only post their specialty. So it is easy to start to assume that everyone is so good at turning or jumping or développés, and it really breaks my heart to see younger girls comparing themselves to these amazing people on Instagram that aren’t showing the whole picture.
Another challenge is the idea of perfectionism. As dancers, we’re either naturally perfectionists, or by manner of the art, we are trying to become perfectionists by seeking perfection or perfect technique in ballet. It can be a good thing to carry into life and school, pushing you to get good grades and work towards an amazing career, but sometimes perfectionism can cause you to hit a wall where everything needs to be perfect and you need to conform to what you think is perfect. There is a range of perfectionism, but in a way it can be a form of anxiety when somebody is so worried about failure that they get anxious about handing in assignments when they are not perfect. That certainly happens to me, and in the studio I have seen people trying a new step that I was too scared to try because I was paralyzed by the need for it to be “perfect” my first time trying it. So this is a challenge in ballet, because despite the strive for perfection, you definitely have to be okay with failing - it is vital to get over the fear of not being perfect because there is simply no such thing as perfection.
8. How have you continued dancing during the pandemic?
Elizabeth: During quarantine, I have been dancing in my basement! To replicate Marely, I use a bathtub liner from Home Depot to dance on because it mimics the stickiness that Marley usually provides and allows me to dance better than I do on a rug or on kitchen tile!
9. What are you most looking forward to after the pandemic is over?
Elizabeth: There are so many things I’m looking forward to, but probably most of all just being able to see a bunch of people at once. I haven’t seen my friends in such a long time, and I also miss going out and meeting new people. I’ve definitely met many people on Zoom this past year, so I am looking forward to actually being able to see them and interact with them in-person.
10. What is your favorite ballet and why?
Elizabeth: Jewels is forever my favorite ballet collection. I think it depends day to day which one is your favorite. Sometimes you might just be in the very whimsical Emeralds kind of mood, and other times Rubies is the perfect fit for when you’re feeling a little sassy, and of course Diamonds is always a classic. So I suppose Jewels really just hits all of the bases and temperaments.
11. What is your favorite ballet step or part of ballet class?
Elizabeth: I think right now I would say grande allegro probably because I haven’t done it in awhile with the pandemic, but I think when I was dancing everyday, I was so tired at the end of class that grande allegro wasn’t my favorite. I love adagio and petite allegro too - I just love it all! My favorite step is probably an échappé. It’s a very simple step, but it’s something I struggled with when I was starting out, and I’ve found that échappés are the closest thing to jumps right now, which I need to do to build up foot strength again. There’s something so beautiful about the simplicity of an échappé.
12. What is your favorite role you’ve danced and why?
Elizabeth: A while ago in high school I did Arabian for Nutcracker, and that was really fun because it’s so mysterious, and I would say that it has the most character in The Nutcracker because it has some layers to it. More recently, I’d honestly say Giselle was really fun to do as a corps de ballet dancer. It has some very powerful moments when it is a corps of 20+ women onstage together. I had such a blast during that rehearsal process and just genuinely love being part of the corps and getting to be so close to your best friends and sharing backstage chats, laughs and tears with the ones you love.
13. Who do you regard as a role model in the ballet world and why?
Elizabeth: Probably Marianela Núñez. Just as far as strength and artistry, I think she is the definition of a ballerina. I can’t stop watching her sometimes, she is just so gorgeous and powerful.
14. Given how busy your schedule is, why do you still make space for ballet?
Elizabeth: Because if I didn’t, I would not be who I am. I took a break from dancing over the past few weeks because I was busy with school, but then I started taking classes with HBC on Saturdays. I realized one week away was hard enough in terms of soreness. Then I started taking class a few more times a week and I found that this brought me structure again in a time where there seems to be no structure anymore. Ballet is like meditation in some ways, it is a space to reflect and work on what your body and mind needs most. [note: this information was as of October 24]
15. How would you describe your HBC experience so far?
Elizabeth: My experience with HBC has been really fun so far! I have really loved all of the classes; the student-teachers are incredible. The only thing that’s hard is not being there in person, but I’m really excited about this year and am looking forward to joining everyone in person in the future!