Content area
Full Text
A former student reminisces about the favorite teacher she shared with David Hallberg, principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre and the Bolshoi Ballet.
When David Hallberg and I were classmates at Ballet Arizona in Phoenix, there were no other boys at the studio to necessitate a men's class. After taking daily class with the advanced girls, Hallberg would stay after class for private coaching from our teacher, "trudging away," as Hallberg told me, "on my usual repertoire of exercises late into the evening, alone with Mr. Han in the studio. Sometimes my parents came early to pick me up and would watch quietly in the corner of the studio." Hallberg says one night he fell out of his 11th coupé jeté manège and lay curled in pain and exhaustion. Mr. Han looked over at Hallberg's parents, raised one eyebrow and asked, "How's Mommy doing?"
Kee Juan Han's searing wit never failed to make me laugh, even when I was the subject of it. Humor has always accompanied his demanding ballet training; he understands the need for levity along with humility in such a difficult artform. His uncompromising and holistic approach to teaching ballet has produced Hallberg, in addition to soloists and corps de ballet members across the world. Simply put, Han understands that it takes discipline, manners and respect to transform talented boys into princely men.
I can still picture Hallberg's silhouette flying past the window, perfecting double tours or rehearsing a variation, as the rest of us were leaving for the night. I was too exhausted from the three hours I had just endured to be jealous of the special attention. Han volunteered to stay late in the evening to privately coach Hallberg, but only on the condition that he hold up...