We stood in a row in the hot sun, our feet heavy in the damp grass, dressed all in black. Drenched in sweat. Itchy from falling into that grass and getting back up again.
While we took our bows, I tried to smile, tried to forget the slant of the ground beneath me during the Beethoven piece. Jennifer Muller's repertory is technical enough to make it difficult to perform on grass, but because we dance barefoot, it is, in theory, possible. But the grass, and the uneven surface it was planted on, made every turn a nearly impossible feat, every fall an opportunity to itch and sneeze.
By the end of the first performance, my head was pounding. It felt like the furthest from a good performance I had ever had.
And yet, I had done everything I normally do. I was prepared. I went over the choreography. I drank coffee. I warmed up well.
I resolved that the next day, I'd have to somehow be even more prepared.
The next morning on the train to the gardens, I finished a 32 ounce water bottle in its entirety, and was onto another one by the time we reached the dressing room tent. I had also packed snacks: nonfat Greek yogurt in a small cooler with peach slices and a granola bar.
The water and yogurt snack were, surprisingly, much more effective than drinking all that coffee. I was alert, energized, and the other dancers were fading under the intense heat.
One of the dancers joked that our makeshift tent/dressing room was an accurate and effective example of the greenhouse effect.
But I withstood the heat this time, drinking more water before a show than I think I ever have.
And it worked. I slid on the slant, but was ready for it this time, core engaged, grounded.
Lesson learned.
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