Breaking Free

The early years of her career began in the conservatory,she shares,where she was taught the traditional form of ballet. “Much like any form of classical dance,there are many rules in ballet that a dancer must adhere to; the movement of the body,posture and other details. Though I loved to dance,the rigidness of the style made me uncomfortable and gradually my dance became mechanical,” said the 28-year-old.

During those days,four years ago,she heard about a new form of dance that other professional dancers around the world were experimenting with. It was called “Contemporary”. She saw

hope and her flickering passion for dance began to rekindle,

making her want to break free from the strict constraints of

traditional ballet.

So Gracia would wait till the practice rooms in her academy were empty and sneak in to try out this new found dance form. “At first I felt like I was doing something wrong. All these years I was taught so many rules and I was breaking most of them simultaneously. But it was exciting,new and adventurous,” she says,her deep blue eyes lighting up. While performing traditional dance if Gracia would use her mind to control her body,she was now allowing her body to control her mind. She says it was like learning to “unplan”.

“Contemporary dance opened up a new world for me. I dance out all my emotions,my stress would melt away with every move. It was like meditation,” says the dancer,who has travelled to a number of European countries to host contemporary dance workshops,and to collaborate with other choreographers. Though she found her salvation in contemporary dance,Gracia is grateful for her grounding in traditional ballet. “Contemporary dance is all about breaking the rules,but you have to first know the rules to be able to break them in a graceful and elegant fashion. A good footing in traditional dance form is very helpful,” says Gracia.