Daria Klimentová, an older Czech ballet dancer who was also a lead principal and took pictures as a hobby. I still have that bandana as a souvenir, along with a pair of stripy leg warmers knitted by Daria’s mother, which I used to wear before every performance.
They’re full of holes now, but I keep them in a drawer at home.I was promoted to principal dancer with the English National Ballet at 22 and found myself in a dressing room with dancers I’d looked up to since ballet school.
All my friends were soloists or in the corps de ballet and I missed their camaraderie. Back then the company was more hierarchical than it is now; you wouldn’t talk to a more senior dancer unless they approached you.
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