June 29, 2009, 3:06 pm
Pirouettes and arabesques can be difficult enough to perform in a dance hall — it's even harder when ballet dancing in tackling winds atop a jagged ridge.
That's how a ballet troupe from Idaho spent part of its week — in addition to overcoming rain, snow and sharp rocks digging into thin dancing shoes — all to illustrate the natural wonders of Glacier National Park through dance.
"It's not always comfortable, but if you think of the big picture, you get through it," said Chanel DaSilva, one of the troupe's five dancers. "You do what you have to do for good art."
The troupe's mostly improvised twists and twirls were filmed in high-definition at various park locations this week as part of the sixth installment of the "Face of America" series.
Launched in 2000, the series strives to recognize the role national parks play in preserving America's rich cultural and natural heritage. Previous editions spotlighted Yosemite National Park and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
The series is produced by the nonprofit Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts of Vienna, Va. The Glacier Park footage will be incorporated into a multimedia production on how climate change has affected the park's glaciers. That production premieres Aug. 19 at Wolf Trap National Park outside of Washington, D.C. The ballet and accompanying video footage will then go on tour to more than 20 cities, including Helena and Billings.
