BWW Interviews: One On One With BalletBoyz' Company Member Marc Galvez, Appearing At The McCallum Theatre Tonight!!

The McCallum Theatre presents BalletBoyz - the TALENT, for one incredible performance, tonight ar 8:00 pm. BalletBoyz has established itself as one of the most original and innovative forces in modern dance: revolutionizing traditional programming formats, commissioning new work, collaborating with a wide range of cutting-edge talents and building a big following through their work on BBC television. Founded by Michael Nunn and William Trevitt, BalletBoyz has won numerous awards and nominations including an Olivier Award, two South Bank Show nominations as well as a Rose d'Or, International Emmy and Golden Prague Grand Prix for their television work. The company has performed throughout the UK and internationally and has in its repertoire approximately 35 works, of which more than 30 are original commissions. I had the opportunity to steal company member Marc Galvez away from rehearsal for a brief chat - here are a few excerpts from that conversation.

DG: To get us started, tell me a little about you, personally.

MG: Well, first of all, please excuse my French - because. I am from France. I moved to London a year ago. I have been with the BalletBoyz for a year now - so, it's my second season. And, we have been touring to America for two weeks - and we have two more weeks - and it has been really amazing, actually.

DG; Tell me about your background before joining BalletBoyz.

MG: Okay, so ... I guess I discovered dance when I was five - with Michael Jackson - and then after a few years singing in my living room, my parents got tired of it and they made me go to dance class and so I studied jazz and ballet. And then my dance teacher told me that I could do this as a job. After, when I was sixteen, I moved to Paris for a five year course - at The Paris Conservatoire. And, then when I was twenty I got my first job, but after two years there - because it was a state company - I just needed to do something a little more adventurous, I guess ... and that's why I auditioned for BalletBoyz -- and I got lucky.

DG; Are you able to give me a little bit of background on the company?

MG: Yeah. Yeah. I can try. I guess the company was first created - well, it was originally Michael Nunn and William Trevitt who created the BalletBoyz, because they were the BalletBoyz - and they began to do creations, they wanted to do choreography I guess - and then after a certain amount of years they decided to create the group called "the TALENT" -- and, I think this was created five or six years ago and there's still two people who were dancing for BalletBoyz back then that are still in the company now which are Leon Poulton and Matt Rees. And, even though it's called BalletBoyz it's really more a contemporary company -- even though it's called BALLET Boyz.

DG; What would you say is the most unique thing about this company?

MG: I guess it's quite easy. It's just the fact that we are men - we're just ten men. And that's the unique thing. I think it's quite a statement to say we can be a dance company with only boys -- and we don't need girls, in a way.

DG; What can audiences expect from this concert at The McCallum?

MG: It's going to be a two pieces show. The first will be a creation by Liam Scarlett - there is a lot of sensuality in it, yet very strong. He wanted to explore the idea of moving as a snake - which is why it's called "Serpent". And the second piece is created by Russell Maliphant and it's called "Fallen". Actually, I like to think of the show as two opposites, in a way. It's like the first part that is like lyrical and the second part is - there's something ritualistic about it. And, umm -- it's very diverse. It shows off two different faces of the company.

DG; Where else have you visited on your North American Tour?

MG: Well, we are here in Palm Desert until Friday, and then we are going to Los Angeles. And then on Sunday we go to Portland. And this is our last town in The United States. And then we going to Canada - to Victoria. And, unfortunately, then we are going home.

DG; But this isn't your first stop on the tour?

MG: No, no. We been ... beginning in Philadelphia two weeks ago, we had four shows there. Then we went to Madison, in Wisconsin. And, before Palm Desert, we went to Santa Barbara.

DG; What advice might you, personally. Give to young dancers who might want to pursue a professional career?

MG: I would say ... first of all ... keep following your dream. Even when it is hard. It's a tough job. They're a lot of pain that is hard to do and hard to go through. Keep looking at other things - see movies, read books - something outside of dance. Because, in dance we always use other references. Keep learning. It's really important.

My advice: Run, don't walk to get the last remaining tickets for BalletBoyz tonight at 8:00 pm at the McCallum Theatre. For tickets or further information about upcoming performances at The McCallum visit www.mccallumtheatre.com

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