At16,shehada decisiontomake:
continuewithherschoolingandgoonto
studylawatuniversity,orpursueballet.
Withthesupportofherunderstandably
anxiousparents,Sarahauditionedfor
theNewZealandSchoolofDance,gotin,
andsuddenlyfoundherselfwrested
fromtheOtagocountrysideandliving
ina Wellingtonflat.
“Thatwasterrifying,”sherecalls.“My
firstexperiencewiththedirectorofthe
schoolwasbeingtold,‘Oh,honey,you
werethelastoneonourlist,butwe
thoughtwe’dgiveyoua go.’I spentthe
nextthreeyearsworkingmyassoffto
shifttheirperceptionofmeasa loser.”
Andthatalsomeantmouldingher
bodytobenearertotheballerinaideal.
“Itrieda numberofridiculousthingsto
makeit right– andit wasallsuper-
unhealthybehaviour.
“Ontheonehand,I waslearningto
cookformyself,payingbillsandtaking
onadultresponsibilities.Butit wasalso
confusing,asa 17-year-old,figuringout
howtomanageandmaintainmybodyin
a disciplineI wasn’treallymeanttofit
into.I experimentedwithnoteating
enough,eatingtoomuch– it wasjust
diabolical,really.”
It wasduringthecontemporarydance
modulesofhertrainingthatsheshone,
andwhereshefeltshebelonged.“I
realisedhowmyownideascouldbe
transferredintomovements.I very
quicklybuilta tremendousappreciation
forcontemporarydance;it suitedme
and it allowed me to be creative.”
Aftergraduating,Sarahdancedfor
Kiwichoreographiclegendssuchas
MichaelParmenterandMaliaJohnston,
andbecamea foundingmemberof
TheNewZealandDanceCompany.
She’stravelledtheworld– fromthe
NetherlandstoJapanandAmerica–
completeda master’sindancestudies
andhasjustembarkedona PhD.Andin
themiddleofit allsomewhere,shefell
inlovewithactoranddirectorAndrew
Foster.Theyhavetwochildren– Ivy,9,
andRoman,3, thoughSarahhasbarely
pausedforbreath.
“AftergivingbirthtoIvyI wasasked
todancewithDouglasWright,andwas
trainingmyassoffinthegymeveryday
togetready!”shesays.
“BythetimeI hadRoman,I wasdeep
intomychoreographiccareer;whenhe
wastwoweeksold,I wasbackinthe
studio,babystrappedtome,
choreographingfora festival.
“ThenweallmovedtoSingaporefor
a coupleofmonthssoI couldworkwith
a companycalledTHE(TheHuman
Expression).I’dchoreographthroughthe
evenings,stayupallnightbreastfeeding,
thensleepthroughtheday.Itsoundslike
a horrorstory...butI hadthebesttime!”
Creatingcontemporarydanceworks
withhercompany,FosterGroup– such
astheacclaimedOrchids, inwhichIvy
hasa role– bringsherimmense
satisfactionandjoy.Asdoesworking
withtheRoyalNewZealandBallet(and
she’squicktopointouttheironyof
choreographing the style of dance sheWOW, 26 SEPTEMBER TO 13 OCTOBER, TSB ARENA, WELLINGTON.WORLDOFWEARABLEART.COM|FOSTERGROUPDANCE.COM“Itwasconfusingfiguringouthowtomanageandmaintain
my body in a discipline I wasn’t really meanttofitinto”
struggledwithasa dancer).Herfeminist
valuesareevidentinmuchofherwork
“andinwhoI collaboratewith,whatI do
anddon’tengagewith,whatI teachmy
children– everything”.
Asa choreographer,shesaysshe’s
alwaysthinkingabouthowthepeople
sheisworkingwithcan“accesstheir
creativespace”.“Idon’tstandinfront
and[have]thedancersmimicmysteps.
It’smuchmoreofanamalgamation–
talkingaboutthework,maybe
demonstratinga coupleofmovements.”
ButWOW, shesays,isa differentthing
altogether.“I’musedtoworkingwith
anywherefromtwoto 32 performers.
WithWOW,thereare 410 separate
performersandtechnicalcrewinvolved.
I wasblownawayatthatnumber!”
She’s“usingmaths”tohelpherwith
themammothtaskahead.“Myjobis to
createchoreographythatenhances
viewingofthegarment.I thinkaboutthe
modelsandthedifferentpathwaysthey
taketogettotheirpositions.ThenI figure
outmathematicallywherethegapsare
andmovethedancersaroundthemtofit
withthemusic.Andforeachofthose
dancesequences,I workoutwhatneedsto
happenwiththenarrative.It’sa great
challengeandI amreallyenjoyingit.”
Analysis,aestheticsandart– it’sa
projectthatcouldhavebeencustom-
designedforSarah.
“Thisisanopportunityinan
environmentthatI wouldn’tget
anywhereelseintheworld,” she agrees.
“I’m so grateful.”•