As soon as possible Daniel Camago Mentioning his early love for the ballet video “Born to Be Wild: The Leader of the American Ballet Theater”, his dance quickly makes sense — fierce attacks, dramatic talent, endless energy.
Originally from Brazil, Camargo, who participated in the American Ballet Theater as a guest artist this season, is the same generation of male dancers as Angel Corella, Jose Manuel Carreño, Vladimir Marahov and Ethan Stiefel. Performance: Dance in America. Although he has different sensibilities, he was also a stage animal.
Well, there is Camargo who was nominated as a principal last week. That same week, he performed Kenneth MacMillan’s new work “Romeo and Juliet” three times. His first Romeo, like many dances this season, improved over time with a 30-year-old repertoire featuring Acts 3 of “Don Quixote,” “Swan Lake,” and “Love and Anger.” .. By the time he gets to the balcony scene? He was very dashing and very warm. Yes, Camargo is an explosion from the past.
Two of those nights, Juliet Hi Seo, who didn’t have much time to rehearse, “literally shook hands,” she said. I’m satisfied. “When we don’t have enough rehearsal time to really feel each other, I think we’ll make each other dance and give each other more room,” she said. “He was good at it. He gives you room to be part of ballet. It’s neither my way nor his way — it’s our How to do it. “
For Camargo, their performance was “very normal and very human,” he said. “I didn’t wear anything.”
Prior to the pandemic, Stuttgart Ballet and Camargo, a former principal of the Dutch National Ballet, worked as freelance dancers. After the restrictions were relaxed, he resumed the route, but he began to crave more consistency. At the same time, the ballet theater was dealing with several injuries. Alexei Ratmansky, an artist-in-residence at the Ballet Theater, has contacted Camargo, who worked with the Dutch National Ballet.
“They knew I was interested and the opportunity was opened,” Camargo said. “So they’re like,’Hey, Daniel, why don’t you come?’ That’s the beginning.”
Camargo was supposed to attend the Jacqueline Kennedionasis School at the Ballet Theater around the age of 12 after competing in the Youth America Grand Prix. “I actually got a scholarship to ABT,” he said. “It was basically a situation where the suitcase was ready to come to New York.”
On the eve of his flight, his teacher learned that during the school’s summer course, those who intended to take care of him had decided they couldn’t. “I attended a summer school in Florida, then returned to the Youth America Grand Prix in 2005 and finally went to Stuttgart,” Camargo said. “That’s why the whole of New York was put on hold. Before I got here, I made a completely different trip.”
Now he is ready to settle down. But first he has to find an apartment. During the season he was too busy to see, and the day after the season ended, he flew to Italy to work with Brazilian choreographer Giuliano Núñez. Where does he end up in New York? “I don’t know,” he sighed. “It’s still a big question mark.”
Recently, Camargo talked about his rise at the ballet theater in his early days, and where he spent his shutdown. It was a long night the morning after his last “Romeo”, but he was cheerful. “I always get up early after a performance.”
The following is an edited excerpt from that conversation.
You danced much more than originally planned for this season. Did you feel the pressure?
It was a very interesting few months. Everything was happening very quickly and somehow I felt comfortable. Somehow I felt ready to do it. I felt it was right. My partners and everyone in the company were so supportive that I felt a lot of energy before going on stage. And it helped a lot.
Alexei Ratmansky is one of the reasons you are here. How long have you worked with him?
I have worked with him and the Dutch people several times. So he set up “Shostakovich”. [Trilogy]”And his” Don Quixote “. He knows how to get rid of things from a dancer, but sometimes it doesn’t even see or think you’re inside you.
Why did you start ballet in the first place?
Basically, it was my sister’s fault. I have two sisters who are also dancers. So when they learned that they had a younger brother-because it’s not so common for men to dance in Brazil-they said, “Try it once and see if you like it.” I was crazy about it.
why? And how old were you?
I was between 9 and 10 years old. I think it was that physicality. I just tried things out and then somehow did it the way they wanted me to. And after watching some videos and contests, it basically started to ignite it, so I thought OK, this could really be something.
At the John Cranco School in Stuttgart, one of your teachers was Peter Pestov, who trained many male dancers at the Borshoy Ballet Academy. How important was he to you?
He was a turning point in my research. I started working with him for the last two years in school and it was a very tough training. We have a 3 hour class. Drinking water is not allowed. Sometimes it will be a two hour jump.favorite Radical training. But when we were outside the studio, he was very kind. But if we were working, there was no joke.
What did he emphasize in class? It was very technical, but what else?
Musicality was one of his most important points. Musicality, soft landing. Every time you finish what you are doing, you really finish the position. How to use the floor; how to go from one step to another. I remember finishing the class, and my legs were just burning.
You were freelance when the pandemic occurred. where did you go
I went to Portugal. You may be a little more outside in nature, and I am now south of the Algarve. Portugal was a very important time for me to know more about myself. What should I do when I’m not in the studio? What kind of conversation do other people have? I met a new person and wanted to know more about myself. What if you’re not surrounded by dancers? It was very refreshing.
What did you learn about yourself?
I really enjoy being in nature and connecting with people. See everything with another eye. I think I will bring to the stage what I can experience outside. And I found out that I love surfing.
Did you find it different to dance and live in New York instead of abroad?
Yes — especially at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. You can feel that everyone is coming together, they are all facing the same direction, and they want to have a good show. The energy the company has is something I can’t really explain. But this is the kind of energy I want to be around.