THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT

Alexis Fletcher

by Laura Murray on September 15th, 2005 at 9:00 AM

"I'd always said the only reason I would stay in Vancouver is if something came up with Ballet B.C.," says Alexis Fletcher as she takes a break between rehearsals at the Scotiabank Dance Centre. Fortunately for her, right at the moment her bags were packed to move out East, where she'd been offered an apprenticeship with Toronto Dance Theatre, her talent won her an invitation to join the ranks of British Columbia's internationally respected company.

Accepting the full-time contract from artistic director John Alleyne "was a really easy decision to make", explains Fletcher, exuding fresh enthusiasm and a vibrant energy as she speaks to the Georgia Straight. "It just felt so right, and now that I'm here I'm so happy. I just feel so lucky."

While gearing up for her debut in Alleyne's grand spectacle Carmina Burana from November 17 to 19 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, the 20-year-old is steadily making the transition into company life. She cites "being completely responsible for yourself" and "taking total ownership of everything you do" as big adjustments. She stresses she's eager to improve her partnering skills, admitting she has never danced with men before, and she's excited about having her weekends free so she can spend more time hanging out with her high-school sweetheart, practicing yoga, and reuniting herself with horseback riding-a childhood hobby.

A graduate of Arts Umbrella's senior-professional-training program, Fletcher, a native of the Comox Valley, never doubted she would make a career of dance. At 14 she joined Dance Dreams, a youth company in Parksville that offered pre-professional classical and contemporary instruction. It introduced her to a way of life that would forever change her.

"The year I was accepted into Dance Dreams, everything took off. It just clicked," she says. "I knew I was meant to dance and I haven't wavered since."

Fletcher's level of commitment grew alongside her passion for the art form, and after high-school graduation, the move to Vancouver to attend Arts Umbrella's two-year program seemed a natural step.

"From the first time Alexis began her training with us, her level of commitment was evident. She was unstoppable," Artemis Gordon, artistic director of Arts Umbrella's dance division, tells the Straight. "Alexis is a pure example of what true spirit and determination can achieve."

In her final year at Arts Umbrella, Fletcher had the opportunity to work closely with Ballet B.C. dancer/choreographer Simone Orlando, whom she has always admired. Orlando's piece She No Longer Dreamt She Was Flying, performed as part of the Arts Umbrella and Ballet B.C. mentor program's year-end showcase, proved to be the platform Fletcher needed to catch Alleyne's attention.

"I feel like if I hadn't found dance the way I did, then I would have found it somehow," she says. "I've always been so clear that I was supposed to dance and had to dance. I never have any question in my mind what I'm doing or why I'm doing it."