Ballerina

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Notebook: goes backstage at The Australian Ballet for a look at the demanding but exhilarating lives of husband-and-wife dancers Danilo Radojevic and Lucinda Dunn.

He has danced with Rudolf Nureyev and Mikhail Baryshnikov. She is a world-renowned prima ballerina. Lucinda (Luci) Dunn and Danilo (Danny) Radojevic are a down-to-earth couple who devote their lives to the extraordinary world of ballet.

7am: Danny, 47, sets out for a jog around Melbourne’s Botanic Gardens. It has been 13 years since he last danced on stage but he likes to keep fit, not least for his demanding role as associate artistic director of The Australian Ballet.

8.30am: Luci, 31, sleeps in a little most days, especially if she has performed the night before. Being a principal dancer with The Australian Ballet, she needs all the rest she can get. “Performing is physically and mentally draining, and I’m not a great sleeper,” she says, “so I don’t make myself get up too early.” Still, Luci never feels like taking a day off. “I feel blessed to be able to do something I love,” she says. The couple eat breakfast together and Luci then makes a lunch of sandwiches, fruit and yoghurt for herself and Danny.

9am: Danny arrives at The Australian Ballet’s Southbank premises for meetings with artistic director David McAllister and perhaps the production, wardrobe or medical teams. He checks the dancers’ schedule to see who will be rehearsing and performing that evening. His job is to ensure everything runs as smoothly as possible. “There’s never a dull moment,” he laughs. “There might be emergency rehearsals, someone might be ill, and then there’s the casting, costumes and logistics that go with any production.”

10am: Luci heads to the Ballet Centre to warm up and attend ballet class. All 68 dancers in the company, from the corps de ballet to the principals, must attend the daily class. “You never stop learning in ballet and you’re always striving to be the best you can possibly be,” Luci says. “We go to class six days out of seven every week, for our entire careers.”

11am: As part of his role, Danny takes the class two or three times a week. He begins by softly calling out a series of French terms to which 136 beautifully toned legs and arms respond by forming corresponding poses. The precision devoted to each movement is a sight to behold. Over the 75-minute class, almost every muscle in the dancers’ bodies will be strained to its limit in an extraordinary display of the human form. “It’s very tough and, believe me, we don’t always feel like going through the rigours of class, but it’s part of the discipline. I’ve done it almost every day of my life, so it’s second nature to me now,” says Luci.

12.15pm: The dancers get a 15-minute break before rehearsals. They have as many as six hours of dancing ahead of them. Danny returns to his office and prepares to coach one of the principal artist couples, the elite duets of the production. “I often talk to a dancer who might need help or feedback,” he explains. “They put everything into this job and it can be heartbreaking not to get the role you’ve worked hard for or to feel that you’re not at your best… I know what they’re going through, so I try to encourage their self-motivation because that will help to get them through.”

12.30pm: Luci rehearses for one of six ballets she will lead this year – La Bayadère, La Sylphide, White, Jiri, SwanLake and Sleeping Beauty. She receives six pairs of pointe ballet shoes a week and can wear out a pair in a day. “We’re very rough on our shoes,” she laughs. “We can be pounding them for ten hours almost non-stop.” Luci’s feet, and body, also take a pounding, so sessions with the on-site physiotherapist are frequent. “Pain is part of a dancer’s life but our bodies are our tools,” she says. “We have to take good care of them.”

1.30pm: Luci breaks for lunch but rarely eats with Danny as their schedules are so full. Nutrition is a crucial aspect of a dancer’s regimen and Luci is quick to dispel the notion that dancers have poor eating habits. “There is no way we could dance for even an hour if we didn’t eat properly,” she says. “We have nutritionists on hand and everybody here eats well... if you’re exercising for six or eight hours a day you’re going to burn it off.”

2pm: Luci either returns to rehearsal or attends a fitting at the costume department. Here, designers and seamstresses spend painstaking hours creating intricate costumes for every production. “I love fittings. They’re absolutely amazing and the people who make the costumes are true artists,” says Luci. Meanwhile, Danny is busy coaching two principal artists. While each ballet has been expertly choreographed, close coaching is required to perfect every movement. Danny is respected as being one of the finest dancers of his time and he imparts his knowledge with the patience and wisdom of a true master. He is modest about his own achievements but takes great pride in those of his dancers. “I often worry about whether I’ve given them enough and I’m always nervous for them, but I never cease to be amazed by their talent and dedication,” he says. “I try to finish every rehearsal on a positive note because even if it hasn’t gone that well we have to feel that we’ve achieved something.”

3pm: If Luci is not performing that night she will rehearse for a few more hours. At any given time, she might be preparing for three or more different roles, which can be as mentally demanding as it is physical. “You need to stay really focused on each role you’re playing because they are all so different and that can be very draining,” she says. If she is performing that night, Luci will go home to eat and relax. Unlike many dancers, she doesn’t nap before a performance. She says she’d rather potter around her apartment, doing housework to take her mind off the evening ahead. After so many years of performing, Luci still gets the jitters. “It’s a good nervous,” she laughs. “It keeps me on my toes.”

4.30pm: Luci heads to her dressing room at the Melbourne Arts Centre to prepare for a leading role in White, a ballet celebrating three centuries of ‘white ballet’, which began with the introduction of the familiar white tulle skirts in the first La Sylphide in 1832. The show doesn’t start until 7.30pm but Luci likes to give herself plenty of time to prepare and relax. Unlike the dancers in the coryphées or corps de ballet, she has her own dressing room with a dresser to help her with her costume. Like all dancers, however, Luci has been trained to do her own hair and make-up. She also takes great care to ensure that her shoes are right, her costume is right, her body feels right and that she is warmed up properly. As her stage nerves build, she takes a quiet moment to visualise a positive performance. “I reassure myself that everything is going to go well and I try to stay calm and focused,” she says.

6pm: The backstage area is abuzz with dancers preparing themselves to perform. “It’s very exciting and you can feel the energy starting to build,” Luci smiles. “Everyone is chatting and laughing, but mostly they’re all focusing their nervous energy into their own performances. You want to be the best you can possibly be every single night.”

6.45pm: Danny joins Luci and the other dancers backstage. The energy is high and dancers are calling out “chookers” to one another – ballerina speak for “good luck”. “I really love the backstage atmosphere just before a performance,” says Danny. “It reminds me of my time waiting in the wings and I know exactly how excited and nervous everyone is.”

7.25pm: Luci moves to the hushed wings and prepares to take the stage. Her heart is racing and her skin has a slight sheen of perspiration but she is ready for what lies ahead – two to three hours of intense concentration and physical exertion. “I don’t think you can really explain the feeling you have just before you go on stage,” she says. “Sometimes you can actually feel the energy of the audience’s anticipation. It’s incredible.” Meanwhile, Danny takes a seat in the stalls with David McAllister. As he does with every performance, he will review, critique and enjoy the work of his precious dancers. “Going to see the show is the best part of my job, for sure,” he says. “I get very nervous for them though, because I know all the hours they’ve done – day in, day out – to prepare for this moment, so you just want it to go well for them.”

7.30pm: The curtain rises and, for Luci, the real world recedes. She transcends into her character as the stage fills with the mystical elegance of her enchanting art form. “It can be a bit dreamlike,” she says. “You’ve done it so many times that you know what comes next. But you can’t let your concentration slip for a second.” Danny watches all the dancers with a mix of pride and anxiety, particularly Luci. “You can’t help feeling a little more nervous when your own wife is on the stage,” he says. “But I love watching her. She is a beautiful dancer.”

10pm: As the final curtain falls, Luci and the rest of the cast go backstage for a feedback session with David and Danny. “You’re always hoping they’ll be happy but most dancers know whether they’ve nailed it or not before they come off stage,” says Luci. “At this level, the dancers have usually done an amazing job, so it tends to be a great atmosphere backstage,” says Danny. “Sometimes there are bits and pieces that need working on, so we’ll work on those things before the next performance.”

10.30pm: At home, the couple prepare a light supper and enjoy a glass of wine. They try not to discuss the night’s show, as Luci prefers not to dissect her performance before bed. “I can’t sleep if I start going over the night in my head and it’s just nice to talk about other ‘normal’ things,” she says.

11.30pm: The couple are in bed reading. Danny tends to drift off within minutes but Luci will take a further half hour to wind down. By midnight, both will be sleeping, getting some much-deserved rest before another day in the demanding world of ballet.

Words: Linda Peatling. Photography: Andrew Lehmann