On a tour of Paris, a willowy ballerina falls in love with a handsome member of her dance company. They marry and go on to have massively successful dance careers. After they retire they continue to teach and choreograph classical ballet, have a beautiful little daughter and, in general, live happily ever after.
If this was a pitch for a movie script it would be rejected for being far too idealistic. The audience would roll their eyes at the far-fetched fairy tale and skeptically declare that things like that "just don't happen in real life." Fortunately for the starry-eyed romantics of this world, some fairy tales do come true. Julie Janus-Walters and Tyler Walters are real and so is their story.
Many of the dance students here at Duke have had the privilege of their tutelage this semester. Tyler Walters, assistant professor of the dance department, has taught at the Joffrey ballet school and Julliard. Equally impressive are his list of choreographed works which include the Carolina Ballet, ABT Studio Company and the Joffrey Concert Dancers.
Dancing since the age of three at her family's studio, Julie explains that it was in no way implied that she would be a professional dancer. "I grew up doing everything from hula to baton twirling." At the age of sixteen she received a scholarship to the Joffrey Ballet School. Embarking on a career in classical ballet, Julie was able to succeed where so many fail. Out of fifty premier students in her class less than ten went on to have professional careers.
Dancing together at the Joffrey ballet, Julie and Tyler were given the opportunity to break the conventional standards of classical ballet. "I chose the Joffrey because they were non-traditional. Mr. Joffrey hand picked his dancers, and we became a family." Perhaps it is this unconventional approach to classical ballet that has made the Walters such popular professors here at Duke. Their infectious enthusiasm spreads to their students and to the Duke community.
As Julie explains, "No matter how talented a ten-year-old is they can not mentally grasp the physical mechanics of ballet. We love teaching college students--they can intellectualize physical learning, and it is incredibly rewarding for us."
A ballet choreographed by Tyler Walters can be seen during the November Dances this Friday and Saturday Nov. 21 and 22 at 8 p.m. in Reynolds Theater.
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