On Thursdays and Fridays throughout December, junior Nikki Ciesinski traded her math spiral for ballet flats as she left school early for a rigorous ballet class. After getting into costume, Ciesinski took the stage of the Warner Theatre for the matinee showing of “The Nutcracker.” Two hours after the first showing finished, Ciesinski returned to the stage for a night performance.
Ciesinski, who has been dancing for 13 years, marked her ninth year this year as a performer for the Washington Ballet in its annual showing of “The Nutcracker.”
Ciesinski started ballet at age four and joined the Washington Ballet at age eight. She dances for roughly five hours a day on weekdays and eight hours a day over the weekend.
“I try to hang out with friends as much as possible while staying on top of schoolwork, but it’s tough when you’re dancing for about 27 hours weekly,” she said. “Because I have so little time every night, ballet teaches me really good time management skills when it comes to homework and studying.”
Her mother, Phoebe Eliopoulos, said that Ciesinski exhibited natural talent from the moment she stepped onto the stage for the first time.
“We quickly realized what the artistic directors saw in her: an innate sense of grace and stage presence,” she said. “She really understands the emotion and passion needed for ballet.”
In this winter’s Nutcracker performance, Ciesinski played the parts of a snowflake, a flower and a Chinese girl. In previous years, she has been a frontier girl, a clown, a butterfly and a girl in the main party scene.
In addition to The Nutcracker, Ciesinski has also performed in several other Washington Ballet shows, including “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Cinderella.”
Ciesinski has suffered a few injuries over the years, including fracturing bones in her foot. She currently has tendonitis in her hip flexor, but it doesn’t impede her dancing.
“Sometimes classes can be brutal and tiring,” Ciesinski said. “In the end, though, they make you a better, stronger dancer with more discipline and persistence.”
