It’s been nearly a decade since high school graduation forced the end of my recreational dance career. I had never been one of those girls who lived at the studio, with classes every night and competitions every weekend. I didn’t have the statuesque bod to be a standout, and frankly, I didn’t have the talent. For me, dance had always been a part-time activity, something I was merely mediocre at but truly loved–especially ballet. Over the years, I’d done everything from tap, swing and hip hop to lyrical, jazz and ballet–and yes, I’d even acquired several pairs of pointe shoes to call my own. But before heading off to university, I tucked my dance bag away in my parents’ basement and turned to aerobics, running and yoga in an effort to avoid the dreaded freshman 15.
It didn’t take long to realize that no form of intentional exercise could do for my body and soul what dancing did, and I’m not just saying that because Black Swan made ballet cool again. That’s why, at 9:30 a.m. on a chilly Wednesday morning, I found myself standing barefoot and coffee-less in the Extension Room‘s brand new east-end studio, awaiting my demise.
I’ve reluctantly agreed to give the ballet-fitness studio’s Allegro Ballet Bootcamp a shot, and before owner Jennifer Nichols even presses play on the stereo, I’ve already determined that I’m in way over my head. What’s second position again? We start with some basic pliés as a familiar pop song blares from the speakers, and the repetition gives me a chance to get my bearings a little. The next thing I know, we’re all toes pointed, arms port de bras and I’m even rediscovering my arabesque with minimal humiliation. Rather than being judgey as I anticipated, Nichols is all smiles and encouragement. As the second track starts, I’m beginning to feel more comfortable with these foreign movements that were once second nature, and by the third track, my sweater’s off, my limbs are burning and my breath’s quickening. After enough pas de bourrées, battements and relevés to leave my legs begging for mercy, we move to the bar for some classical technique and then hit the floor to work the abs. A graceful bow brings the class to a close and I find it nearly impossible to believe that a full hour’s passed. I’m feeling taller, leaner and a little less awkward–when’s the next class?
Surprising as it may be, Nichols, who looks every lithe inch the ballerina, didn’t set foot in a dance class until she was 13 years old. She realized quickly that she had both talent and passion, and at 16, she boarded with a family to attend the intensive dance program at Quinte Ballet School of Canada. After graduating, she studied at Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal and then did some post-grad work in with Ballet BC before returning to Toronto and finding her niche in the fitness world. “I was seeing too many of my colleagues quitting dance entirely because they were auditioning and coming up empty-handed,” she told me last week. “I thought it was really sad that they were walking away from the field, so I decided to make my own company.”
Her trademarked Extension Method classes arose from combining weights with her ballet movements at the gym and realizing that would make for a good group class. After creating the Allegro Ballet Bootcamp and teaching it at various gyms around the city, it became so popular that she ended up choreographing several different versions of the program. In the fall of last year, she opened the Extension Room studio in Toronto’s west end, with a variety of classes to suit various fitness needs.
Last Thursday, Nichols hosted a party to reveal this gorgeous new Extension Room space at 30 Eastern Avenue to her friends, family, clients and press, and it was a well-deserved celebration after her hectic 2011. Less than a year after establishing her business at its former location on Richmond West, she was told that her landlord would be undergoing major renovations and all tenants must vacate the building. “At the time I was really devastated but in hindsight, I actually think it worked out for the best,” she said. “I’m now in a space that can accommodate twice as many people, there’s more potential for hosting really interesting events, and I also think that as much as the west is thriving and exciting, it’s a bit saturated with yoga spaces and dance spaces. There’s nothing in this neighbourhood.”
Whether you’re a former dancer or you’ve never danced a day in your life, there’s truly something for everyone at the Extension Room, from the very basic Beginner Classical Ballet Technique and muscle-toning Développé Sculpt to the cardio-intense Allegro Ballet Bootcamp and Coda Cardio, which Nichols refers to as “Allegro on speed.”
If there’s any glimmer of hope for achieving legs like hers, this is it. Sign me up for all of them.
Lindsay MacAdam writes about beauty and beautiful things. Follow her every pirouette on Twitter at @lindsaymacadam.
