By Stephanie Wolff for 89.3 WFPL
May 6, 2020
The following is an excerpt from a community-wide story about a day in the life for many Louisville citizens, April 22, 2020, during the world-wide Covid-19 crisis.
3:30 p.m.: A Ballet Dancer Stays In Shape At Home With Dance, Yard Work
Over in the Clifton Heights neighborhood, Louisville Ballet dancer Justin Hogan is in his backyard. It’s a good size and very green. A few trees in the back corners provide a nice patch of shade, the perfect spot to shelter from the bright afternoon sun.
He’s been staying in shape by taking virtual dance classes, which Louisville Ballet artistic director Robert Curran conducts every morning.
Hogan has also found another, very satisfying, form of physical activity: yard work.
He and his girlfriend, who is also a dancer with the ballet, recently bought this house. Hogan says the backyard was a big draw, even if it needed some TLC. They have more time to spruce up the yard, since their work at the ballet is on hold.
Hogan says it was devastating to not get to perform the final shows of the ballet’s season.
“It was also reassuring in a sense,” he says. “It was absolutely the correct call, not only for the community’s safety, but for our safety.”