The Digest | New Jersey Magazine
Issue link: https://magazines.vuenj.com/i/1541034
full time for a good three months of the year…but it's so worth it." ose "good three months" Heather referred to are the months preceding the Christmas Spectacular, with rehearsal season occurring "six days a week for six hours a day." Performance days present their own challenge, with four performances slated for the Rockettes. Heather stressed the importance of mental fortitude on those days, "cheering yourself on to give a performance the same quality that you gave in show one as you gave in show four." To be a Rockette requires endurance of all kinds, and as Heather put it, "the discipline to fight and work for your dream, but it's putting the work in to maintain that discipline to make a dream come true." While the everyday bystander might not realize it, there's a bit of individuality also at play in the Rockettes' kick line. "ey see us all performing exactly the same," Heather explained. "e concept is we have to conform the way we dance and how we see ourselves in the line exactly as the person standing next to you. But when I was in the line, we were all able to bring our own flair into it, our own style, so it didn't look too robotic. It's multiple individuals coming in to create a cohesive picture." Just as each dancer maintained her individuality in the line, each one has gone on to cra a life that's all her own, post-Rockettes. "I know Rockettes that have been real estate agents, fitness instructors, in finance, so many avenues that women take," shared Heather. "It was a dream of mine to be able to pass on my story," she continued, and that's exactly what Heather has done as a consultant for high school and college dance teams in Long Island. Langham also serves as a judge at regional, national, and world dance competitions. "It's been really cool to take what I learned from being a Rockette and bring that to the dance world," she said, noting that she splits her time between "NYC and Southampton." Both Patty and Heather expressed their excitement for the upcoming 92nd season of the Christmas Spectacular, which will blend classic numbers such as "Parade of the Wooden Soldiers" with show- stopping theatrics. While the iconic Christmas Spectacular remains a timeless tradition in the hearts of children and adults alike, recent technological innovations are elevating the audience experience. Holographic imagery, flying Frost Fairy drones, projection mapping, and VUEHAMPTONS.COM 43