This studio is the rehearsal space used by Wiles’ company, BalletNEXT, as well as the unexpected setting for an October 22 performance of the company’s “Giselle.” The evening felt like an intimate gathering for an elite group of donors and friends, but it was actually open to the public, a free or donation-based event that invited audiences into the inner sanctum of the former American Ballet Theatre star. 

As dancers, we can mark their careers and the passage of time by the studios we return to, day after day. There’s an intimate relationship one develops with these spaces. Dancers know the spots on the floor that are slick or sticky. They know just how far they can jump before meeting the corner of the room, and they can expertly adjust the ending of an across-the-floor phrase to account for a lack of space.

There is something incredibly special about watching dancers in this sort of environment. This performance of “Giselle” (which was moved from the company’s usual performance spot, the Park City Library, several days prior due to technical difficulties) gave the audience this rare opportunity. Wiles, at times, came so close to the first row of the audience that they must have been able to feel the air moving with her steps. Matthew Helms, who danced the role of Albrecht, seemed to know the exact height to which he could lift Wiles, her bun just skimming the ceiling. And when he jumped, his own fingers just barely grazed it. The Wilis (BalletNEXT trainees Charlie Adams, Julia Scherbel, and Courtney Rich) led by Myrtha (Sienna Hopper, a guest artist and Olympic Ballet Theatre trainee), fully realized their movements, adjusting in real time when they ran the risk of meeting a corner or wall. Several of Wiles’ exits left her leaping from the marley floor and out an open garage door into the night.