These images are part of a body of work entitled Behind the Curtain, the inspiration for which really began when I was a little girl, sitting in the dressing room of my mother's ballet company watching the dancers prepare to go onstage. From that moment on, I have been enthralled and fascinated by the secret life of the dancer.

As the daughter of a ballerina and a student of dance myself for many years, I have been able to experience first hand the discipline, pain, emotion, passion, solitude, sweat, intense concentration, total commitment and endless hours of rehearsal that go into each performance. Through these images, I have tried to capture the magic of that moment of enchantment, bridging the gap between reality and fantasy and granting passage into this intimate world.

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to Stephen Mills, for his generosity and trust, to Darragh Heidkamp, for being my beautiful muse, and to the wonderfully gifted dancers of Ballet Austin. Thank you all for sharing your lives and your art with me.

This work is lovingly dedicated to the memory of my radiant, remarkable mother, Josephine Shields Neal, who first taught me to dance.

If you would like to learn more about Ballet Austin, please visit http://www.balletaustin.org
For further details about Behind the Curtain or information regarding art purchases, please call 512.457.9414.