By Michele Logarta
Lithe and willowy Marinette Franco stands tall beside her mother Asuncion, better known as Baby. The youngest of three siblings, she still is very much her mother Baby’s baby, even at the age of 16. But even so, Marinette displays a maturity and poise beyond her years. She is talented in many ways, both excelling in dance and in academics.
The Francos are from San Isidro, 45 minutes out of Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija province where dance schools abound. “Maraming nag-aaral ng ballet doon (There are many ballet students there),” says Baby.
Marinette started out in baby ballet class in 2009 at the age of 9 at her grand uncle’s ballet school, the Arabesque Dance Academy, in their hometown.
Baby relates that the daughter of her uncle (her mother’s brother) was a ballet student. When she finished all the levels, she had nowhere to go so her father decided to put up their own ballet school and make it a business as well. Of course, the relatives pitched in to promote the school.
Marinette was one of the first scholars there and, according to her mother, made the dance studio her playground.
In 2011, Marinette moved with her mother to Manila to be with her two older siblings who were attending college in the city. Finding nothing to do on weekends, she asked her father, an engineer, if she could take up ballet again.
“Nainip siya. Bakante ang Saturday at Sunday niya (She got bored and had nothing to do on Saturdays and Sundays),” Baby recalls.
She enrolled in the School of Ballet Manila and began at Level 1.
As for school, Marinette entered Paco Catholic School for her sixth grade, and found her place in the star section where competition was very stiff among students.
Moving to Manila from the province was not painless. But they didn’t suffer a culture shock, Baby says. They just had to get used to the traffic and the crowds, she adds.
Marinette, who came from a small Montessori school in her hometown, had to adjust to life in a much bigger school and making new friends. She distinguished herself in class when she displayed her ability to sing and read notes.
“Nu’ng una, nagkaproblema siya. She was new and unproven. So walang gustong kumuha sa kanya sa group work kasi baka mahatak ang grade nila pababa. Pero unti- unti siyang nakilala (In the beginning, she had a problem. She was new and unproven. So no one in her class wanted to get her as a group mate because she might bring down their grades. But little by little, they got to know her and realized her abilities),” Baby says.
Marinette has always excelled in whatever she applies herself to. An outstanding student in class, she also shines in the ballet studio. At Ballet Manila School, she became an apprentice, a half scholar and then was made trainee for the 2015-2016 season.
Being a trainee is a responsibility, Baby emphasizes, because one has to prove one’s worth. As a trainee, Marinette is working to become part of Ballet Manila’s second company.
“We have training classes, and we’re included in shows like Ballet Pinoy and school shows,” says Marinette.
She was selected to join the BM delegation to the 2015 Asian Grand Prix in Hong Kong where she competed in the Junior C division and emerged as finalist. The experience was significant for her as it was her first time to compete and to visit a foreign country as well.
“I was excited at the same time nervous,” she says.
For her mother, it was also an unforgettable experience, since it was likewise her first trip out of the country. She admits that she was probably more nervous than her daughter.
“Hihimatayin ka sa nerbiyos. Siyempre lahat ng nerbiyos nararamdaman mo. Nakakahiya kung hindi niya ma-justify ‘yung pagpapadala sa kanya doon, feeling ko hindi siya prepared. Nako-compare ko siya sa iba na napanood ko. Talagang halos hindi ko siya mapanood pero kailangan ko siyang makita, kung paano siya mag-perform. Ibang level. Nakakatakot talaga. (You could faint from nervousness. I felt the entire range of nervousness. It would be a shame if she couldn’t justify why she was sent there. I felt that she wasn’t prepared and all the more so when I compared with her with the others that I saw. I couldn’t bear to watch her but of course I had to see how she fared. It’s all on another level. It was really scary),” Baby relates.
Indeed, Baby was one of the parents brave enough to enter the competition hall and watch. Others preferred to stay outside and wait.
For the AGP, Marinette performed the Aurora Wedding variation from Sleeping Beauty for the first round and the Dream variation from Raymonda for the second and the final rounds.
From around 70 competitors in her division, she found herself in the final round with 12 others, including two co-dancers from BM.
“I feel pretty proud of myself but for now I want to push more since last time I was only a finalist. I really want to get at least the third prize,” she says.
Marinette has started training for this year’s AGP but she has yet to hear whether BM will send her this year. Nothing is sure yet.
Marinette’s first performance in a BM show was in Tatlong Kuwento ni Lola Basyang.
“I was an eaglet,” she says, flapping her arms like wings.
She was once a soldier in The Nutcracker and was among those who danced the waltz. That was most memorable for her. “I really wanted to dance the waltz and I was able to do it with the company. I was only a half scholar then but I was included.”
Another role she has done that she cherishes is that of one of the swans in Swan Lake. She has also appeared in recitals of the BM School summer workshops.
Her latest performance was in BM 21 on March 19 where she was in the excerpts from La Bayadere and Bloom. It was her first time to be part of the corps and that proved to be a challenge for her. To be part of the corps, she said, meant having to be very strict about positions of the arms and legs. “Mas napu-push mo ‘yung sarili mo” (It was a chance to push myself more),” she contends.
One day, Marinette wants to do the full-length Sleeping Beauty – in the role of Princess Aurora, of course. “Princess Aurora is a gentle little girl who just wants to dance and have fun!”
Between now and then, Marinette has to balance between ballet and school. She is now a tenth grader at St. Scholastica’s College. Her daily schedule is quite intense. She’s in school by 7 a.m. and off at 4 p.m. or later when there are club meetings. (She is a member of the dance club, what else?) Then she is at BM at 6 p.m. for classes until 9 p.m. It is only when she gets home that she gets to do schoolwork. She tries to be in bed by 11 p.m.
She admits that there are times when school has had to take the backseat.
“Sometimes, I feel that I’m giving more to ballet than to school but as much as possible, I try to give equal time to both.”
However, her mother always reminds her that she mustn’t let her grades suffer.
It’s a matter of time management, Marinette adds.
Says her mom: “Nakasupporta lang kami lagi sa kanya. Hindi namin siya pinipilit dito kasi baka ma-stress out siya. Baka ma-burnout siya sa school or sa ballet. Sobrang demanding kasi. Responsiblitidad talaga. Ikaw ang magsasabi kung kaya mo pa. Ikaw lang ang nakakaalam kung kaya mo o hindi (We always make sure to support her. We are not forcing her to do anything because the stress might be too much. She might suffer a burnout in school or in ballet. Both are demanding. It’s a responsibility, really. We tell her it is she who will tell us if she can still handle it. It is only she who can know her limits).”
It may seem to others that Marinette is missing out on the fun of a high school student. But, she says she is not. “I sometimes feel different. When they do things after class, I say ‘No thanks, I have class (ballet).’ But, it’s okay.”
“Focused siya sa ballet (She is focused on ballet),” Baby confirms.
For both mother and daughter, there are no regrets.
Marinette’s goal is to become part of BM. “Sila ang considered na pinakamagaling na company (BM is considered to be the best company),” enthuses Baby who believes that ballet training has taught her daughter more than just how to dance. “They train hindi lang sa pagsasayaw. Malaking malaking bagay ang discipline. Tine-train sila maging professional so kasama na du’n lahat… kung paano kumilos. Meron kang inaalagaan na image. Dala-dala mo ‘yung image na ‘yan. Discipline at determination na ma-reach mo ‘yung goal mo. (The training is not only in dance. Discipline is very, very important. They are trained to be professional. With that, they learn how to conduct themselves properly according to a certain standard. They must carry that standard, that image. They learn discipline and determination to reach their goal.)
On this point, Marinette is in complete agreement with her mother.