The Cobweb
Located near the Weft and Warp and connected to the same red silk pathway, the Cobweb serves both as Kalinor's school for the training in the art of Aerial Dance and the premier venue for the dancers to display their skills and artistry. Its close proximity to the prestigious weaving school indicates the equally close relationship between the two art forms. After all, it was the Symenestra's love of fabric as well as their gravity-defying abilities that led to the creation of the aerial dance style. Shaped like a large teardrop suspended from Kalinor's ceiling, the exterior of the Cobweb school is covered in an intricate network of carven spiderwebs, each web unique in shape and design. A large central entrance from the red silk pathway allows admission into the theater at the very bottom of the droplet-shaped building, while a smaller door near the top is reserved for students' and teachers' use. Narrow, tightly spiraling staircases extended downward from the latter door, a steep and dizzying test for all dancers to confront.
Most of the space within the Cobweb is devoted to various studios and classrooms. The more difficult the dance techniques become, the fewer stage structures and supports are available in the respective studio. While beginning dancers typically train in classrooms with netting at the bottom as well as scaffolding and thick cords of silk hanging from the ceiling, the most advanced dancers typically train in dance studios with only a wisp or two of fine silk adorning the otherwise completely bare stone studio. Training may begin as young as age seven. The Cobweb school meticulously follows the Kanasa method of training, which was designed by the famous aerial dancer Kanasa Curare, who still serves as the ballet mistress of the school. Her approach was designed to exercise and develop the body as a whole, paying equal attention to the upper body and core as well as the arms and legs. If taught correctly, the Kanasa method is widely believed to result in fewer injuries while training, greater harmony of movement, and clean, graceful technique in its students.
All dancers, no matter what their age, begin their training as Eggs; they tend to be treated rather cavalierly by the teachers and older dancers and, if they see the stage at all, are only part of a large chorus. The next level are the Spiderlings, whose skills had progressed to the point where they could perform in small groups together onstage. Next were the soloists, the Spiders, who are privileged to shine by themselves amid long swaths of silk. The most exalted of all are the Weavers, who have refined their skills to the point that they might as well have wings allowing them to float effortlessly in mid-air. Tradition dictates that every dancer who attains Weaver rank must etch their own spiderweb on the exterior of the Cobweb, contributing to the elaborate design on the outside of the building and leaving their own mark quite literally upon the dancers' school. Weavers often enjoy high status and special privileges, receiving the prime roles in nearly every performance and wielding great influence within the Cobweb and often in Kalinor society as well.
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Written by Avari.
