Vivien Fortunaso, 76, was most proud of her garden out of all the features that made her fall in love with her Altadena home.
After a brief stay in London, the Australian decided to make Atladena her permanent home in 1991.
“Really friendly people,” she remarked. We like Altadena because of its incredibly diversified community.
She and her partner just completed a renovation that included a dream kitchen with a view of the trail and the peaceful garden.
“This became a really special place of us,” Fortunaso stated. “It’s really hard to lose it.”
According to Fortunaso, life has been a fog up until lately, ever since their cherished home was destroyed by the Eaton Fire.
Fortunaso and a number of other elderly people who lost their houses were invited to a free dance class a few weeks ago by the well-known Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
“Mr. Ailey believed dance came from the people and it should be given back to the people,” teacher Aaron Thomas stated.
Ailey is regarded as the founder of modern African American dance. He expressed his history of growing up in poverty in the Deep South through movement.
“We’re hoping to take the personal stories for all of our seniors and friends who join us, and be able to take those experiences and turn it into something beautiful,” Thomas stated.
A straightforward seated warm-up kicked off the class. As Fortunaso and her neighbor closely observed every move, they were reunited.
Using word association to generate unique movements, the group concentrated on the concept of perseverance.
Ailey’s ballet masterwork, Revelations, which examines loss, joy, and hope, also taught them some dance.
After the class allowed her the time and space to not just heal but also feel, Fortunaso suddenly started crying during the workout.
“Hoping to have some fun, to be honest with you, and a distraction,” she stated. “This just released my sadness and my loss.”
The haze that had surrounded her life since the fire was cleared by the life-changing, healing experience.
“I think I’m going to more of it,” Fortunaso stated. “I think I’m going to go home and dance.”
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