Assateague Island is famously home to wild horses, foxes, and snowy egrets — and, for one day in September, ballerinas.

Dancers from The Washington Ballet, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, Ballet Theatre of Maryland, the Janusphere Dance Company, and CONTINUUM Contemporary/Ballet took over the island’s shoreline, drawing hundreds of attendees from as far away as Germany for the inaugural Ballet on the Beach Dance Festival.

Paired with “ecotalks” from representatives of Assateague State Park and the National Aquarium, the free festival sought to instill viewers with an appreciation for the environment awareness of the ongoing effects of climate change.

“These artists responding to their natural surroundings is the same inspiration that gets a kid out on the beach to pick up trash or help a stranded sea turtle,” said Greg Atkin,conservation programs coordinator at the National Aquarium, as he addressed the audience. “[Inspiration] is what brings scientists, conservationists and the public together to work towards a more sustainable and climate-conscious world.”

In place of theatre theater curtains and bright stage lights, the island itself was the backdrop for the performance, with clouds, sky, dune grass, and sand framing the stage. Children mimicked the dancers, choreographing their own routines in the sand. The sound of ocean waves served as a subtle reminder the performers were only feet away from the Atlantic Ocean, said event founder Vanessa Salgado.

The unique environment presented some logistical challenges. Salgado’s team transported dancers from dressing room to stage in beach buggies to avoid ruining their pointe shoes in the sand. The marley dance floor could become too sticky for pointe work if the weather got too hot, but the day’s cloud cover kept it in perfect shape. The blue sky emerged in the afternoon, followed by a sunset as the grand finale backdrop for the final performances.

Choreographing ballet inspired by the natural world helps to further environmental awareness, Salgado says. The choreographers shared poetic works ranging from a pas de deux as light and airy as an ocean breeze and movements referencing threatened black skimmer birds.

“The awe-inspiring memory of a ballet performed along protective sand dunes offered a fresh perspective on the fragility and need for continued stewardship of the park, our ocean and coastal bays, and planet for future generations,” Salgado said.

For Salgado, there is also a personal connection to the park, where she spent countless days with her family.

“When you make your way over the bridge to the island, you feel like you enter into a different world where everything moves in harmony,” she said. “On a normal day you can see butterflies floating over the dunes, while waves roll and dolphins dive. You can hear the marsh grasses sway along the coastal bays, ponies galloping, and birds singing.”

To mimic the unusual approach to the performance, I wanted to take a different approach to photographing it, contrasting the more common digital photography with a film process that incorporates water from the shore to create a dream-like effect.

Slowing the process down with film allowed me to use chemical interactions to incorporate the environment into my documentation. I scooped salty ocean water into a cup, added some sand, and dropped in three rolls of 35mm film (Kodak 400 color for my fellow film nerds). I also added in some lemonade, the drink of choice from the beach snack shop, for good measure. The pinks, purples and greens seen in some of these photos is the reaction of the salt in the water interacting with the chemicals in the film.

I drove 2 1/2 hours home with the ocean water, lemonade and film roll potion in my cup holder. For a more personal touch, I infused the mixture with soundwaves from a playlist featuring songs by Portugal. The Man, Lord Heron, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, and Anderson .Paak through the long drive home, then soaked it for two days on my kitchen countertop.

The festival is set to return to Assateague State Park in 2025.