Dance

Ahhhh dance, my first passion!

I’m pretty sure I came out of the womb dancing, ha!

As a baby, I would always move when music was playing (wait, don’t all babies do that?) I guess for me, I was more in tune with music and it just grew into this thing I fell in love with.

My parents never put me in dance classes (maybe because what I put them through with my music lessons, that’s another story) this is why I never asked.

This is how my story goes…

When I was about 7-8 years old, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson and Paula Abdul were huge! I remember watching their music videos and trying to mimic their dance moves. I would lock myself in my bedroom and turn the TV on and off I went, trying to learn the choreography. I would get lost in my own world and imagine dancing along side them. (oh, a kid’s imagination) I would then grab this little boombox I had, throw in a Janet or Paula cassette tape and dance. Testing myself to see how much of the choreography I actually remembered, I wasn’t very good. That didn’t stop me from continuing to learn and grow, I was determined!

There was this little show called “Soul Train” (remember that show?) that I started to watch about the same age, I was fascinated. I remember it being on either Saturday or Sunday morning. I would grab my bowl of cereal and just sit on the couch and watch and absorb. When most kids were watching cartoons while eating their cereal, I was watching Soul Train. I think at one point I told myself “I want to be a Soul Train dancer.”

There was one day I remember very vividly. I heard music coming from my next door neighbors house, I walked outside and sat on my door step as I watched a couple of kids (or maybe teenagers) doing something on their driveway. They had a big boombox on the ground, music blaring, they were tearing up cardboard boxes and placing the cardboard on the ground. They began to stretch and then boom! Handstands, head spins, kicks, dancing on the floor, I thought to myself “what is this??” I sat there until they finished, completely intrigued. This was my first introduction to breaking (break dancing) and hip hop music. I instantly wanted to learn everything about this “hip hop culture.” I fell in love with the music, the dancing, the style, etc… This would become a big influence in my life as far as dancing goes. (not the breaking part but everything else)

Fast forward to my teenage years. The high school I attended held this yearly dance competition, I was determined to get involved somehow. The concept was simple, form your own group, choreograph a dance, pick your own music and costumes and compete with fellow classmates. It wasn’t until my senior year that I was asked to be in a group. I somehow ended up also co-choreographing (not sure how it happened) This was my first experience collaborating with someone else on choreography, it was definitely a learning experience. I fell in love with the whole process of putting it together.
The day of the competition I was beyond excited to perform (my 1st time performing in front of an audience) I thought it was weird that I wasn’t nervous at all “shouldn’t I be nervous?” I asked myself. We ended up taking 3rd place that year, not bad for some amateurs.

The following year rolled around and some of the group members reached out to see if I would be interested in choreographing their newly formed group. Since I didn’t attend the school anymore, I was unable to participate as a dancer but I could choreograph a group. This continued for 9 consecutive years. During this time I was able to make my crazy ideas come to life, from music choices, costumes, concepts, etc… I noticed that every group was very similar and no one really stood out. Well, I wanted my groups to stand out and take chances on being different. It really didn’t matter if we placed, it was more about showcasing what we were all capable of doing and bringing something fresh into this competition.

After about 2 years, I noticed other groups started showcasing fresh ideas and stepping out of their comfort zones. I thought to myself “This is awesome and inspiring, hell yeah” Did we inspire them to do that? Perhaps…

By the time I was 19 I realized I needed to take dance classes (I know, late bloomer) After checking out several local dance studios I landed at Vicki Clemence Modeling and Performing Arts Center. Shortly after, the name was changed to Allegria Dance Theatre. I remember immediately thinking “this feels like home” I started taking hip hop classes, performed in a few recitals and eventually became an instructor. It started with one class, then it became two then three and a few private lessons here and there. Meanwhile I was still choreographing for my old high school dance competition.

SIDE NOTE: I tend to do things backwards. I’ll dive into something and learn on my own and eventually I’ll learn from the pros. What can I say, I like the challenge

I loved having the freedom to create and experiment with my crazy ideas. The off the wall music choices, teaching methods, movement/choreography and concepts, it was endless. I pushed and challenged my students and in return they would push and challenge me. Even though they were technically learning from me, I was constantly learning from them, always a student and sometimes a teacher, it’s a beautiful cycle.

Every time I performed on stage, it always felt like home (is that weird?) I don’t recall ever getting nervous, it was always excitement. (I’m sure there were a few times, I just don’t remember) I started to think something was wrong with me because I should be nervous, right? I mean, I’m about to go on stage and dance in front of so many people, that should be nerve-racking. I think I was more nervous when I was on the other end, as a choreographer. When it came time to perform each dance piece I created, I would sit back and watch and say to myself “please don’t mess up, please don’t mess up, you guys got this!” Why is that?

I can’t even describe the feeling you get when you see your creation come to life on stage or even in the dance studio. You start with this idea (small piece) in your head and more pieces start forming this big moving picture. If you close your eyes you can see it playing in your head like a movie. You then start putting it together physically and watch it take shape. Sometimes it’s exactly how you originally imagined it and other times it evolves into something even better. It’s one of the best feelings in the world!

Being a part of this studio helped me learn, grow, evolve and develop everlasting friendships, it was a second home for me. Because my background was completely different than everybody else (late bloomer) at times I felt I had a lot of catching up to do. My fellow teachers/friends kept me inspired and I learned a lot from them. I pushed myself even harder in my dancing and my teaching.

I am forever grateful to the one person that took a chance and gave me my first teaching job. She believed in me and saw something before I could see it myself. (if you’re reading this, you know who you are) Thank you and I Love You!

I taught for about 10 consecutive years, some of the best years of my life. I haven’t danced or taught in a good while but anytime an opportunity presents itself, I will always jump on it. Once a dancer, always a dancer!

Thanks to all my students throughout the years for allowing me to throw crazy ideas your way and always taking it to another level. You have taught me so much.

Thanks to my fellow teachers and now forever friends for always keeping me inspired and constantly teaching me in dance and in life.

Dance has always and will always be my favorite form of artistic expression. Music & Dance are the perfect marriage in my opinion, I mean it’s the perfect connection, right? We dancers can make music visual and at the same time music is feeding our movement, giving us life.

Keep on dancing! I know I will.