For the past three weeks, I have been fortunate enough to be studying dance intensely, surrounded by some of the most inspirational and talented individuals I’ve ever worked with. This summer, I am completing an eight-week dance program, Broadway Dance Center’s Summer Professional Semester.
Within this eight-week program, 45 dancers and I will study dance—it’s physicality, performance, creation, and business—with renowned teachers and choreographers, some of who act as our mentors while we’re here. In just a matter of hours, I fell in love with the program, and, by the end of the week—the other dancers.
From the moment we first met, everyone brought an incredible energy into the studio; however, because each dancer is essentially in charge of their own schedules we did not get to dance together until the end of the week in our placement class.
The two-hour, audition-style class required us to do four combinations in diverse styles, each being learned in only minutes. Though challenging, the experience sparked something in each of us as we watched every dancer shine in their select style. Sharing this was undoubtedly essential in creating a bond that will last, not only eight weeks, but well beyond the length of the program.
Post-orientation week, I get to choose twelve classes a week from Broadway Dance Center’s 350+ class schedule, including six classes of my concentration (which is split between Theater and Hip-Hop), three ballet classes, two diversity requirements from outside the concentration, and one master class that the studio arranges for us each week.
Not only have I noticed a physical change, which is inevitable when taking this great amount of classes each week, I’ve noticed a significant difference in mentality. One class in particular, the inspirational Sheila Barkers’s Breaking Boundaries, pushed us through the boundaries we so often set up for ourselves, and helped each of us feel confident and ready for the rest of this journey in just 90 minutes.
Already, this program has reignited my passion for dance like I never could have imagined, and can only imagine it becoming even more intense as we work with our mentors, begin choreography projects, and begin rehearsals for our upcoming showcase!