Hello everyone and welcome to day II/Part II of my first collab experience! The second question I asked all the dancers was:
#2) Tell a story about a time where you couldn’t get a step or a routine and you felt like giving up.
“I have always been a competitive person because of my two older brothers. Also because of them, I had to work hard to keep up (they're about 8 and 10 years older than me). So in dance, whenever something was difficult to master, I would practice it over and over again. I would practice every day, sometimes to the point of exhaustion. But I wouldn't let frustration win. As for an example - I can't think of one, since it has happened several times in the course of my learning!”~Bethlyn
“I used to really struggle with Italian fouettés en pointe, as I hadn't done them very much in class before, then I had a teacher who was down on me for not being able to do them very well (even though she didn't give them to us in class very often). Another teacher showed me how to break the step down, which really helped me to become more comfortable with them (to the right, anyway).”~Chantelle
“To be honest, I feel like this happens to me (and more than likely others) a lot. I am very much a perfectionist, so one of my biggest issues is not being able to do things perfectly the first time. At the barre I generally get things right pretty quickly, but with centre work I struggle. It quite often takes me a really long time to get things. I need to be confident before I get things, but I need to get things to be confident. I always feel like I am the only person in class who has no idea what the step is. And if you focus on that, it can really kill your confidence. I've learned in the 15 months I have been dancing that eventually it happens - if you keep trying. So when I have those moments of 'ugh - this will never happen!' I try to take a step back from it and see a positive. Every time you try, you're one step closer to nailing it.”~Eboni
“I started dancing pre-professionally when I was 15. During Nutcracker that year, I was chosen to be one of the Flowers, even though I had only been on pointe for a year and a half (they required three) and I hadn’t understudied the part first. Given all that, I was really thrown into the sharks. I was also dancing Balanchine, not RAD, which made everything so hard for me. My instructor was constantly yelling at me for messing up the moves, yet she would never tell me what I was doing wrong. She’d just say “YOU’RE WRONG! DO IT AGAIN!” and so I would but the more pressure she put on me the more I messed up. In the end, I quit that part because it was just too stressful for me. But if I had more than three months to perfect the Flower Dances, I would have stuck with it. That was the year I decided, professional dancing wasn’t for me. I am much happier dancing because I want to dance, verses dancing at a cutthroat ballet company like I wanted to when I was 15.”~Tara
“I attended the same summer program for four years. The first two years, I was placed in very low levels and was not allowed to do pointe work, which was very frustrating for me. I was angry at the teachers there and at their methods. I realize now how beneficial it was to me to be kept at a lower level for so long and to fully understand the mechanics and muscular aspects of ballet technique. The next two years, I was placed in much higher levels, and felt an amazing sense of accomplishment, which then pushed me to work even harder. If I had been placed in a higher level early on, I don't think it would have been as valuable and I'm incredibly grateful for the experiences and lessons I learned during my time in the lower levels.”~Meaghan
“When I was preparing for my first recital, after rehearsals I would go home and practice practice practice. I was having trouble with this one step. I would break down in tears and frustration because I thought I would never get it but at the same time I kept saying you can do it you can do it. And I would try to remember what my ballet teacher said and how she would position me in the step. When I finally got it I was so excited then I kept doing it over and over because ballet is all about repetition. You must always keep repeating something so your muscles will get it.”~Cierra
“ I remember when I first started dancing seriously (at 13) I couldn't execute a pas de bourree turn (or balance turn) to save my life! It seemed impossibly complicated, like I was a 2-D object trying to perform something 3-D. I tried and tried and the teachers showed and showed me, when finally I was able go do it! It took a while but I was determined and I had kind teachers which always helps.”~Julia
“As soon as I read this question, a certain day in class came to mind. I can’t remember exactly what the step was called, but I do remember the sequence was coupe, coupe, plie, tour and the coupes were done while doing a jump and turn. I could not understand it to save my life. This was my first year up in the higher level of the studio amongst girls who bullied me and put me at the ‘bottom of the food chain’ so to speak. I was terrified and on top of that, I couldn’t get the step. I wanted to start crying. I kept begging for help from my sister, but she knew exactly what she was doing and didn’t take time to help me. I was left to struggle in the corner, preparing to do the exercise again but felt like just plopping down, curling up, and crying. Instead, I didn’t. I told myself to buck up and do it. Don’t think about it, don’t over analyze what I was doing, just listen to my body and do the gosh darn step. Do you know what happened? I did it. My technique was far from perfect, but I understood the step finally. To this day, it is one of my favorite steps to do when dancing.”~Autumn
“I have never done jazz before until this year when I started fulltime dancing as jazz is part of our course. We had to learn a routine for a jazz eisteddfod and because the steps were so different to what I had ever done before I absolutely could not pick up the choreography or get the 'right style' for it. I remember thinking "wow I shouldn't be in this dance- I cannot do it at all, I'm not sharp enough in my movements... I've never done jazz before..." However when I got home that night I kept practicing the movements and going over the choreography. The next day the steps came easier to me as it was in my body from the day before. I was still not getting the right style or sharpness or timing but I kept asking my peers to go over with me which they gladly did. By the time it came to the competition, I had practiced it so much at home and during rehearsals that I finally had the right movement pathway, sharpness and able to express the character I wanted. I was very happy with my performance and what I had achieved throughout the process.”~Clarissa
“I was starting ballet with 16, and I went to a class where everyone was dancing since they've been a toddler and there was I - No experience at all in ballet. My nemesis was the Pas de bouree. I couldn't do it. As often as I tried, I couldn't do this step. I tried to copy the other students, my teacher tried to explain it to me several times, but I couldn't do it. I was so frustrated, I thought I was the dumbest dancer on the world, I was in fear of going to class because of that one step that the other students did so flawless and effortless. And I would always stand in the back, tried to hide my legs. At home, I was trying to do the step any time I could. And suddenly, a few weeks later, it clicked in my head. And I could do it. When I think about it now, I can't believe I had that horrible problems with it. Now, it's one of the easiest steps for me.”~Mara
“ For a long time I couldn't do pirouettes on pointe or even on flat but one night when I was warming up for my studio's production of the nutcracker. I was a Maid and we were the first people onstage so I wanted to make sure I was completely prepared before the show started. I warmed up in my pointe shoes and took my time. I ran the dance a few times re-doing parts of it that I had sone difficulty with. A thought popped into my head that I should try a pirouette just for fun I ended up doing two singles that day. Soon that became my routine before the rest of our shows. So even though its harder said than done its much easier to do things you cant if you get out of your head and just do the thing you want to.”~Anne
“I remember when I had started ballet again as a pre teen and I was lacking on technique because all the other girls did ballet since they were 3 years old, we were learning how to do a pirouette from 4th position (I know it's really simple but as I said I was a beginner) and I couldn't do it. The teacher was really mean and was yelling at me and that made me feel like giving up. But I told myself that that's what I want to do and what I love so I didn't give up.”~Eleni
“I've not ever wanted to give up yet but I have been very frustrated and I prayed to God for help and then I got back up and tried again”~Haley
So as you can see, almost every dancer goes through a period where they want to quit. Dancing is NOT easy, it takes hard work, repetition, dedication, and true passion. There have been many times where I wanted to give up too, but look! We are all still here and are better dancers because of it! I hope this post inspires you that even if you can’t get a step, we have all been there… The important thing is to keep trying. Remember, it may be hard now, but one day it’ll be your warmup!
Stay tuned for question #3 tomorrow!!!!
XOXO❤️
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