A dance career is not for everyone. Even those who’ve spent many happy years training, with dance classes every night, rehearsals, competitions and performances every weekend, formed deeply bonded friendships, and had amazing dance mentors. But after all the blood, sweat, and tears, what do you do now? Jessica Shoop Williams has been there… and back again, and shares her advice with you.
Career in Dance
What The Ailey School’s Melanie Person Knew When She Was Twelve
Co-Director of The Ailey School, Co-Chair of The Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. program, and former Dance Theatre of Harlem ballerina, Melanie Person answers ten questions: on leg extension, encouraging ballet students, what studios could do to better prepare students for college, and what she knew when she was twelve.
Some Dreams Are Worth Fighting For
Mia Michaels is known as a tough character and dancing in her company RAW was definitely rough. But it taught Melanie Doskocil a valuable lesson about struggle and perseverance. Her story will leave you asking what you would have done in her shoes.
What a Candy Cane Can Teach About The Virtues of a Dancer
Young ballet dancers gain integral qualities that lead to success, not only in dance, but in life. Guest and School of the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet Director, Melanie Doskocil describes for readers two occasions when it was clear her students had discovered important life lessons – ones that will carry them far toward a successful future.
Fatigue and Injury: Making room for rest
Muscle fatigue is good but not when dancers push themselves (or are pushed by directors) to injury. We’re ignoring a crucial part of the formula for increasing endurance and enhancing performance. What is that element and why is it important for dancers to learn when enough is enough?
Dance Training in New York vs. Los Angeles
If you were looking to train professionally in modern dance and wanted to relocate to the big city, would you choose Los Angeles or New York? With a little help from a friend who knows both cities well we compare the dance personalities of each and discuss the importance of setting goals to get you where you want to go.
