" Great dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion." - Martha Graham
My Experience
What is your name?
Amanda Younger How old are you? 23 How old were you when you started dancing? 2 ½ How old were you when you stopped dancing? I am still dancing What styles of dance did you study? I have done ballet, jazz, musical theater, lyrical, modern, contemporary and highland. What is your favourite dance memory? I can’t pick a single dance memory as a favourite some of my best memories are from dancing. I have always been luck to dance with amazing people who shared my passion. One of my favourites would be dancing in the closing ceremonies of the 2010 Olympic Games, I was one of many dancers, performers who made that show come alive, and it was a powerful experience. The rehearsals were often long and ended late at night, looking back I feel bad for my dad coming to pick me up from down town at 12:30 and 1:00 in the morning so we could use the venues after all of the Olympic events had ended for the day. The atmosphere totally changed between the rehearsals and the performance, in a way that I had never expected , as I entered BC place on the night of the ceremony the atmosphere had an energy it had never had before. I followed my line creeping through the underground tunnels and appeared in the audience at the right moment, as the lights came up I saw for the first time how many people were in the audience. I don’t remember much of the dance or doing it. I do remember running down onto the stadium floor to join the party at the end of the ceremony, with the other dancers and the athletes. I don’t think another performance will ever have the same amount of energy. Did you have one dance teacher that was very influential in your life? Who are they and why were they so influential? I have had many influential dance teachers in my years as a dancer, I cannot pick just one. R was the first to have a major influence on me, she taught me to love dance and to dance with my whole heart. A & MM taught me to feel safe dancing and to trust the people I was dancing with after a situation at a dance school went wrong. S & MP, gave me a chance to dance again and pushed me to do more than I thought was possible as an adult dancer, coming back to dance after a long break due to injury. What is the most important thing dance has taught you? I think that dancing has taught me not to give up and that I can do anything that I set my mind to. I also learned that dancing comes from the heart and that doing something from the heart is more important than doing it perfectly. How many dance studios did you attend? 6 Do you have a favourite dance style? Why? Ballet , Lyrical and Highland. I love the grace and softness of ballet and lyrical as well as the expressiveness of the styles. I currently am enjoying the power and spring of highland dance. What negative impacts did dance have on your life? I have had some injuries due to dance , mainly to my feet, I have destroyed some of the bursa on my feet doing pointe which required over a year to heal and I will never do pointe again because of that. I have also had some minor pulled muscles and shin splints were a problem as I stated highland. My injuries taught me to take care of my body and that I need to act when pain goes from “ working muscle or stretching” to “this isn’t normal”. I also found that sometimes dance has limited my social life and influenced who I spent time with. Why do you think that students should study dance? Dance teaches lessons that go beyond the studio, it teaches students about believing in themselves and working as a team. Dance is truly a team sport. It also teaches students to control every part of their bodies and work to their fullest ability and never give up. Do you remember any peer mentoring between students? Through my lifetime, I have been incredibly lucky to be taught the true meaning of the quote above by many wonderful women and mentors. From my teachers to senior students who took the time to care about and take a rather shy, nerdy child under their wing. These senior students had a profound impact on how I perceived dance and what it means to be both a dancer and a leader. These senior students would “borrow” me from my dressing room and take me to their dressing room, an honor for a junior student like me, or to watch side stage. One of my favourite memories of my “ big buddies” did not take place in the studio, instead it took place on the Oregon coast hundreds of kilometers from home, my child hood big buddies are sisters, if they ever get to read this they will know who they are. Our families ended up spending a week at the same camp ground just outside of Newport Oregon, this camp ground had many children’s activities from craft time to candy bar bingo. I have clear memories of two moments of this trip where my big buddies went out of their way to make me feel special. The first was sitting on a high , to a 6 or 7 year old, stone wall with the waves pounding against it and whales splashing and spouting in the water, with one of my buddies on either side of me making sure I didn’t tumble into the surf below. The second was playing candy bar bingo and working as a “team” I’m pretty sure I was not much help, to make sure that we all had candy at the end of the night. It is the relationships developed between dancers of different ages that make a positive impact on all involved. As a studio we were both a team and a very large family. I will never forget being sent onstage with a special high five, or being met with hugs after I preformed a solo for the first time, and being rushed into quick change because I only had one number to change tights, hair, costume and shoes. I remember having my buddy patiently break down new movements for me and cheer loud enough for the whole studio to hear when I mastered them ( I still hear her voice in my head when doing pique turns, 15 years later) . With the tools of modern social media I have been able to keep up with my big buddies from afar as I am often too shy to instigate conversations, and I have seen periodic likes or comments on various postings about my own life. In later years, I would become the senior student and take my own little friends under my wing. They lead by example showing those of us in younger groups what it meant to be part of a team and a “studio family”. Throughout my dance career, that I have had many wonderful teachers who have taught me about what it means to dance from the heart. They looked beyond my technique to who I am as a person and they shaped my future both as a dancer and as a person. I could not be more thankful for my current teachers who believed in an adult beginner enough to let me both compete and perform with dancers who had been doing this style for many years. Although my most influential teacher would have to be my first jazz and lyrical teacher, to this day she continues to be a friend and mentor, sharing our passion for dance and including our love of sharing it with dancers from all walks of life. I continue to teach dance to recreational students with exceptionalities and this class is the highlight of my week as a dancer. There is no technical expectation in that class we dance for the love of dance and for the joy that it brings. My Special Stars have inspired me as a dancer and an educator because they remind me of why I both dance and teach. I do it because it makes me happy and feel good. Dance is a way to express emotions and thoughts that I do not have the words for and I have noticed that many of my students use dance as a way to express what they do not have the words to do. Are you still dancing? If you are still dancing what style are you doing? Yes, I am currently taking Highland Dance and am looking forward to take Ballet and Jazz in the Fall. If you are still dancing what keeps you dancing? I love the feeling of dancing, when I dance I am completely at peace, the world outside the studio fades and it is just me and the music. I also love the moment at the top of a jump when time stops and I feel like I’m flying. |
Others Experiences
If you are a dancer and would like to share your experiences please fill in this survey.
I created the survey after my friends and I kept coming back to the same topics of discussion around our dance experiences. These are things that were first discussed with several people face to face or social media. I used the survey as a way to keep the words of my friends, teachers and mentors true to them and to organize the information. How old are you? Average age 26 years How old were you when you started dancing? Average age 3 years. How old were you when you stopped dancing? Those that are no longer dancing stopped between 10 and 23 years. There are many that are still dancing. What styles of dance did you study? From 12 responses including my self Ballet - 10 Jazz - 9 Lyrical - 9 Musical Theater / Stage - 8 Tap - 7 Modern - 7 National - 1 Pointe - 6 Highland - 5 Hip Hop -5 Contemporary - 6 Other -2 What is your favourite dance memory? 1. Going to Scotland and China 2. Competing at Cowal World Highland Dance Championships 2013. My family took a month to travel Scotland and Ireland- staying with family and competing all over. 3. Performing for fun after I stopped competing 4. Performing in Germany at the world tap championships! 5. Every dance recital 6. When I traveled to Las Vegas 7. I remember my second Burns Night, I was 7, and had just learned to lilt, and had to do it in a packed bar, all by myself in front of a few hundred people. I was terrified, but wound up not screwing up lol. 8. The close connections I made with my fellow dancers and teachers through my many years of taking class. 9. Probably all the fun times we had backstage at recitals. I also loved the weird backstage ritual my duo partner and I had before each performance: holding pinkies and singing the jingle for McDonalds Big Mac! So weird. 10. Feeling the rush of being on stage! There were always nerves beforehand, but once I got on stage it was wonderful! Did you have one dance teacher that was very influential in your life? Who are they and why were they so influential? 1. Mrs. LG ( Miss L) She was my first dance teacher (age 3 - Highland). Miss L is straight-up, honest, compassionate and understanding. She makes you feel like you can accomplish anything, in and outside the studio. She's an excellent teacher because she has a strong dance background in a lot of styles (Tap, Ballet, Ballroom, Highland, etc.) so she is able to explain things well to dancers with backgrounds other than just Highland. Miss L carries herself in a classy and highly respected manor. She's very professional, but when its the right time- she's always laughing, or making jokes with her students. She built my confidence to what it is today and I have her to thank for my dancing and teaching career. She's an amazing woman and In tough situations, she’s the first person I call for advice. 2. My tap teacher SR when I was a kid. We had just moved to a new studio, and she separated me from my other friends to put me in an older tap class because she felt I could handle it. Something I never would have done on my own. But she helped to push me harder and discover so much more potential that I ever thought I had. I already liked tap, but she helped me really love it. 3. Yes AP. AP taught me the power of determination and never to give up. She was the most passionate woman I knew while growing up and was a great role model. 4. Yes, C taught me from age 4-19. She was amazing teacher. I grew up with her as my teacher. New me so well. Taught me so much about dance and life. 5. Many were influential but my friend, a fellow teacher, helped push me to become not only a better teacher but and better dancer. She has inspired me to better myself everyday 6. B. C. He taught me about rhythm and always made me laugh. 7. All of my main dance teachers had a huge influence on me, but my ballet teacher that I had from the age of 6-18 was so supportive. Almost like a second mom to me. She pushed me to be the best dancer and person I could be. 8. Yes, my main dance teacher, she taught me perseverance, but also made me a destructive perfectionist 9. Vincent Manna taught me that movement and dance isn't about being a "dancer". It comes from within. What is the most important thing dance has taught you? 1. To not give up, to always try your hardest and if you want something you have to work for it 2. Patients and Understanding. Before joining Highland again at 16, I didn't like anything unless I excelled in it. I wouldn't join in any sport, club, or group unless I knew the people in it were cool, and I was going to be the best at it. I had zero patients for children, and other people who didn't view things the way I did. After winning first and second place medals, and overall high score trophies all through the first 3 levels of competition, I had a bit of a reality check when i got to Premier. (the highest level of competition). I though based on my winnings, that I was the best and it would be easy, however It took me 4 months of working my guts out, (not placing at all) to get ONE sixth place medal at ONE competition. As soon as I became a teacher, I started to learn patients, and my love/passion for teaching. I learned how each student learns differently, and sometimes it just takes seeing it in a different light to understand. This related to other relationships in my life and made me more accepting, understanding, and patient. 3. Team work 4. Discipline. Staying committed to a task and staying committed to an activity. Having to practice even if I didn't feel like it and having to say no to other things because of dance. It also taught me time management. 5. Self expression. Not necessarily to express my feelings and emotions to other people, but to be able to free those emotions and better clarify them to myself, and how important it is to do that. Freeing yourself with some kind of self expression helps to better deal with the stresses of every day life. 6. To be open-minded, work hard always, and to have patience 7. to work hard 8. To challenge yourself, even when you think you can't succeed. 9. Work hard! 10. Diligence How many dance studios did you attend? The average is 3 . Do you have a favourite dance style? Why? 1. I loved all the styles of dance, and the different ways I would feel while doing them, but Tap is definitely my favorite. It always seemed so happy to me, and I always felt happier doing it. Making a rhythm with just my feet always seemed so cool. 2. Highland 3. Jazz because it's upbeat, fast paced and a great work out. 4. tap, the rhythmic component 5. I don't have a favourite style, each give me something that challenges me which is what I love 6. After 10 years away from it, and trying other styles and sports, nothing seemed to fit like Highland! Its strict, and takes a lot of training and practice, but there's just something about bagpipes! 7. I love them all. But ballet probably because I did it for so many years and it just resonated with me. 8. Highland, because it's strong, and traditional. 9. Modern You can express you self threw movement 10. Ballet. It is the toughest. What negative impacts did dance have on your life? 1. Dance had helped shape who I am so I wouldn't say I have negative impacts 2. Foot injury 3. None 4. None. 5. It has worsened my anxiety disorder 6. I wouldn't say dance had any negative impacts. There may have been a few times where I wanted to go to that movie with my friends or go away for the weekend instead of practice or competitions, but there's no way I would give up dance for that. My friends often scoffed and rolled their eyes with my "I can’t, I have dance" at a lot of invitations but now- they're extremely proud of my dance and teaching career, and are jealous that I get to go to work doing something I love and am passionate about. 7. Stressful and I didn't really enjoy it. 8. The only lasting negative impact dance had on me was the stress on my body. The knee injuries, back injuries, hip injuries. We put our bodies through a lot at a young age. But it was totally worth it. 9. When I was younger I didn't like how competitive it go, and how quickly it became competitive. I became really self conscious about my dancing (even though I was performing really well), and it stopped being fun. 10. Body injuries Why do you think that students should study dance? 1. Teaches you the art of movement and music. Can teach you so much about yourself and team work 2. I think that dance is a great way to help students stay healthy, both physically and mentally. It keeps them in shape in a fun and exciting way. But it also helps to prepare them for greater challenges they'll face in their life. It teaches students to learn to work with others, handle stress in competitive settings, how to lose graciously, and how to work hard at something and still have fun. 3. Creativity and relaxation 4. To learn what it means to commit and work hard to get better at something or to achieve new Skills. It's great to express creativity and to stay fit. 5. Because it doesn't just teach a student how to dance. If you have a great teacher, they teach you life-skills, and help you grow as a person. The Discipline from dance and teachers, practices a good work ethic, ambition, goal reaching, and how to follow instructions. Dance also brings self confidence. Especially to those competitive who are constantly on stage in front of hundreds of people and being adjudicated. It builds your self esteem and helps you learn how to deal with obstacles and bullies. It teaches you that no matter where you go, there will always be that one "bad apple" and that's life. You learn how to turn the other cheek and come out on top, not be the worm and feed in to it. 6. I believe that studying dance instills a sense of confidence. When I first enrolled in dance my self-esteem was so low, and I thought that I would be a terrible dancer, yet after six years of dancing, I proved to myself that I was capable of challenging myself. The self-esteem I gained from my years of dancing has been invaluable to my self-discovery. 7. Makes you work hard, build confidence, work as a team player, exercise. 8. It give confidence, good work ethics and builds good relationships 9. work ethic 10. I think it's a great way to work with your body. It really helps with musicality, and with stamina. Do you remember any peer mentoring between students? 1. Yes, we always had older kid to help teach. When we became the older kids, we then taught the younger ones 2. There was support and friendship. 3. As a teacher I see it every day. Older students take younger ones under their wings and help guide them, it's nice to see 4. I remember the students offering to help me when certain combinations wouldn't stick in my memory. 5. Yes. When I was younger we had older students help to teach some classes and set aside time to help one on one. It was like having a big family where the older sisters helped the younger sisters. 6. yes 7. I remember looking up to the older girls (16+) and thinking "WOW I hope I can dance that good when I'm that age!" and it was like they were celebrities if they ever spoke to you or came to help with the class. They were always extremely helpful and kind. As a teacher now, I see how times have changed and its sad how the girls as young as 7, are excluding other girls from their groups based on dance ability and appearance- and sometimes they think they're better or just as good of a dancer as someone three times their age. 8. not really Are you still dancing? Seven out of 12 are still dancing. If you are still dancing what style are you doing? 1. Highland 2. Ballet 3. Salsa/tango 4. Highland 5. Ballet, tap, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary If you are still dancing what keeps you dancing? 1. The love and passion of Highland! The relationships within it. For such a big community, its very close knit. My relationship with Miss L was based off Highland, and I don't know where I'd be without her. She taught me to dance, how to teach and brought out my confidence. Our Adult class is so much fun! For 2 hours a week, we dance hard, but laugh even harder! My relationship with my students-. Those kids mean the world to me! I model my teaching after Miss L, and strive to be a better and more knowledgeable teacher hoping that when my now 3 year old students reach 30, they'll reminisce and think of me and the impact I've had on them, as I think of Miss L. I enjoy each one of those kids' personalities and love seeing them up on stage accomplishing their personal bests. 2. fun, sense of closeness/community 3. It's my career! I can't get enough! 4. It's very fun now, and great exercise. There is no pressure, versus when I was young, to give up other things, or put dance above everything else, which is what made me stop. 5. The traveling I get to do and the friends I have made 6. I feel free when I dance. It takes the stress away from the day If you are not dancing what do you miss most about it? 1. I miss the social aspect of dancing. I miss connecting and meeting other women who are passionate about dance. I also miss the challenge of trying a new class. 2. How great I felt when I danced. No matter what was going on in my life, I always felt whole when I danced. Like I was somewhere I belonged. It was comforting, and therapeutic. 3. I don't! But I love teaching it to students who love it unlike myself. 4. Exercise and self expression 5. The creativity, performing and moving to music. If you are not dancing would you consider dancing again? 5 would dance again and 1 would not. |