Personal+Experience

I have always felt a draw toward dance. My mom told me that when I was little, I would stand in front of the mirror and pretend to be a ballerina, always twirling and jumping. That's how she knew, when she saw an add for openings at the Metropolitan Ballet Institute, she just had to sign me up. I remember sitting on the couch, holding up the newspaper add with a picture of a company member doing a split leap in the air, and asking me if I wanted to be a ballerina. I was so excited! I was lined up to start with my first ballet class on Monday. My mom recalls, " She came out of the first class and said, "I'm all sweaty. I don't want to do that again!" and I just said, "Too bad, we just payed for 6 months of classes!" but after that, she never complained again. I think she wasn't expecting how hard the dancing would be."
 * The Beginning**

I danced at the Metropolitan for 4 years. I remember starring in their Nutcracker as a soldier, harlequin, mirliton, and toy army member. Performing has always been my favorite part of dancing. I love the thrill you get when you step on a stage, with the lights shining down on your face, knowing that every member in the audience has their eye on you. I also made lots of lasting relationships there. Miss Mary Ann, the head of the school, became almost a second mother to me. And I'm still friends with a girl named Audrey, who goes to my school and just left the Metropolitan this year. I had amazing teachers and friends, and was loving ballet. Unfortunately, in 2007, the Metropolitan got a new director. He changed a lot of things I enjoyed about the school, fired my favorite teacher, and didn't know how to handle money. My dance education was going down the drain, and I started dreading going to classes. I needed to get out of there fast, but I where would I go?
 * The Metropolitan Ballet**

My mom found the answer when googling, " Best place to learn to dance, Twin Cities," and found the Minnesota Dance Theatre/Institute (or MDT/DI, which was in fact voted "Best place to learn to dance" by City Pages that year). We looked at the website and multiple reviews, and I was soon enrolled there for fall of 2008. I finished my 4th year there this past week. MDI/DI fit all my needs: a professional, mainly-Russian school with experienced, strong teachers, lots of performance opportunities, and classes held multiple times throughout the week. I started in level 2, and I'm now in level 4A (or 4.5) of 6. I love everything about the school and it's styles. But my favorite part of MDT/DI is it's Nutcracker.
 * Minnesota Dance Theatre**

Nutcracker season is truly the best time of year. Just saying (/typing) the word Nutcracker makes me excited. Every year, rehearsals start in October, and increase steadily up until the big day: Opening Night. Over the years at MDT/DI, I've been a mouse (twice) a toy/ensamble member, and a chamber maid. Each year has been an exciting, new experience, and I can't wait until next year. I'm hoping to be the French Doll next year, but that's probably not going to happen, and honestly, as long as I'm in the production, It doesn't matter what my role is. As you might've guessed, the Nutcracker is my ballet. To learn more about The Nutcracker, click here.

In the future, I plan to go to Columbia College because it's an Ivy League school and has a great dance program. I want to major in Business and join a company, hopefully a good one, and then from there start my own school. The future might change, but right now I know that I definitely want to include dance in my career. I love the feeling of stepping on to the stage and delivering a show-stopping performance.It's something I could honestly do forever.
 * The Future**

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