I began my dance journey at a very young age. Growing up, I didn’t have much. I was the youngest of four who only had a single dad to support them. As a child, I remember watching dance through TV shows, plays, and music videos. During this time, my oldest sister was also following a recreational dance path which inspired me to find my own love for dance. From the first moment I put on my very first pair of ballet shoes, I felt inspired. It became more than being inspired by my sister and others but by inspiring myself. Dance created a way for me to express myself through movement. I quickly developed a love for the technique and the feelings I felt when I moved. I felt light, delicate, and graceful. No matter what, the moment I entered the studio, the only thing that mattered was how I could allow myself to improve during that class. It wasn’t soon after that I began exploring ways to take my dance education further. I learned the true discipline as I grew older and began to make dance a career.
From this point on I began carving my own pathway to continue my dance education that led me to Kennesaw State University. Here I immersed myself in different genres, including African, commercial jazz, modern, and improvisation. Given the opportunity, I took as many classes as time allowed. This sparked my interest in traveling and exploring what dance had to offer outside of the Atlanta area. I was fortunate to spend my summer in Chicago where I trained several hours a day with both the GiordanoDance Company as well as the Gus Legacy School.
As my love for dance continued to grow, I wondered how else I could make dance a career. It wasn’t until my second year in college that I began to imagine myself as anything other than a dancer. I have always had an interest in health and fitness and wanted to find a way to combine both dance and health into a career. This sparked my interest in physical therapy. While I still hope to perform, I also want to help dancers by helping them individually through their own fitness and health journeys. As a kid, I spent a lot of my time in physical therapy. I found that being a dancer, it was hard to translate the pain I felt to someone who had no background in dance. As I continue my education, I hope to eliminate the barrier between doctors and performers. Through my work, I hope to build an atmosphere where dancers can come to work on strength, stamina, and performance, without having to feel that they are not being properly understood. I hope to not only become a performer but also someone who can work alongside companies and other performers as an expert in dance wellness.
Dance Canvas 