Help Younger Dancers Soar With These 2 Things

 Last week I exchanged someone's reservations for encouragement. As Summer training is underway, bags are being packed, leotards are being scheduled according to the days (literally) and the anticipation is high, here we go.

A couple of week ago while myself and another dancer were talking I had begun to notice their fixation on going into a predominately white program as a black dancer. If you have been reading The AI for any length of time you can probably guess my response to such a pesky topic. Don't worry, I made my stance just as clear to this person. Before responding I was empathetic.  Knowing how it feels to be the only black women in a company, dealing with various judgements and vibes, or the only black dancer within a theater company is not lost on me. I get it. Even more, I understand how we can bring detriment to ourselves by being overly-sensitive about race and color within dance. 

If anyone values the dancers who have come and gone before us, I do. Not only do I understand the vision they had, I also understand that their intellect, awareness and boldness were guided and stewarded through the lens of determination and success. Their dance lives still ignite hope and courage. The way we share stories today are not inspirational. They are often informational and that info leads to bigger woes. The plight of black dancers today encircles victimization and does the opposite of our hope. As I encouraged the dancer to get their focus higher than race and hair and the anticipated isolation, they responded "The black ballet horror stories have me in a frenzy".

The next time you educate a young dancer, uplift their mind and encourage their spirit. If they end up in certain spaces, racial discomfort may find them. At that moment, they can recall the way you spoke life into them and taught them to soar beyond irreversible facts.