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Holly Thomas
Professor Griffin
UWRT 1102
March 30, 2015
Dance: A competitive Community
Dance. Think about how worldwide it has become. People may assume they know what
goes on in a dance community just by solely observing it or from what they hear goes on, but
that is never exactly what is happening. There are many questions people may ask such as what
goes on behind the scenes in a dance community or how competitive is it, this is why we must
inquire about dance to find those hidden elements that go into it. Dancers have a long and hard
road to make it as their professional career. There are many obstacles and struggles to overcome
from the time one begins dancing. There must be talent, along with the ability to keep going
when the times get tough. Those who really love to dance and are serious about performing for
as long as they can must figure out a way to get there. Some of them may have been dancing for
their whole lives, but is that enough? What makes one dancer more special than the next? It is
hard to distinguish which ways there are for a dancer to make it to the very top. So the main
question is, how do some dancers become more successful than others?
To be a dancer, one must be able to perform. They must be able to do basic movements
known as steps, leaps, balances, chaines, chasses, turns, and more depending on which type of
dance they are a part of. Dancers should be able to express themselves in a variety of ways, such
as movements, expressions, emotions, etc. The primary focus for a description of a dance is
thus its particular movements, gestures, and shapes, as well as perceived energy qualities and

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dynamics, structural patterns, sounds, and overall choreographic design characteristics (Dancers
Talking Dance.p70). Dancers have a unique style. Without continual training and practice, there
will be no improvement or chance at becoming successful in a dance career. Even those who
train every single day are never guaranteed the spot they want to obtain in dance. This is why it
is imperative to take into consideration all other necessary key points needed to get as close to
guaranteed as possible.
To become a professional dancer, you must put in way more work than relying on your
natural talents (Doskocil. Ballet Pages. 15 Truths about dance). A dance community consists of
continuous learning (Doskocil. Ballet Pages. 15 Truths about dance). Dancers must be able to
absorb as much information as possible, plus even more. This means that it will not be an easy
journey getting to the level you want to be at. It is a difficult profession in which others do not
realize. Those in a dance community who want to be successful must stay dedicated and push
themselves to their fullest potential. Always having the desire to improve, hear and learn from
constructive criticism. There will be plenty of disappointments along the way. Disappointment
seems to be the most largely known aspect of having a dance career. Those who can handle it
better, are the ones who will succeed.
Competitiveness is a gigantic factor, especially today, that coincides with making it big in
dance. In a dance community, one is always going against another, even if they are in the same
community. Dance can be considered as competitive as any other sports because of all the hard
work and energy put into it. Some say dance compares to winning, because that is what the
ultimate goal is. Especially at a high-level competition where there may be important dance
figures there watching for the best dancers to offer jobs at their company. It takes just about
everything you have to be one of the top dancers of this century. Does this have a negative effect

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on the world of dancing? Being defeated or not getting the feedback one wanted, even just once,
can cause someone to feel as if they are not good enough or might not ever make it as far as they
want to go. Is this a motive to keep pushing forward until they get it right? As a result of their
high degree of sensitivity, however, many dance educators worry that they must protect student
choreographers from criticism that is negative or destructive (Dancers Talking Dance.p52). This
can be bad in some cases because the teacher may not be completely honest with their student,
then they will never know what they need to change to improve, which will make their technique
level decrease.
Is aspiring to become a professional dancer worth all the money and time spent? Tom
Ralabate, an associate professor of dance, says Parents are spending maybe $500 on entry fees
alone, not counting costumes, plus the money to go to the studio all year (Kinetz. Budding
Dancers Compete, Seriously). This is just one of the beginning amounts of money spent for a
child as they are starting off in dance programs. Once a child decides they want to continue
taking more and more dance classes or joining other dance programs, it will add up to a whole
lot of money spent over time. Dance classes are not cheap in todays society. Dance class prices
depend on the dance studio and how much credit the business has. Not to mention someone who
is involved in a competition dance company who travel and perform basically every weekend.
That adds the cost of travel money, new costumes all the time, hotel and food expenses, etc.
Does a family that has more money to fund on their children for dance have to do with how some
dancers make it more successfully than others? It is a good thought to consider. There are
numerous very talented dancers in the world who want to continue further with dance, but are
not financially stable or contain the right resources to do so.

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Another key point to become successful in a dance community is time. Time is an

essential for dancers. This can be considered in all sorts of ways. Doskocil says, A dancer never
knows when their dance career will suddenly vanish: a company folds, career ending injury, car
accident, deathDance every day as if it is the final performance (Doskocil. Ballet Pages. 15
Truths about dance). She is saying that dancers must make the best of their time and perform
each move every time they dance to their best potential, because if not, it could be too late. This
states that if those fortunate enough to have the extra time for training and improvement may be
the ones who can make it far up in the professional world of dance. Some dancers may not have
sufficient time available for practicing due to interfering factors such as school, work, family
priorities, children, etc. Depending on how busy ones life is can determine how much of their
time they reserve towards dance, but one who is absolutely, one-hundred percent committed will
be the dancer who gets the furthest towards reaching their goals.
Aspiration and knowledge, are two essential factors to have within a dance community.
Aspiration is about having a desire and passion to achieve a goal. If dance is what someone loves
to do and wants to keep going with it for the rest of their lives, then they absolutely must follow
their heart and stick with their passion. Not having any aspiration in dance reduces the possibility
of succeeding. Doskocil states that You cant control who hires you, who fires you, who likes
your work, who doesnt, the politics of being in a company. Dont waste your talent and energy
worrying about things you cant control. Focus on honing your craft, being the best dancer you
can be. Keep an open mind and a positive attitude. (Doskocil. Ballet Pages. 15 Truths about
dance). To become successful in dance, it is imperative to keep ones head up, not let others get
one down, move forward, and most importantly to keep the passion and fire they had to begin
with. This way, if a dance situation does not turn out as originally planned, there will always be

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the power of desire. Famous dancers would never make it as far as they do if they just gave up
all the time. The dancers who have more aspiration are the ones who will be chosen more often
for dance opportunities and careers because they will constantly be striving for perfection.
Knowledge is another one of the essential factors needed to becoming a successful
dancer. Knowledge comes from experience. You can discuss a task a hundred times, go to 1000
classes, but unless we get out there and perform we will only have a philosophical understanding
of dance (Doskocil. Ballet Pages. 15 Truths about dance). Without dancers starting at the
bottom and slowly working their way up, they would have no foundation towards building the
knowledge they need as a professional. Just like any other career, a person must start at the
beginning level, learn the basics, get into the more challenging aspects, always try to improve
and perfect at tasks, work their hardest until one day they are promoted and accounted for all
their hard work, they may even eventually be the leading head of their job. Then, they will now
be the one whom others come to for their expertise. Find opportunities to get on stage. You
must experience performance firsthand to call yourself a professional dancer (Doskocil. Ballet
Pages. 15 Truths about dance). In the dance community, knowledge is constantly being added to
ones mind and changed because they are discovering new moves and ways of performing
differently. Those who obtain more dance knowledge are the ones who will succeed further than
others.
Taking risks. This is a crucial part of making it professionally in dance. Some dancers
take risks and it is the best decision they had ever made, while others may take a risk and it turns
out to be the biggest let down of their career. While other dancers are not taking risks at all,
which will not get them any further ahead than they want to be. Majority of the time, dance
opportunities are not just handed out of the blue to someone. They must get themselves out there

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and make themselves known by showing off their talents with some confidence. Here is an
example of some dance risks, according to Doskocil, From letting go of the ballet barre to
balance, to moving around the world to dance with a new company, from trusting a new partner
to trying a new form of dance, dancers must have a flexible mind and attitude as well as body
(Doskocil. Ballet Pages. 15 Truths about dance). Dancers may be stuck in the same spot for their
whole lives, never expanding their dance connections, knowledge and movements, if they never
attempt to try out for an audition on some sort.
Appearances of dancers can have a make or break situation when it comes to getting
hired for a job. Depending on the type of company, they are usually always searching for a
dancer with a specific look in mind. Many of these occurrences are associated with the type of
dance called ballet. It is common for professional ballet performers to have an exact look
including characteristics such as length of leg, length of arm, length of neck (Peter Boal.
Pointe. Dance media). Usually the ballet dancer must be tall (long legs), skinny, small head,
healthy, and beautiful looking. If one does not have these factors does that mean they will never
get the position they want to get in a program? Not necessarily, unless the company is very strict,
then there may be a chance that they will love that person and their dancing the way it is.
Especially if they are trying out for a position in big places such as Broadway in New York for
example. Some dancers who are born with a natural ballerina look will most likely have a lot
better chance of getting a leading role. Is this discriminating? It can be argued, but it seems to be
unfair for those who work harder than others, but do not physically appear appealing to the
company, or whomever may be the judge.
On the other hand, favoritism has been occurring in the dance community as well. There
have been plenty of cases in which a dance teacher/instructor has been known for favoring

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particular students over the others. For example, they may often put them in the front of the
entire class for combinations, class pieces, performances, etc. Or it may be that the teacher
knows the student or their parents well from somewhere else so they like them because of nonrelated reasons. They might choose them over other dance students to have solos or exciting
opportunities. Sometimes, it is not even the best dancers of the class who they favor the best. It
is unfair for dance teachers to have a priority list of student dancers because there may be plenty
of expert dancers in the class, or those who just work really hard and want to improve, but they
cannot get to where they want to be because of the teachers picky choosing. There should not be
someone holding another person back from reaching their goals or getting the same opportunities
as the rest of the class.
Having connections in dance can be the most important part of becoming a successful
dancer. Knowing someone who knows someone valuable can open up a whole door of
opportunities. Many professional dancers got to where they are now by having someone they
knew introduce them to a person higher up, who gave them an audition, which led to a career
they love. This is a big reason why some dancers make it more successfully than others. Even if
two dancers in the same community are equally as talented, the one having more connections
would be the one who ends up famous. Or, a dancer who may not be quite as talented as the next,
but gets more opportunities from the people they are connected to will still make it further. It
does not seem ethical for the ones working harder to be stuck in the same place they have always
been, when they are the ones who struggle to become professionally known. Sometimes in a
dance community, a teacher will let specific students know about events or people they have
worked with to help their students advance. It can all depend on the location or how popular a
certain dance community is. This is why it is vital in dance to introduce oneself to a variety of

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people anywhere they may go, because there is never certainty for when those people may
remember that particular dancer and offer them an audition or something.
Are injuries a part of the reason some dancers make it more professional over others?
Well, of course it is. In a dance community, there is always something going on behind closed
doors that most people do not realize. Dancers are hard-workers and put their soul into what they
do; if they are dedicated. They are constantly pushing themselves to the limit. Is that limit too
much? Is it worth the risk of an eternal injury or ruining a dance career forever? Depends on who
one chooses to ask. Dance injuries can be very serious though, and nothing to play around with.
There are plenty of times when dancers are seriously injured and will never be the same, or as
good as they were. Even sometimes the teacher can be blamed for the one who caused them to
become injured by leading them to do certain moves. If a dancer gets injured it can make or
break their whole career. In a dance community, the ones who have the better health and well
condition to perform perfectly will go further in their career. For instance, a company hiring
dancers will not want to choose the one who limps or cannot do specific dance moves, they want
someone who they can rely on to do anything they want them to do whenever they ask. Staying
active and healthy will improve their ability to make it successfully in dance.
In conclusion, there are more underlying factors to a dancers success than most people
think. So what answers the question how do some dancers become more successful than
others? It is a mixture of hard work, competitiveness, money and time, aspiration and
knowledge, taking risks, appearances, favoritism, having connections, having perfect health/no
injuries, etc. All of these qualities are very important towards staying successful in dance and
ahead of the competitors. The ones who are serious about making it their lifetime career must
stay focused and put their dreams and goals first. It is not easy to become a professional dancer,

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there is never a guarantee of what will happen. There is a constant strive to be better than the
ones who are hoping to achieve the same things, and all of these factors are reasons for some
dancers getting ahead of another. There is no time to mess around if one wants to be the absolute,
best, most professional dancer they can be.

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Boal, Peter. "Too Fat? Too Thin? Too Tall? Too Short?" Pointe Magazine Ballet at Its Best.
N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
Doskocil, Melanie. "15 Truths About Being a Professional Dancer." The Portland Ballet Oregon
15 Truths About Being a Professional Dancer Comments. N.p., 22 Jan. 2013. Web. 16
Mar. 2015.
Kinetz, Erika. "Budding Dancers Compete, Seriously." The New York Times. The New York
Times, 06 July 2005. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
Lavender, Larry. Dancers Talking Dance: Critical Evaluation in the Choreography Class.
Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1996. Print.