In a high school environment where the importance of sports is stressed, the demanding nature of dance is often ignored.
Some people do not realize the level of difficulty and commitment that comes with being a dancer. Many Carlmont dancers who take dancing seriously spend extensive hours rehearsing.
Junior Kiana Yekrang said, “I dance five hours a day, six days a week.”
That amounts to 30 hours of dance in one week alone. This means that over the course of the year, Yekrang spends the equivalent of just over two months worth of time dancing.
Multiple factors attract people to the art of dancing, to the point that they believe that all of the time they invest in it is worth it.
“I’m a dancer because I think it’s really beautiful,” said freshman Allison Schrick. “It’s a really great way to have fun and express yourself.”
Sophomore Kaitlyn Kelly said, “I love to dance because it relieves stress and is great exercise. It is also a way of expressing myself. It is so much fun.”
While dancing may be fun, dedicating so much time to it comes at a price.
“The most challenging thing about dancing is the commitment. It’s hard to be a freshman in high school with all my workload, trying to balance friendships, and having a boyfriend all while having dance everyday,” said freshman Emily Sevillia.
Most dancers at Carlmont feel that dance is grossly misrepresented and that it does not get as much respect as it deserves.
“People think dance is easy and it’s just girls in booty shorts turning around. It takes a lot of time and effort to become a good dancer,” said Yekrang. “I have been dancing for seven years now and everyday I improve my weaknesses to become a better dancer.”
Senior Sam Ek said, “I wish people thought of dance as a serious activity and not just some recreational thing kids do for fun. Yes, that is the case for some, but a lot of people take it very seriously and don’t like it when people think of it as a ‘lesser’ activity compared to football or soccer.”
Dancers also take issue with the perception that what they do is feminine.
“What bugs me is when people, both guys and girls, think that dancing is a ‘girl’ thing and that there aren’t any straight males that dance. The male dance role is very masculine and has never been a sign of something that only girls do,” said Ek.
Dancers fervently believe that what they do should be considered a sport.
Sevillia said, “I do consider dancing a sport because people who are serious dancers are really in shape and healthy. It’s a really good workout and it makes you strong. It helps build your energy and your stamina which is what other sports are supposed to do.”
Some may argue that dancers can’t compare what they do to sports because they have no experience with the “real” sports.
To challenge this idea, Ek said, “I grew up playing baseball, soccer and basketball, but dance in my opinion is a lot more physically demanding than any other sport I have played. The stamina required is something that has to be built up after years of practice and repetition. Dance is like any other sport, it takes years of practice to really get good and to perfect it.”
Many Carlmont dancers intend to incorporate their passion for dance into their futures.
Schrick said, “In the future I hope to continue to dance. I want to go to college and major in dance and get a job that has something to do with teaching choreography.”
While some students hope to have their professional lives involve dance, others will not pursue dancing as a career, but will instead stay involved with it for recreational purposes.
Junior Jessica Real said, “I don’t think I am going to make a career out of dancing, but I definitely want to keep it as a passion.”
