For my STEP Signature Project, I attended Joffrey Ballet’s Adult Summer Intensive in Chicago, Illinois. During this four-day program, I attended daily ballet technique classes, learned Joffrey Ballet repertoire and variations, attended a seminar on the history of Joffrey Ballet, and had the opportunity to try out non-ballet classes like character, yoga, and floor barre.

     While I was doing this program, I realized how passionate I was about ballet and how dedicated I was to growing as a dancer. I realized that sometimes this passion sometimes makes me neglect taking care of myself, both physically and mentally. Because I was dancing for 5-6 hours each day on this program instead of my normal 1-2 hours each day, I learned that staying mindful of and honoring my physical and mental limits in the studio is a strength and not a weakness. I had to make sure I was aware of how my body and mind were feeling each day and adjust how I approached my classes based on my level of physical soreness and mental strength. Additionally, I realized that being passionate about dancing and taking small steps towards my dancing goals are much more important than trying to be “perfect” in the studio and rushing towards my goals. 

     I remember on the third day of my program, I woke up feeling very sore and exhausted from the intense days of dancing I had had. I did not feel as motivated as I had been the first two days of the program and did not feel like I could push my body as much as I had previously. Instead of pushing myself anyways, I took it slow that day and modified exercises that felt too intense that morning. This allowed me to feel less stressed mentally and was proof that I was learning to listen to my body and mind. I ended up feeling better later that day because I had gone easy on myself in the morning.

     I also remember a variations class I had where I tried to push myself by learning the variation in pointe shoes, even though I usually learn variations in flat shoes. The class started out okay, but, about halfway through, I started feeling pain in my ankle and decided to take the pointe shoes off and change back into flat shoes. I was frustrated I could not make it through the whole class in pointe shoes, but I was proud of myself for listening to my body so that I could avoid injury. I ended up wearing my pointe shoes in class the following day; I listened to my body and modified any exercises that hurt and I ended up doing better and feeling less pain.

     I also realized how passionate I was about dance because of the people I was surrounded by. All of the people I met on my program truly loved dance so much and were supportive of everyone in our classes, even though we all came from different dance backgrounds. I felt so encouraged to give it my all every class because of the energetic and welcoming environment we had. I normally struggle with confidence in ballet class, but I had so much confidence when I was on this program. I realized that although confidence comes from within me, my confidence grows when I am surrounded by a community of other confident individuals who support me.

     I will take the lessons I learned on taking care of my mental and physical health into all of my ballet classes I take as well as my daily life as a student. Regardless of if I am in a ballet class or a regular academic class, taking care of myself enhances my performance and motivation and prevents burnout. Additionally, making sure I am in an encouraging community for each goal that I am trying to achieve will allow me to feel more passionate about my goals and believe that they are achievable. This program has taught me that listening to my body and mind by slowing down does not make me lose progress or does not make me weak but helps me to achieve a healthy relationship with my goals.