Jun Kuribayashi, Lawrence senior, practices a back extension in ballet. Kuribayashi started out break dancing and started ballet and other dance forms at the University.
Courtney Kuhlen/ Kansan
"We're not a bunch of dumb people that just dance because we're not smart enough to take tests."
—Jeffrey Potter, University Dance Company member
Company member. Potter says he knows proper nutrition will benefit his dancing by giving him more energy and strength. He says he enjoys watching different body types and shapes move together. He thinks it is more interesting to watch because even if all the dancers are moving in the same motion, the different body shapes make the dancing come alive.
It takes more than physical strength to be a dancer; you also have to be smart. But people often assume dancers are not smart enough to succeed in another career. Sara Jarrett, features editor for Dance Spirit Magazine, says it takes a lot of intelligence, multitasking, memorization and focus to be a successful dancer. "The body-mind connection is so complex, yet the normal observer thinks that dancers just move around," she says.
Dancers use more than just movement to dance. Hilding, a former Joffrey dancer, says dancers have an understanding of the use of space and apply
this visually and spatially within their movements. He says that society views intelligence in an analytical, book-smart way, not in the visual way dancers use it.
Potter agrees. He says he is still perfectly capable of writing papers and studying for and taking written tests. "We're not a bunch of dumb people that just dance because we're not smart enough to take tests," Potter says.
Just as studying for a test or working on an academic project take long hours, so does dance. Between rehearsals, technique classes, choreography and performances, the amount of time spent on dance is comparable to that spent on academic studies for a full-time student. Many dance majors have two or three two-hour dance classes per day along with academic classes. After a day of classes, many of these dancers then have rehearsals for other dance companies, such as the University Dance Company or Bowery Dancers. These rehearsals can run anywhere from one to four hours.
14 jayplay
thursday, october 9. 2003