A
DANCER'S
LAMENT
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A
DANCER'S
LAMENT
But as outsiders, how much do we know of what goes on behind the scenes? This story delves into the experiences of Ayana, a former hip hop dancer. She's been dancing since she was little, exhausting all of her energy into becoming a professional, and then she quit.
THERE'S NO DENYING IT;
DANCE IS A TRULY BEAUTIFUL SPORT.
WHAT MAKES IT
BEAUTIFUL?
“To me, what makes the dance world so beautiful, are the movements you make, completely losing yourself in dance, and especially putting your feelings and emotions into it.”
A JOURNEY OF
CHALLENGES
“When we were about to perform at the World Championship in Glasgow we had to wear these white coloured contacts, but they didn’t have vision correction. My vision is bad. I could barely see anything. It was nerve wracking. There’s so much pressure on you already, and then this happens. I was afraid I’d miss a beat. If that were to happen, we'd be done for.”
“Luckily nothing went wrong. Even though my heart skipped a beat a few times during the performance, my body didn’t. We came in 5th and
I WAS HAPPY"
“Perfectionism is truly a part of the dance world, as are blood, sweat, and tears. We used to train for hours to achieve perfection.”
NOT QUITE
GOOD ENOUGH?
"BRUISES, CUTS, AND ABRASIONS
are part of being a hip hop dancer. These usually happen when you’re doing ground-based choreography or acrobatic movements.”
“QUITTING WAS ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT CHOICES I'VE EVER HAD TO MAKE.
I loved dancing, but I often wondered if all the negativity
and inability to grow as a dancer was worth staying in the group.
It wasn’t. I’m happy where I am now, still being active,
but in a different way. I still see dance as one of my
biggest passions, but working at a gym was
definitely the best path for me.”
BODY IMAGE
& INSECURITIES
“I remember always being in the back of the group, and I didn’t know why. I knew I was a good dancer, better than some others even who were placed in the front, but there I was. When I asked about it, our team leader used to say it was because of my broad shoulders and my more muscular physique. Apparently I didn’t look feminine enough. I strongly disliked my body for a long while after he said that.”
“As it turns out, it was because I actually was better at performing the choreography than our team leader. He was just jealous of me.
HAVING A NEGATIVE SELF-IMAGE WAS ALL FOR NOTHING.”
"THAT'S WHEN I KNEW I'D HAD ENOUGH."
