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 Born
Bunheads
By Cheryl Ossola
Ballet dancers talk about their passion
What makes ballet special to those who dance it? To find out,
we asked students and young company members around the world
why they chose ballet over other forms of dance, what they
love about it, what it gives them, and whether a teacher
inspired them to pursue it. All have different tales of how
they got started, but they share one sentiment: Ballet gives
them something that nothing else in life can.
Emily Hadden, 18, student
School of American Ballet, New York, NY
I chose ballet because, like many little girls, I wanted to be
a princess. When I was 5, my mom took me to see my first New
York City Ballet performance, Swan Lake. The
combination of the snow-white tutus, the gravity-defying
lifts, and the seemingly effortless pointe work cast a spell
on me. I was hooked.
I love that ballet is paradoxical. A ballet dancer’s aim is to
achieve an ease of movement, a grace; yet ballet is one of the
most physically demanding activities there is. I also love the
harmony between the music and one’s body.
Ballet has instilled in me a passion that is unparalleled. It
allows me to express emotions that I would be inhibited to
express through speech. When I dance, I escape into a euphoric
world free of the stresses of everyday life.
My decision to train seriously in ballet was mainly personal.
As I grew older, my passion for ballet grew too. Being
surrounded by so many passionate individuals [at SAB] made me
realize how much I loved ballet and how much I wanted to
succeed at it. Teachers have also been a factor in my
decision, encouraging me to pursue ballet from an early age.
Now that I am older and considering ballet as a career, my
teachers provide me with the courage to work as hard as I can
to achieve my dream.
 Austin
Bodek, 17, student
San Francisco Ballet School
San Francisco, CA
It’s hard to explain why I chose ballet over my tap and
gymnastics lessons. From the beginning I knew I wanted to
dance ballet, and after my very first lesson there was no
stopping me. I was on a mission! When I dance I feel like I am
in another world. I can let go of the hardships I deal with
outside of ballet and enter this wonderful place that I
couldn’t imagine being without.
When I was younger I was in a very nurturing school and I
loved all my teachers. They all contributed, but I knew in my
heart that I wanted to be a professional ballet dancer and no
one had to tell me. When people ask me what I do and I tell
them that I have danced for more than 10 years and that I’m
now at San Francisco Ballet School, the look on their faces
makes me proud.
 Morgan
Buchanan, 16, student
Ballet Center of Houston; company member,
Houston Repertoire Ballet, Houston, TX
My mom put me in ballet when I was 3 years old, but I wouldn’t
have it any other way. I love how ballet forces you to look
inside yourself to find concentration, strength,
determination, and the ability to take correction. I consider
myself to be an introspective person, and I think a lot of
that came from ballet. [It gives me] discipline, respect,
patience, diligence, and grace.
My artistic directors, Victoria Vittum and Gilbert Rome, have
definitely inspired me. So does being in an environment where
fellow students are as serious about ballet as I am; having
“tunnel vision” helps me focus on my dreams.
Katie Kozul, 15, student
Walnut Hill School, Natick, MA
I chose ballet because it is the basis of all other forms of
dance. When I was 12, I entered the Youth America Grand Prix;
when I made it to the finals, I realized I wanted to do
ballet.
I love ballet because when I dance and perform I feel complete
and at home. I also love telling different stories and
expressing different feelings. Ballet has given me a good work
ethic that I have applied to my schoolwork and everyday life.
It has given me perseverance, determination, pride in what I
do, and the strength to work through anything that comes my
way.
My mother, Kathy Kozul, inspired me to dance ballet. She was a
dancer with Boston Ballet and is now my ballet teacher. When I
was little, I used to look at pictures of her in those
beautiful tutus or chiffon dresses with her legs up to her
ears with beautiful feet, and I would aspire to be just like
her. So as I became more serious about ballet, she did
everything in her power to help me achieve my dream. Even
though at first she did not want me to dance because the life
of a dancer is so hard, she realized how much I love it and
knew she couldn’t stop me. My mother has given me some of the
best advice in the world and if it wasn’t for her I don’t
think I would have realized how much I love ballet.
Janey Roan, 25, teacher
The Ballet Studio; company member,
Ballet Acadiana, Lafayette, LA
Although I studied jazz and tap, my passion has always been
ballet. I enjoy the discipline and structure of ballet
class—how each movement builds on the others and how there is
a process to the development of a ballet dancer. I haven’t
found that in jazz or tap, perhaps because they aren’t as
structured. No one persuaded me to study ballet extensively,
but because my dance schools focused on it, with jazz and tap
as extras, I was given more knowledge—and therefore a greater
love—of ballet.
Ballet involves as much intellect as physical activity. I
think that a thinking dancer makes the best dancer. Ballet is
so technical and disciplined that the reward of mastering a
movement is great. It is a beautiful art, with such grace and
fluidity; it is easy to get lost in it. I like to get to the
point where I no longer have to think, where I lose myself in
the movement.
Ballet is constantly rewarding—seeing the development of my
students and being rewarded with my own progress as a dancer.
Every time I take class I learn something new or gain a
greater understanding of something, whether it be a movement
or placement of my body. I feel like I am constantly learning
and growing.
Louise Gradwohl, 19, dancer
Greater Lansing Ballet Company, Lansing, MI
I love ballet technique because it has such beauty, grace,
power, and expression. I love how it feels on my body, how it
makes me move, and making it my own. It is so fun, like eating
ice cream every day! Ballet is my outlet for communication.
Whatever I feel that day, like if I am jealous or angry at
someone, I [redirect] that energy into my dancing and use it
to my advantage. I work my pain and anger out with ballet. It
helps me refocus on what really matters.
Ballet has shaped my personality and my life. It has kept me
grounded and out of trouble. It has [given me] determination,
strength, courage, love, pain. These emotions have led me to
find out who I am.
Without my instructor, director, and friend, Barbara
Banasikowski Smith, I wouldn’t be where I am today. She is
brilliant and knows exactly how to get you where you want to
go. I dance for myself and for others, but most of the time I
dance for her.
Olesja Hartmann, 19, student
Balletfoundation Heinz Bosl, State Ballet Academy of Bavaria,
Munich, Germany
I started in ballet because I was a very a ctive
child and my parents needed an afternoon activity for me. I
started with volleyball and karate, then ended up taking
ballet classes. A teacher of mine, Andreij Matinkin, told me
that I had a lot of talent and I should try to go to a
government-supported school because their teachers are better
most of the time.
The thing I love most about ballet is being someone else, just
like in acting, and then expressing this character’s thoughts
and feelings with my whole body. I feel great after a day of
interesting rehearsals and even greater hearing the audience
clap after a performance.
Fabienne Vegt, 21, dancer
Dutch National Ballet, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
When I was only 3 years old I took my first ballet
classes, with my older sister, because my mother saw that I
was fascinated by music and
movement. From that moment, dancing was the best thing in my
life. As little as I was, I took ballet
class seriously. I had a rich imagination—I still remember
dancing as if I were a flower brought alive by the touch of
one of the other little girls.
When I was 10 years old I began traveling every day to the
Royal Conservatory in The Hague. I loved it. Of course it was
tough sometimes—the teachers were strict, and we were afraid
of some of them. But it was lots of fun too. And it felt
special.
I didn’t consciously choose ballet over another form of dance;
it just happened. I love the excitement of going onstage, the
fact that performances are never the same. And when things go
right, it gives me a magical feeling. Doing something
difficult makes me feel special. I love the freedom of
expressing feelings without talking. Dancing makes me feel
better when I’m sad or angry. I love working with people from
all over the world and feeling the connection that we have
because we all know what ballet is. And I love being a part of
an art that brings something beautiful into the world.
Daria Rose Foner, 19, dancer
Norwegian National Ballet, Oslo, Norway
I wanted
to be a dancer ever since I was a little girl. There was
something so magical about it, and I wanted to experience that
kind of beauty. Ballet gives the
illusion of grace, elegance, and s eamlessness.
There is so much glamour and an appearance of effortlessness
in a ballet performance, but you have to work continually to
perfect your technique while also improving artistry and
expression.
Being onstage and performing is always the greatest reward for
me. I also love allowing the music to move me and then
conveying that to the audience, the feeling of stage lights
shining on me, and giving something of myself to the audience.
Many teachers have helped me in many ways. One told me that
the greatest gift you can give yourself is to work as hard as
you can in every class, because no one can take that away from
you. And I have found this to be true—no matter what the
outcome, you have the knowledge that you tried your best. My
two most inspiring teachers were Lourdes Lopez (at Ballet
Academy East, NYC) and Elena Kunikova (at Steps on Broadway).
They both stressed the artistic as well as the technical, and
how to let my personality come through in my dancing. They
also pushed me to dance my best while still being amazingly
encouraging.
Photo captions (from top to bottom):
Emily Hadden (foreground) with Jose Sebastian (left), Daria
Foner, and Russell Janzen in George Balanchine’s
Square Dance
at the School of American Ballet’s 2006 Spring Workshop. Photo
by Paul Kolnik.
Austin Bodek (left), with fellow student Kaia Tack, costumed
for the 2006 San Francisco Ballet School Student Showcase
performance of Balanchine’s
Western Symphony.
Photo by Chris Hardy.
Morgan Buchanan as Dew Drop Fairy in Houston Repertoire
Ballet’s
Nutcracker,
2006. Photo by Neil Simpson
Olesja Hartmann as Princess Florine, with Tycho Hupperets as
her Blue Bird, in a school production of
The Sleeping Beauty
in Nuremburg, Germany. Photo courtesy Olesja Hartmann.
Fabienne Vegt and friend Dreda, costumed for Arabian, goof
around after a performance of Wayne Eagling and Toer van
Schayk’s
Nutcracker
for Dutch National Ballet. Photo courtesy Fabienne Vegt.
Norwegian National Ballet’s Daria Foner and New York City
Ballet’s Robbie Fairchild as Spanish in
George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker
at Stamford Center for the Performing Arts in 2004, when both
were students. Photo by Hannah Reid.
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