11 Takeaways from 2021's Blog Posts
When we created the Brown Ballerina Blog, our intention was to not only keep you up-to-date with the happenings of our organization, but also to become a helpful resource for dancers of all ages and backgrounds. From interviewing Brown Ballerina Ambassadors and dance professionals to sharing tips for dancers who want to evolve in their dance journey, we’ve covered tons of topics that hopefully resonate with our readers. As we bid farewell to 2021, let’s take a brief look at some of the most informative articles we published this year.
Related: 5 Ways to Reflect on Your Year
Marketing Yourself as a Professional Dancer
There comes a point in every dancer’s life when they make a choice between continuing to dance as a hobby or turning their skill into a career. If you decide you want to become a professional dancer, you’ll need to start carrying yourself as a small business owner to some degree. All small business owners are tasked with the challenge to market their businesses so that they can attract more clients - or in a ballerina’s case, paid contracts, performances, and other dance-related opportunities. Read more…
What Janet Collins Taught Us About Integrity and Abundance
Before Janet Collins became the first Black prima ballerina with the Metropolitan Opera Ballet, she declined an offer to dance with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. When she was 15, the company offered to hire Janet as long as she disguised her race by painting her face white for performances. Instead of agreeing to those conditions, Janet decided to seek a company that would judge her based on her talent - not her race. Imagine how hard it must’ve been to make that decision, turning down what could have easily felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Janet. Still, she declined it! Read more…
6 Important Conversations for a Better Dance Community
Last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic drastically changed our way of life, the idea of a post-pandemic world was abstract and unclear, especially for the dance industry. Would people ever sit elbow-to-elbow in theaters again to watch dancers perform? How will dance classes resume in-person? A year later, despite having a better picture of what it’ll take to maintain a safe and fulfilling post-pandemic lifestyle, the question that remains is, How different will our world feel after the pandemic? The answer to this is up to us. Read more…
6 Ways Dancers & Organizations Can Help the Environment
Happy Earth Day! Today, we celebrate our generous home planet by raising awareness of climate change, sharing eco-friendly tips, and more - all with the hopes of keeping Earth alive. It’s everyone’s responsibility to find ways to respect our planet, including dancers. Read more…
4 Ways Spending Time in Nature Can Help You Become a Better Dancer
With the official start of summer less than a month away, hopefully, you and your friends have started planning plenty of festivities. The allure of warm weather, fresh air, and sunshine - especially amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic - is reason enough for us to jump for joy. However, another benefit that comes with embracing the outdoors is the effect of nature on your creativity and mood. Read more…
Everything You Need to Know about the Brown Ballerina Road Trip
If you follow Brown Girls Do Ballet on Instagram, you’ve likely seen several posts about the Brown Ballerina Road Trip. From New York to Washington, and even Kansas, Brown Girls Do Ballet’s founder, TaKiyah Wallace, has spent the past few months traveling to connect with dancers all over the country. Read more…
8 Common Career Paths for Dance Majors
As a dancer, you are naturally instilled with several quality traits, such as being organized, detail-oriented, and highly disciplined. Due to the culture of dance training and performing, dancers can work under pressure and meet deadlines while maintaining their composure at all times. These skills are favored in the workforce and can be easily transferable to several career paths. Read more…
5 Reasons to Become a Dance Teacher
What inspires a dancer to make the transition from being a student to becoming a teacher? While both roles require passion, dedication, and devotion, becoming a teacher comes with the responsibility of making a lasting impression on the minds, bodies, and dreams of students. We tapped into some of our previous interviews with professional dance teachers in our network to uncover some of the reasons why teaching feels right for them. Read more…
How to Break Down Walls and Build a Connection with your Dance Students
For many students, dance class is an outlet for creative expression, an after-school activity to stay physically fit, and it could even be a lifelong career pursuit. No matter what, the positive impact of dance often reaches beyond the studio. That’s why, as a dance teacher, it’s so important to build a strong connection with your students. A student who feels comfortable and connected with their teacher will likely have an easier time expressing themselves through movement, will be able to understand choreography quicker, and might even gain some useful life lessons in the process. Read more…
How Being Multifaceted Can Help You Become a Better Dancer
Too much of any one thing is not always healthy in the long run. When you put all of your focus into one thing for too long, you could become stagnant or even burnt out. This philosophy can also be applied to your dance journey. As a dancer, you may be inclined to pour all of your energy and attention into your craft, especially if you believe dance is your primary purpose in life. When it comes to mastering your craft, consider the idea that it can often be equally, if not more, beneficial to diversify your skills and observe the impact they make on your dance experience. Read more…
How Giving Days Help Dancers of Color Succeed
Holidays offer us the inspiration to connect with family, raise awareness, celebrate our cultures, and share joy with others. For many non-profit organizations, the most meaningful holidays are Giving Days. Giving Days occur on various dates throughout the year, each with its own focus or theme. Each Giving Day campaign creates an opportunity for nonprofits to receive financial support from their communities. Read more…
These articles are just a snippet of what you can find on our Brown Ballerina Blog. We hope you find joy, insight, and inspiration as you read along.
What would you like to see on our blog in 2022? Let us know in the comments below!