You probably won’t become a professional dancer, and that is okay.
For my entire dance career I always told myself “If you don’t become a professional dancer, your entire dance career was a waste”.
Now let me backup for a second a give some perspective:
I started ballet at 12 and by the time I was 14 I decided my dream was to become a professional ballerina.
My days went like this:
School 8:00-4:00 (thinking about dance the whole time)
Get out - go straight to the studio
Dance from 4:30 to 9:00
Go home - cram in homework
Wake up and repeat
There was no sleepovers, prom, parties, having movie nights.
My life was school and ballet. And I really one cared for one of those.
I denied myself of everything. Honestly? Wasn’t even interested in it. Hadn’t kissed a boy. Didn’t care. Hadn’t experienced a football game. Didn’t care.
My focus was so intense. I WAS going to become a professional.
Or else I am nobody.
Now for some startling news, news that most families and dancers are completely unaware of:
The demand for professional dancers is very low. The supply is substantially high.
In 2019 the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated professional dance jobs in the United States (all encompassing dancers and choreographers) at a whopping 16,900 total jobs
Did you read that right? 16,900
“Gabby that is a lot of jobs!”
Hold on now-
Now the average percent of dancers trying to go professional or going professional is about 10%
Because we cannot really quantify how many dancers there are in the US at any one given time (or at least I couldn’t find any data on it) we need to do some quick math
There were about 65,000 dance studios in the US in 2019. Let’s say the median dance studio held 100 students. It is significantly more than that in most studios but let’s be gracious here.
That means that of the 6,500,000 students, 10% try to audition.
Then you are up against 650000 other students trying to get that same contract you are going for.
16,900 Jobs available
650000 Students aiming to get that contract
And we are encompassing these statistics as dancers, musicians and choreographers.
Dancers are probably a SLIVER of that!
Do you see where I am going with this?
So about a 26% chance of actually getting the contract (with me being VERY generous on the statistics and with the above facts in mind).
Not because you aren’t a good dancer. Not because you haven’t worked your butt off to improve your dance technique. Not because something is wrong with you.
There was literally one contract available per company and thousands of dancers trying to get it.
I mean honestly? They could have easily taken the dancer that was the right height, skin tone, hair color.
It wasn’t you…
Going to give you one more hard pill to swallow before the good news:
Average leotard $50
Average pair of pointe shoes $90
Average unlimited class pass for a month $300
Average private lesson $60
Average pair of tights $20
Bobby pins, hair spray, warm up gear, flat shoes, gas, food the list goes on and on.
I mean, I hate to say it, but dance is the rich man’s sport. This isn’t just something you pick up for fun unless you can really afford it.
I calculated about how much my parents paid in total for 6 years of classical ballet training
WELL over $100,000
When did we find out the chances of going professional were slim?
Year 5
Ok do I still have you? Good because the good news is finally here:
YOU DON’T HAVE TO BECOME A PROFESSIONAL DANCER TO BE SUCCESSFUL AND HAVE DANCE IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE
Boom! Mind blown!
Ok so at 14 years old I probably would have told whoever wrote this blog to kiss it and watch me make it happen!
And if that is you, I do not blame you.
For ballerinas especially, this is a very common mindset.
But can I say this as a weathered dance....
Looking back at this, I couldn’t even drive yet?! How was I really to know what I wanted to do with the REST of my life at 14?!?! (No hate to those who did know that young!)
Heck, even myself 3 years ago is not who I am today whatsoever.
Humans change desires change IT IS NORMAL!
But,
This mentality of “all in all out”, was detrimental to my mental and physical well-being.
Not only did I solely focus on dance in my every thought, but I also threw myself at the artform physically day in and day out.
I can do a separate blog on the details of my not going professional, but suffice to say life had other plans.
This ate at me for an unhealthy amount of time.
Now, I have come to this:
(More good news!)
There are SO many ways to become successful in dance.
-Theme park dancers
-Cruise ship dancers
-Creating a dance wear line
-Dance teacher
-Commercial dancer
-Being a dance commentator or judge
-Owning a dance studio
-Dancer for a sports team
-Freelance dancer
-Dance therapist
-Writer
-Choreographer
The list could go on!
There are numerous ways to find yourself in the dance world without having to go pro.
Not just in dance, but in life, any sort of hyper focus like this is not healthy.
Life should be a balance.
Hobbies, passions, work, friends, family, fun, goals, dreams, and desires.
It’s a lot.
I wish I would have gone to a dance with a boy.
Experienced a sleepover.
Gave more love and attention to my family.
Taken a saturday to go to the beach instead of the studio.
Life cannot be one thing. You need to have a balance between ALL things.
And albeit, it takes a while to find that balance.
But I promise you, that if you have multiple passions and areas of pursuit, being let down in one area will not having you feeling so, “my life is over”.
And more feeling “alright, on to the next thing!”
The balance is for you to be ‘successful’ in many areas of your life!
So does that mean completely drop the idea of going professional? Heavens no. Try anyways, but keep these statistics in mind. Understand the risk you are taking.
DISCLAIMER: Friends, please do not take this blog as me talking you out of a dream. Please consider this as my way of saying - understand there are many many ways to be successful in dance. It might not even be dance! Heck you may move on to a completely different passion!
And that is totally okay too :)
Cheers
G
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