A publication to engage the dance community. Learn. Discuss. Contribute. Enjoy.

Four Years Well Spent

By Thomas Stastny

It's six a.m. when the bus returns from MichComp. My immediate thoughts are getting my bag, finding breakfast, and sleeping. After a little time to recuperate I begin to think, "what's next?" The dance semester is over at the University of Minnesota, and usually I start to think about the next year ahead. This time there's a feeling of finality, because in less than a month I graduate. It's hard to believe that it's already been four years.

I want to clarify one thing: graduation does not mean the end of dancing. I plan to dance with the University of Minnesota next year and for as long as I can after that. This is, however, an appropriate time to reflect on the last four years and how dancing has been a part of my college experience and become a part of myself. Four years ago I was still in high school and never saw myself dancing. I made the decision to dance on a whim over the summer, and I can say now that it's one of the best decisions I have made. I don't know what these four years would have been like if I didn't dance.

The most important things I learned are the things that the club did not advertise. The club advertised that you would learn how to dance, including steps and technique. Then the other things, I learned through my time in the club, and on the competition team. The importance of goals and attitude, how to foster and maintain healthy partnerships, and why it's important to take judges' marks with a grain of salt. There were those on the team that gladly gave advice on those things, but most of it doesn't fully sink in until you experience it yourself. You learn what works, what you should do differently, and you never stop experimenting. Now, I'm going to try pass on what I've learned to new members and pick up as many new things as possible as I go along.

Now, I can look back my dance videos from my first competition those four years ago with a mix of self-loathing and satisfaction. Ballroom Blast 2013. My very first waltz. I started horribly off time, and my posture was severely lacking. They might still be hard to look at, but I can absolutely say that I have improved since then. I've now placed in the finals at Collegiate Nationals and have qualified for Amateur Nationals. There's no reason to think I can't achieve more beyond that.

info@sheerdance.com