danceypants
Brooklyn, NY
Female, 25
I am a professional NYC contemporary/modern dancer. I work freelance, dancing in various projects around NYC. It ranges from performance art, flash mobs, and various styles of modern/contemporary dance. It's tough, I hustle everyday. I also bartend to pay the bills and work at a dance studio for discounted classes. It's a struggle, between auditions, classes, and maintaining artistic integrity. But I love my life.
My dream opportunity is to not be freelance anymore! haha I would love to sign a contract with a company and do a tour. I want to travel and it's the best way, you get paid, you get a per diem, and you have all your housing and travel expenses covered. But sadly, right now a lot of the people I want to dance for aren't hiring. Or they are hiring, but just people they already know. Most big name companies (Martha Graham, Paul Taylor, Mark Morris) only hire people they know, i.e. follow them and take their classes wherever it may be held, everyday. But, I don't know if I would even end up liking going on a tour. I was offered a tour and a contract when I lived in North Carolina and I turned it down to move back to NYC (I went to college here) I have friends who have been on tours for 4-8 months. Some love it, some hate it. Living out of a suitcase, being away from family, friends, spouses. As a freelancer, work is inconsistent, the best job you can get is something that offers you some consistency, for example, paid rehearsals 4 times a week, 2 paid performances a year. Maybe a Summer break then back to it. But that isn't ideally a freelancers schedule. You rehearse for a project for 6 months, perform. Then If the choreographer needs you again, they will call.
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I have a larger chest, so I have had wardrobe malfunctions. But one hasn't happened since high school. Nothing too crazy, Generally I had on an undergarment so it wasn't very scandalous. I have seen a girls strap break on stage, she handled it well, she kept going and fixed it when she exited. Rule of thumb is never stop dancing. I've been in work with nudity, so nothing really fazes me.
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While I was studying at a dance festival, the group of people I was working with, was asked to do an underwater/dance photo shoot with a fairly famous photographer from LA. She wanted us to be naked. After rehearsals though, the project fell through. But let me make this clear. I only do projects with nudity IF and only if there is a purpose and a direct correlation between the nudity and the integrity of the dance work. Many choreographers now have nudity in their work for shock value, to be "artistic". I'm sorry, but walking out on the stage naked and reading from a book while you eat an apple isn't dance.
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no, not that I can recollect. Most of the stuff on tv is commerical dance, which is cool, but not what I do. I think a lot of choreography is lacking in award shows.
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Peace Corps Volunteer
Are Peace Corps volunteers just a bunch of "hippie freaks?"
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What's a 100-hour work week like?
Most of us have side gigs. Unless you have signed a contract with a big name company that is bringing in a lot of revenue, chances are you are a dancer/bartender/server/etc
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absolutely not.
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I have never fallen, tripped, or face planted. THANK GOODNESS. But, one time I had to make a cross over. (I exited stage right and had to re-enter stage left) So I had to run down this narrow hallway between the scrim (back drop) and the wall. Apparently, a stage hand had left a metal chair or something sharp back there because as I was running down the little hallway, I ran into it and cut my shin. First off, it hurt....really badly (shins don't provide much meaty cushion) secondly I was wearing pink tights and blood was running down my shin. I didn't have time to do anything so I kept dancing, grit my teeth and finished the piece. Unfortunately I didn't have any more exits. Another time, I was in this piece that had us spinning onto the stage from the wings. The music was complicated, and I always screwed up my entrance. Lo and behold, I entered on the wrong count. Thankfully I didn't crash into anyone. I just realized pretty quickly and kept spinning in the opposite direction and made an exit. My parents said they didn't notice. haha
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