Ms. Sara and Ms. Ashley are new to ADC this year, so we wanted to ask them a few questions to get to know them a little better! Enjoy!
1. Where are you from?Ms. Sara: I am originally from New Jersey, but have grown up in Lawrenceville since I was 6 years old.
Ms. Ashley: I am from Homewood, Alabama, which is located about 10 minutes south of Birmingham.
2. When did you begin dancing and in what class?
Ms. Sara: My mother danced so she put my sister and I in classes. I started with tap and ballet and tap; ballet being my mom's favorite and tap being mine.
Ms. Ashley: Like most dancers, I began dancing at the early age of 2-years-old. I started to become more serious and dedicated with dance at around 7 or 8-years-old, where I began taking ballet classes 3 or 4 times a week. Ballet was my first love out of all the dance styles when I was growing up. It was and is the strong foundation to my overall dance training, as well as, to my love and passion for the art of dance.
3. What is your favorite style of dance, and why?
Ms. Sara: My favorite style of dance now would have to be modern. I fell in love with contemporary when I found more movement my body liked to express in college. It feels good to still dance the lyrical ballet that I had been doing so long, but I like pushing the boundaries of what my body is capable of. Modern makes me feel alive and one with the movement. I love that there is no right and wrong, it is just you expressing yourself.
Ms. Ashley: My favorite style of dance would have to be Jazz, specifically Broadway Jazz. Growing up, I had dreams of becoming a Rockette but unfortunately, the height I reached once I stopped growing (5’2), did not meet their height requirements of 5’6 – 5’10 ½. Even though, my “Rockette Dreams” did not happen for me, I did have the opportunity to be a part of my high school dance line, “The Star Spangled Girls”, where I was exposed to learning and performing kick lines, as well as dancing with precision as one body, along with 27 other girls. I love teaching, choreographing, and performing Broadway Jazz because even though the choreography is simple and looks effortless when performing it, that couldn’t be further from the truth. It takes a lot of hard work, patience, energy, and time to perfect the choreography, for both the choreographer and dancers. In the end, it’s all worth it, because the look on the audience's face at the end of every performance shows how much it entertained them.
4. We would love to hear about a funny or favorite dance memory!
Ms. Sara: One of my teachers used to tell us once you fall out of a turn you will never be afraid to fall again. I was practicing turns on pointe and I fell on my butt and instead of freaking out I was excited and yelled “I finally fell!”
Ms. Ashley: My favorite dance memory is when I had the opportunity to travel to Pasadena, California to 
participate in the 2003 Tournament of Roses Parade as part of my high school dance line. I remember how exciting it was to be a part of one of the most prestigious nationally televised parades in the country and how overwhelming it was exploring the west coast and sunny California. We were honored to walk/dance behind the Grand Marshalls of the parade which were Mister Rogers and Bill Cosby and we were able to catch a glimpse of the once popular boy band at the time, “98◦”. Although, it was a very exhausting and long parade, (6 miles long to be exact), and trip overall, it still remains one of my top favorite and most memorable moments I have in all my years of dancing.
participate in the 2003 Tournament of Roses Parade as part of my high school dance line. I remember how exciting it was to be a part of one of the most prestigious nationally televised parades in the country and how overwhelming it was exploring the west coast and sunny California. We were honored to walk/dance behind the Grand Marshalls of the parade which were Mister Rogers and Bill Cosby and we were able to catch a glimpse of the once popular boy band at the time, “98◦”. Although, it was a very exhausting and long parade, (6 miles long to be exact), and trip overall, it still remains one of my top favorite and most memorable moments I have in all my years of dancing.
Leave a Reply