How the Arts Can Be Both Competitive and Cathartic
My mother taught me an appreciation for the arts. I remember lying at the top of the stairs listening to her play the piano when I was supposed to be in bed. We attended arts in the park events. I’d dance around the living room when she’d watch a ballet on tv. This led me to attempting a double major in ballet and studio arts at BYU. Of all that she’s taught me, having art as part of my life is one of the most important. They’ve served in different capacities over my lifetime.
Even though I have a career in the visual arts, I still take dance classes. I used to be competitive, but now I dance for my health. I’m also the visual arts specialist at Noah Webster Academy. I show them that art is a process of making and fixing mistakes. Many adults I’ve taught must face down that same fear. Perhaps it’s the competitive nature that accompanies so many of the arts. While healthy competition is great, so is participating for other reasons. The benefits are innumerable, and artistic creation is an inherent need in all of us.
How do we get to the point where our artistic endeavors are balanced? Let’s see what two accomplished dancers have to say.
I’ve known Jennie Creer-King since my college days. She was one of the directors over the Ballet Showcase Company at BYU while I was there. With an amazing career performing with both Ballet West and Oregon Ballet Theater, she’s taught classical ballet in the 20 years following. When watching her dance, every movement comes from her soul and speaks to the emotions of students and audiences alike. I’ve taken her adult ballet classes off and on for around a decade. She bought paintings from me for the lobby of her studio, Central Utah Ballet Academy (for more info, visit their website https://centralutahballet.com/). She explains how ballet affects her and her students, both competitively and cathartically:
“Ballet is one of the most influential and beautiful part of my life. It allows me the freedom to explore physically, emotionally and mentally all aspects of my life. Training in classical ballet develops young students on these same levels, appropriate to their age. It teaches discipline and empowers them to have ownership over those aspects of their life.”
I discovered that Louis van Amstel from Dancing with the Stars teaches a ballroom fitness class at the Provo Rec Center. He’s one of the original dancers on the show and appears in 31 out of the 33 seasons! Ballroom is outside of my comfort zone, but the way Louis cares about his students makes the fact that he’s a world champion and famous fun. Attending his classes allows me to enjoy his ability as well as pushing my own(for more info on LaBlast Dance Fitness, check here https://lablastfitness.com/). His class gave me the inspiration to redo a ballroom-based fairy tale painting (to see more of my artwork, here’s the link https://sabrinajill.com/). When asked about how ballroom has informed his life, he replied:
“Looking back as an adult that has a lot more life experience, it was a way for me to express myself without needing to share any work verbally. I could vent through the power of the movement-to-music relationship, and that kind of then drove my competitiveness. I liked this feeling of being able to process things that were going on at home without needing to tell anyone so I didn’t keep it in. That was my drive, to want to win, but it wasn’t necessary at the expense of someone else. Winning feels good because you’re achieving things, you’re putting in the hours–the blood, sweat, and tears.
You want to be on top of your game, and if that results in the world championship gold medal, that is wonderful. Then when I won it once, I wanted to do it again, but it was never really about being judged. I feel that’s the healthy way of being competitive–you don’t compete against someone else, just towards your goal. Fast forward many years. The goal was to be the only one being able to do what I do, but then you create something that everyone can do. For me it’s a completely different challenge now–how many people can I get to do a LaBlast class? How can it help change their life in a good positive way.”
The take-away from these two successful dancers is that when you embark into the world of creativity in the vehicle of your choice, do it for the right reasons and you’ll never be let down, no matter how far you go. So what are you waiting for? Take that culinary arts class, buy a set of watercolors, or show up at an adult dance class. Push yourself to become better, let those emotions flow, and be ready to be richly rewarded.
