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Starting the first day we wrote about performances we've done within a 2-3 year range which for me would include Bailando Dance Festival, Austin Dance Festival, DRT Points of Intersection, Front N' Center etc. 2-3 experiences I wrote about that I would like to experience are doing a performance with street dance styles or hip-hop, working with a student choreographer, and something out of my comfort zone, but that will ultimately helped me grow. Something outside of PDPR that will make things harder would have to be wanting to participate in more orgs on campus. The person I talked to about this was Natalia and she said she'd also want to work with a student choreographer and be a part of a hip-hop piece. She also said she thinks wanting to join more orgs as well could make things harder.

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What was exciting about Meredith's audition had to be the fact that it wasn't classical ballet. Although I still struggled with it, it was definitely more calming to do the combination to music I'm interested in. What was challenging was trying to remember all the steps while trying to maintain technique. This project would help me grow by helping me to loosen up in ballet and trying ballet in a different way than I have been learning it.

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The exciting thing about Le'Andre's audition was being able to confidently do this audition because it felt so good learning something familiar. It also felt great to be able to show my character within it because I felt so free while doing the combo. Something that was challenging about this audition was realizing I have to wait before I know if I will be in this piece which is scary because it's the piece I really would like to be in. I think being this project will help me grow by giving me the opportunity to learn how to pick up choreography faster because this is a residency piece.

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Frank Ocean- Novacane (Official Video HQ)

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Megan's audition was exciting because I love the combination of contemporary movement with R&B music, so it was very fun and groovy to do. A challenge I will say was doing the floor work at the end. It was a bit hard on the knees, but it was a great challenge. Megan's project will help me grow by allowing me the chance to work with a student choreographer in this bigger process and seeing some of what it's like to be in Megan's shoes.

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Love's audition was audition was exciting because I loved the energy she came with. I just loved the way she approached us and it made me realize all auditions aren't terrifying, but I know every instructors approach is different, which I'm trying to learn how to navigate all types of auditions. Something challenging about the audition had to be finding my own creativity in the music she played while doing the choreography. This process would help me grow by allowing me to grow more in musicality when it comes to dancing to music that doesn't have consistent counts or beats to it.

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What has been a delight for you in this process?

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What has been a delight for you in this process?

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What has been delightful about this process has to be getting to see the process of a student choreographer and watching Megan's way of approaching this whole experience. I really admire her for it because choreographing isn't easy especially being the only student choreographer in the show. I have loved watching it all come together and I appreciate her attention to the entire process.

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I've grown by allowing myself to be uncomfortable in process and not beating myself up over not having everything perfectly because I know it's going to take some time. Allowing myself to be uncomfortable teaches me to adapt and do the best that I can in any situation.

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I'm teaching myself to embrace myself as a dancer and to be okay with choreography that I create with myself and others when asked. Right now I don't feel like I'm great at choreographing, so I always feel like what I'm creating isn't as good as others. I'm trying to remember and tell myself that I am still a growing, everyone dancer is different, and my material doesn't have to match up with others around me. The video that I included is some choreography that Natalia and I had to create for a duet. I included it because this was something I helped create that I had to stop myself from beating myself up about.

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What connections are you making between this experience and other life experiences you are having?

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What connections are you making between this experience and other life experiences you are having?

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The piece that Megan is setting on us has to do with family, legacies, and the pressures and different thoughts that come with that. This has just really made me think of my own future and the pressure that I put on myself to do well in life for my family. I sometimes wonder about choosing dance as a career because going into college I would often hear the negatives of it. Although I had the support of my mom and immediate family, hearing the negatives made me think if I'm doing the right thing for my life because I want to be able to take care of my family in the future and support my mom how she's always supported me. I included a journal entry from one of our rehearsals and the prompt was write about something you are excited to carry on from your family. This was important for me to share because this prompt really ties into why I put a lot of pressure on myself to do well for my family.

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What has been challenging for you in this process?

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What has been challenging for you in this process?

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During the process of spacing and tech I feel like the most challenging thing for me was the waiting around. As a dancer it's very hard to sit still sometimes especially where your in the position and space to dance. It got really tedious, but allowed me to practice patience and self control.

I included this gif because this is literally how I felt waiting in one spot for a few minutes while they were programming different things. I was trying my best to be respectful and not move, but for some reason it's just so hard to just not move.

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What have you contributed to the piece and to the realization of a creative community of caring, kickass artists?

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What have you contributed to the piece and to the realization of a creative community of caring, kickass artists?

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I feel like lately I have been contributing commitment and intention within our piece as we have gone into spacing and tech. I think that now that the show is coming together with all the elements of lighting and costumes as well, it's easier to dive deeper into the intention of the piece.

I included this gif because this is how I feel after tech, spacing, and rehearsing the piece. I just can feel all of the emotions coming up now, but not in a bad way. I think it just allows me to really tap into to the piece fully now that we've put everything together.

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How have your expectations for this process been affirmed or challenged?

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How have your expectations for this process been affirmed or challenged?

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My experience with tech and spacing has affirmed my expectations for this process by really allowing me the chance to really get in the space and setting that we're going to be in. It really has just brought out the performer in me that I love which motivates me to do what I'm doing. Everything looks so good and I'm so excited for it all to come together.

I included the song pride because this song makes me levitate everytime I hear. It's just so good to me and this is how I feel everytime I'm on a stage performing.

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What connections are you making between this experience and other life experiences you are having?

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What connections are you making between this experience and other life experiences you are having?

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This piece has really become about remembering that leaning on the people who truly love me is more than okay especially with how heavy life is. There genuinely has been so much going on in my life and this world that allows me to connect with this piece on a new level. It honestly brings tears to my eyes everytime I do it now.

I included the song that is in our soundtrack for the piece because the song really talks about love and how it can make everything else irrelevant. I feel like this connects to our piece because we think about our own personal relationships with our moms or friends and how much they matter in hard times.

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I grew in this process by allowing myself, within each performance, to let go more and more while dancing. Performing each night was a battle of staying focused and in the performance space even though I was exhausted. I was able to push through and tried to always fully immerse myself into the world of Cyphers.

I included the gif above because this is how it was trying to stay locked in. It was hard somedays trying not to be overwhelmed or just give up so I really needed to stay focused.

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I've taught myself to enjoy every moment and take the full production in each night of performing. I was not trying to take this show for granted because it was so different from regular shows, but I loved it and it reminded me of home.

I included the picture above because this was a bittersweet moment of us taking cast photos on the last show day. It made me a little sad because it meant this would be our last time performing this work.

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What have you learned from someone else in your cast and/or the choreographer/creative leaders of your project?

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What have you learned from someone else in your cast and/or the choreographer/creative leaders of your project?

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I learned from Megan that the choreographic process is not easy as a student but it's worth it when you keep your vision and execute it how you see fit. It's not a simple or quick process, but Megan's patience and attention to detail in her piece made me in awe.

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What connections are you making between this experience and other life experiences you are having?

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What connections are you making between this experience and other life experiences you are having?

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I'm connecting this experience to my future profession and how to stay professional even when there are long show weeks and shows back to back. It has truly taught me professionalism and how to push through when I've reached my limit.

I'm including this song because it's a source of my motivation right now to keep going and to make it where I want to be. The message is powerful and it came out at a time I needed it most.

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Kendrick Lamar - man at the garden (Official Audio)