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30. The Path to Artistic Fulfillment in a Dance Career with Michaela King
145 Plays2 months ago
Michaela King is a professional dancer with Madison Ballet. She has also danced with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Suzanne Farrell Ballet and in the musical, On the Town, as a guest artist with Capitol City Theatre. Michaela is currently pursuing her bachelor’s degree in political science at The University of Wisconsin Madison.
In this episode, we chat about Michaela’s experience starting her career with a larger ballet company and the artistic and personal growth that came with moving to a smaller company, embracing contemporary works, and stepping into lead roles. We also get into her non-traditional path to a college degree and how she balances her dance career with academics. Michaela is one of my favorite role models for dancers - her story is a testament to resilience, passion, and the power of embracing change!
Key Moments:
- Early dance training [1:35]
- Training at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s Grad Program and getting her first contract with PBT [4:05]
- Making the move to Madison Ballet [14:40]
- Michaela’s favorite role to dance in her professional career [25:13]
- Performing in her first musical, On The Town [28:25]
- How Michaela is earning her college degree while dancing professionally [32:04]
- Michaela’s passions outside of dance [36:02]
- Her biggest piece of advice for dancers pursuing a career [38:20]
Connect with Michaela:
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/michaelaking94
Links and Resources:
Get your copy of The Ultimate Audition Guide
The College Dance Decision: thebrainyballerina.com/the-college-dance-decision
1-1 Career Mentoring: book your complimentary career call
Let’s connect!
My WEBSITE: thebrainyballerina.com
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thebrainyballerina
Questions/comments? Email me at caitlin@thebrainyballerina.com
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Transcript
Introducing Brainy Ballerina Podcast
00:00:00
Speaker
Even though I'm a professional and this is my job, I am a student, I am here to learn, I am here to grow, and to always work hard. Sometimes in dance, whether you're a student or whether you're a professional, you might not feel like your casting is reflecting your hard work, or maybe you feel like your teachers don't love your dancing. But if you work hard and you know that, you can take pride in yourself.
00:00:25
Speaker
and your work and be proud of that regardless of all of those outside factors.
00:00:31
Speaker
I'm Caitlin, a former professional ballerina turned dance educator and career mentor. And this is the Brainy Ballerina podcast. I am here for the aspiring professional ballerina who wants to learn what it really takes to build a smart and sustainable career in the dance industry. I'm peeling back the curtain of professional dance world with open and honest conversations about the realities of becoming a professional dancer. Come along to gain the knowledge and inspiration you need to succeed in a dance career on your turns.
Meet Michaela Kane
00:01:06
Speaker
Hello and welcome to the Brainy Ballerina podcast. I'm your host, Caitlin Sloan, and I am joined today by Michaela Kane. Michaela is a professional dancer with Madison Ballet. She has also danced with Pittsburgh Ballet and Susan Farrell Ballet. I've been so lucky to get to know Michaela on a personal level.
00:01:23
Speaker
since moving to Madison. I am so thrilled to learn more about her dance career today. Mikaela, let's start from the beginning. Will you tell me why did you take your very first dance class? Sure. Well, first of all, thanks so much for having me on here today, Caitlin. I'm really excited to get to be here on this podcast. So I started dancing when I was about four or five years old. My mom put me in a ballet class because she thought it would be a good activity.
00:01:49
Speaker
to do something for me to be active and kind of run around and get my energy out. And she never thought that it would stick. Every year, she would ask me, you know do you want to enroll again? Do you want to keep dancing? And I just fell in love with dance. What was your training like growing up? So when I first started dance, I would take these like combo classes, which were like a half hour of ballet, half hour of cap, half hour of jazz.
00:02:17
Speaker
And I kind of did a mix of different styles. And then it wasn't until I was about 10 years old, I transitioned to a new dance studio and all they did was ballet.
Transition to Ballet Training
00:02:28
Speaker
So I was a little bit unsure how I would feel diving into that and kind of putting tap and jazz and those other styles of dance on the back burner. But once I started at the studio, that's when I really fell in love with ballet I could tell that my teacher she just took on this very different approach like really instilling discipline and technique and the terminology and I feel like I hadn't taken dance classes at that serious level. I mean I think when I was younger I always worked hard and I you know I had fun and loved performing and being on stage but this was the first time it felt very serious like I was really training for something.
00:03:07
Speaker
probably about two to three years later I went on point when I was around 13 and that's when I started going to summer programs.
Choosing Home Studio Over Big Ballet School
00:03:16
Speaker
So like many dancers I would audition every summer and I went out to Chautauqua and Suzanne Farrell Ballet and Carolina Ballet and every summer I would spend those weeks training and then return back to my home studio. Looking back, I think that was the right path for me, but at the time, I was always begging my mom to let me train year-round at a big ballet program like the Rock School or Pennsylvania Ballet or something like that. and
00:03:45
Speaker
She was like, no, I think it's important for you to be at home and, you know, finish school. And you're at this very nurturing, loving studio, which I was now looking back. That was the path I needed to be on. But at the time I felt like I was missing out on being with.
00:04:02
Speaker
a big school. Yeah, it's so hard at the time. You end up going to Pittsburgh's grad program, right? Mm hmm. Did you go there after you graduated high school? I did. So after I graduated high school, I was like, Finally, yes, I'm allowed to audition and leave home and go train somewhere.
00:04:19
Speaker
So I auditioned for a couple different places and I was offered a scholarship at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. So I went to their summer program and then I stayed on for their grad program. Even though it's called their grad program, there was no school involved, but it was just dance training all day. And I loved it. I started at 8 a.m. in the morning. With the school, I would dance till 3 p.m. and then we would sometimes have extended rehearsals until 6 p.m. with the company.
00:04:46
Speaker
for things like nutcracker, if we were in snow and flowers, or if we were needed to fill in in the quarter ballet and the company production. So I was dancing all day long. Now I don't think I could go back to those hours because that's insane. Well, you're pretty much doing that still.
00:05:03
Speaker
I think it's just starting at 8am that I'm like, I don't think I could do that again. Yeah, that is really early.
Competitive Ballet School vs. Nurturing Studio
00:05:10
Speaker
But I felt so inspired getting to see this professional company, getting to peek into their rehearsals and sometimes be under setting one of them in the background. My class was very big. I think there were 40 or 50 of us. So it was a little bit intimidating to go from this home studio where my ballet teacher was like a second mom to me and it was so nurturing and loving and I had always felt very safe and supported to kind of diving in head first into this big school that did have amazing training but it was a bit cutthroat and competitive and for the first time I was experiencing
00:05:48
Speaker
all of those things at once. So while I loved it, and I felt like I was thriving, it was also like a wake up call like, is this what the ballet world really is? Do I want to get myself into this? Do I want a professional career? So it was a, I think a big time of growth for me for sure.
00:06:07
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, you're 18 years old, right? I was 18. It was my first time living on my own. I remember my first place I was sharing a one bedroom with one of my friends. And our apartment was so tiny, we had to have bunk beds. There wasn't even enough room for us to have two beds side by side. And you know, you're cooking on your own and doing your own laundry. and I had done all of those things at summer programs. But I did feel very independent being on my own in Pittsburgh.
00:06:37
Speaker
I remember I did not have a smartphone at the time. And I didn't have a car. So I had to navigate the public transportation system and take the bus alone. And I remember that feeling very scary because I'd go on Google Maps and find my route and then I would just leave my house and I had to figure it out because I didn't have a smart phone. Yeah, and those were the days to like you printed out your directions and then if something was closed or like you couldn't go that way you didn't you couldn't just like reroute exactly like there'd be an announcement over the bus like there is a detour and I'm like oh no I didn't turn out those directions where do I get off I remember actually one time going to an audition in Detroit and I was going from like my parents house in the suburbs and I printed off my Google map directions and the exit was closed
00:07:26
Speaker
and I was so lost. I missed the entire audition. I ended up like at a Starbucks in Detroit just calling my dad crying. I don't know where I am and he had to like direct me out of there, but I truly don't know how I got anywhere without my smartphone. like I can't navigate without it.
00:07:44
Speaker
I know I rely on it so much now even to like drive around places that I sort of know how to get to. I still rely on my maps. Oh yeah. So how are you coping with being so young and being on
Finding Balance Outside Dance
00:07:56
Speaker
your own?
00:07:56
Speaker
Honestly, I think I probably was not coping the best. Like now that I feel like I'm here in Madison and I'm much older and it's my second company, I've learned how important it is to fill your cup in ways other than just from dance and not make dance your whole world. And at the time when I was in Pittsburgh, those two years that I was in the grad program, ballet was my life. I mean, I woke up and that was the first thing I thought about and I danced all day. And I feel like every choice I made from what I was eating to how I should cross train and even who my friends were, it was all so connected to the dance circle. And I feel like I made every decision
00:08:43
Speaker
for dance, which I think it's important to be a hard worker and if you want to achieve this goal of being a professional, you do have to make sacrifices. However, I think it's very important to have a balance and I think I did not have that.
00:08:59
Speaker
And as a result, after two years in the grad program, I was offered an apprentice contract and that was amazing. It did feel like a dream come true to have that company contract in hand and PBT is a part of a union. So I had this amazing AGMA contract and that felt wonderful to get a paycheck and I had health benefits in a 401k and often in dance companies.
00:09:25
Speaker
You don't have those things just because the company is small and they they can't afford to offer that.
Coping with Injuries
00:09:31
Speaker
However, I continue to keep ballet as like my whole identity in my whole life. And then I started getting some injuries.
00:09:41
Speaker
I think I was a little bit overworked and I started to get all these stress fractures in my feet. So I feel like I was always at physical therapy and I had to sit out of some shows. And as a result, I feel like that made me very sad and depressed because I was like, who am I without dance? And it was so hard to sit on the sidelines. And even now when things like that happen, of course it's a bummer to have an injury, but I'm still a person. I'm still Michaela. I have things that fulfill me and make me happy.
00:10:10
Speaker
And life goes on, I'm not going to fall into a deep depression if I have to sit out of class or not participate in the rehearsal. So that was very hard and I feel like I was still so young. I didn't have friends outside of dance, so it was very hard for me to, I wish I had a mentor or people who could have helped guide me a little bit more through that process.
00:10:32
Speaker
And another thing I was struggling with is in the grad program, I felt like all the teachers were very supportive and encouraging and would push you, but in the company, the artistic director holds your career in their hands. And now they have new leadership and I think the company has changed a lot. but at the time, this director, he liked a very particular look, very teat, tiny dancers, blonde dancers, and I just didn't fit that look. And I knew I was hired for a reason. However, my two years as an apprentice, I did feel like it was this struggle. I felt like I was fighting my body and
00:11:12
Speaker
not feeling good about myself because I felt like I didn't fit into this box of what this director wanted. but They cast everything. You know, you're trying to do everything to please them. So I felt like I was putting all of myself worth into just trying to please this director and be the perfect dancer so that he would cast me and everything and move me up through the ranks. And that just was not the case.
00:11:38
Speaker
What prompted you to move from Pittsburgh to
Joining Madison Ballet
00:11:43
Speaker
Madison? When I was in the company for two years, there was a part of me that was so happy because it was my first company contract. I got to dance all of these amazing ballets at the time. PBT was very classical.
00:11:57
Speaker
So I was in Swan Lake, Bayadare, Cinderella, Peter Pan. I mean, just I got to dance all these incredible classical full length ballets. I had this amazing AGMA contract. However, there was a part of me that realized if I stayed there, I was just going to be in the court of ballet.
00:12:17
Speaker
which can be super fulfilling, but I wanted more and I was also only going to be dancing very classical rep and I was very interested in getting to learn and try out some neoclassical works and contemporary. Does the mere thought of audition season make your palms start to sweat?
00:12:37
Speaker
Do you feel completely overwhelmed with getting everything together on top of your regular dancing schedule? I've been there and I totally get it. As dancers, we spend hundreds of hours honing our technique and artistry. But when it comes to figuring out how to put together a resume or what to expect in a professional audition, we're often left to figure it out ourselves. That's why I put together the ultimate audition guide.
00:13:01
Speaker
This is your one-stop shop for everything you need to tackle professional company auditions with ease. No more spending hours Googling and trying to piece together a somewhat coherent audition package. With this guide, you'll be ready to conquer audition season like a true professional.
00:13:17
Speaker
We're talking resumes, head shots, dance photos, dance reels, plus info on how to find auditions, what to wear, what to expect, how to budget, mindset tips, you name it, it is in this guide. You are ready for this moment. Head to the show notes, grab your copy of the Ultimate Audition Guide and empower yourself with the knowledge to approach audition season like a true professional.
00:13:41
Speaker
However, the decision to leave was not made by me. My director met with me and he said my body was not right. I felt like that just kind of confirmed the struggle I had been feeling after two years, like no matter what I did, I just wasn't going to fit into this mold. I was struggling with a lot of injuries. I felt like I was struggling to take care of myself. Overall, I felt like I wasn't my best version of myself there, even though that's why I wanted so bad.
00:14:10
Speaker
So when I heard that I I was devastated It was so hard to hear that and to know that I had to leave and you feel a little bit out of control as a dancer You don't really get to pick where you want to go. So I did auditions, you know in the perfect world I would have been like, oh I want to dance here at this company, but that's not how it works so I came to Madison Ballet and after my audition my old artistic director at the time I offered me a contract, so I was very elated to know that I could continue to dance and had a new company to go to. I had never been out to the Midwest before, so I did cry when I knew I was moving here.
00:14:54
Speaker
But now now I love Madison. i mean This is my home, and I love the people and the environment. But at the time, I didn't know what I was getting into. I was afraid it was just going to be all cornfields out here with no art scene. But that is not the case. So I moved out here, and I have been with the company for quite some time now. I've had three artistic directors. So the person that originally hired me is no longer here, but I have been with the company as it has transitioned from different leadership. But overall, I am
Adaptation to Artistic Direction Changes
00:15:27
Speaker
so much happier here. Now it is a much better fit and I feel like I am a a whole person, a whole dancer in a much better place.
00:15:38
Speaker
There's so many things that I want to talk about, about what you just said. But I want to start first with talking about working under three different artistic directors, even with the company for almost 10 years. Yes. And now it is kind of crazy to think about in my career, I have worked for four artistic directors, one in Pittsburgh and three here. And I think that is a little bit unusual, not unusual,
00:16:00
Speaker
in the sense that I know dancers will move around in companies, but I've only danced for two places and I've worked for four artistic directors. While that is a bit unusual, I have enjoyed getting to work with different people and I feel like I have learned so much from each person.
00:16:19
Speaker
The artistic director who hired me, he was very Balanchine. So that was a little bit of a change coming from PBT, where it was very, very classical. So he would do some neoclassical works, but he loved fast footwork and spotting front and turning from a big, long fourth position. And those were things I was not used to.
00:16:43
Speaker
So working for him, it pushed me to grow in those areas and challenge myself trying these different little nuances and stylistic things. With my second Artistic Director, he stepped down and The board was looking for someone to fill in, and this woman stepped in. It was supposed to be temporary, but then COVID hit, so she ended up staying with the company a little longer than I think she had expected. But it was also great to work with her. I feel like she was completely different. It was my first time working for
00:17:20
Speaker
a female director, which I thought was very exciting. I had only worked for men before. So she just brought in a new perspective. I feel like she would focus a lot on footwork and point work. And I think that's nice to have as a female dancer, someone who can really help with the core work and who knows those little nuances of like when you're dancing with the core where your arms need to be, where your port de bras needs to be, how to shape your feet and appoint shoe. I would say she was definitely more classical. And then the board here, they finally found their full-time director to take over. So she stepped down and my new boss is Jean Malik.
00:18:01
Speaker
And I think he is the best artistic director I have ever worked for, hands down. I feel like he's definitely trying to change the culture of ballet with making everything about dance just more progressive.
Innovations at Madison Ballet
00:18:16
Speaker
In general, I feel like ballet can be very rooted or stuck in old traditions, whether it's the ballets and rep that you do or people's perspective on bodies and how you should look. So I feel like he's trying to shift all of that and I love getting to be a part of that progressive change. Yeah, that's really cool. I've really loved seeing the company evolve too and having seen the shows over the past, I guess like three years or so and and really seeing like what you're talking about because I did see that more classical rep with the previous director and now moving into having John Malik, it's definitely more contemporary, but you also are still holding on to that really strong classicism like Giselle was beautiful. I mean, you're still doing those things too. So it's just very cool to see how the company is evolving, but you're not losing what you had before either. It's all just growing. Absolutely. What was it like going from a bigger company and doing more full length and just having even like a ranked company to going to a smaller company where you're doing more contemporary works.
00:19:19
Speaker
it is unranked. Yes, it was a big change. When I joined PBT, I feel like I didn't have anything else to compare it to. So I kind of thought every company operated that way and had these AGMA contracts and were ranked and did all these classical full length ballets. So when I made the switch to Madison Ballet, it was a huge pivot.
00:19:43
Speaker
And I think at first, before I joined, I was very scared and nervous that I was sort of giving up a part of myself as a dancer, that I was not going to be as worthy of a dancer because I wasn't doing Swan Lake anymore. And that's so silly. That's not the case.
Challenges of Solo Roles
00:20:02
Speaker
What I do every day looks a little bit different, but it doesn't mean I'm any less of a dancer. If anything, I feel like it's a lot harder to be in a small company. I think the biggest thing for me was when you're part of a court of ballet, I think it's fulfilling to have that teamwork. You feel like you're part of like the greater good. You're not the star on the stage, but you're in the background, you're sweating, you're dancing, you're part of this beautiful picture, but you're sort of on the sidelines. And when I joined the smaller company, at the time it was there were less dancers. I think there were maybe eight or nine of us. And immediately I found myself dancing on stage in duets or alone or in trios. And I felt this
00:20:52
Speaker
pressure in a good way, like, oh, I'm carrying a ballet now. I'm not just in the background. like All eyes are on me. And that was very exciting. And I feel like once I got a taste of that, I wanted more. And at this point in my career, I do not desire to go back to being one of 32 women in the court of ballet. I feel like I put my time in and did that. But that's no longer fulfilling to me.
00:21:17
Speaker
So I love that small companies offer so much dancing to all of their dancers in the company. I think that's something that's very overlooked, but it's so underrated. I think it's so fulfilling and really pushes you as an artist to grow into soloist and principal roles, which now I'm very lucky to be getting to do those.
00:21:40
Speaker
I also think it really pushed me to grow as an artist. I was no longer just focused on classical quartet ballet work, which is beautiful, but it's a lot of arabesques, a lot of standing on the side in B plus.
00:21:55
Speaker
And sometimes I felt like I wasn't really dancing. I felt like I had to tone myself down to fit in with the other women around me. And in a small company, even if it is a little bit more classical, I feel like you're given the space to show individuality. I think that's something too that John really embraces and encourages. Even if I am sharing a role with another dancer on stage, he'll encourage us to be different and bring ourselves and our who we are into the role. And
Emphasizing Individuality in Dance
00:22:30
Speaker
I love that. I feel like I no longer have to try to look like anyone else. And I can really express my artistry and individuality on stage.
00:22:40
Speaker
Yeah, you can see it. You can see it when you're watching the shows because everyone just looks so truly confident because they are being given the space to dances themselves. Like as a dancer, you know, when you go to watch a show and you like feel like nervous because you know what's gonna happen and you know, this next step is a hard step and you're like, Oh, you feel nervous for them. I never feel that watching Mass and Ballet because everyone is just so sure of themselves. You're all such beautiful dancers, but you're also given the space.
00:23:06
Speaker
to really be yourselves and to go on stage. I can go into the performance and just like relax and enjoy it and I'm not nervous and I just love that feeling. It's so cool. I love that. That's so good to hear. I do feel that way when I'm dancing alongside all my colleagues. I feel like we all support each other and encourage each other and I think that helps to take away that competitive feeling of ballet. I think it will always be there but I feel like I don't have to try to look like or dance like my friends next to me that I get to be Michaela and I think that takes a lot of pressure off and then allows you to just be confident in what you're doing when you're performing.
00:23:49
Speaker
Do you want to stop worrying about what's next after high school? You're not alone. Many dancers struggle with the decision of which path to take after high school. Should you attend college for dance? Should you strike out on your own in the real world of professional dance? How do you know which path is right for you? I've been there myself. That's why I teamed up with my colleague Gina McFadden of Dancer360 to bring you the college dance decision.
00:24:14
Speaker
The College Dance Decision is a digital course that will help you take stock of what you really want after high school, develop a plan and a backup plan toward achieving your goals, and provide actionable advice to connect with your parents to bring your dreams to life. We've been in your shoes. And while we took completely different paths, we both came out on the other side with professional careers in ballet. Let us save you countless hours and dollars by providing you with the structure to make an informed and powered decision about your future.
00:24:45
Speaker
Head to the link in my show notes and take action to cut through the fog of anxiety and confusion and finally get a plan for your dance future. What has been your favorite role to dance in your career? This is going to sound so cliche, but sugarplum in Nutcracker. It was something that I had always dreamed of getting to dance. I think it's because Nutcracker is one of the first ballets you see as a child. And I remember seeing my local home studio putting on a performance of it and I wasn't in it at the time, but just seeing it and wanting to be a part of it so badly. When you're young, you know, you're a soldier and you're a mouse and you move up through the ranks. And when I moved here to Madison, I had never danced sugarplum.
00:25:38
Speaker
A few years after joining the company, I was given the opportunity to and it was just a dream come true. And I know some people get sick of the music. I love the music when I hear the power and the variation. Oh, it's so beautiful. And I, I always told myself I could retire after I've danced it. So now that I've danced that role, I do feel like my career is complete. I hope to keep dancing for a few more years, but Yeah, that was that was my like dream role. yeah Do you have a role that has been the most challenging? I would have to say Giselle. I got to dance the second act of Giselle this past season and it was such an honor to be cast
00:26:25
Speaker
in the role and to get to dance the part, but it was so challenging. I feel like I have never been cast in a ballet like that before, aside from doing quarter ballet work, which I feel like is very different. What I thought was very challenging about this role was since we were starting with the second act, from the moment that Giselle stepped on to stage in her first entrance, you had to already be in character. You didn't have the whole first act to start to develop that.
00:26:54
Speaker
You had to step out and immediately be there so that the audience could feel it. You had to immediately be connecting with your partner. The port de bras is very I found that to be very challenging. It's I don't think precise is the right word, but you can't just throw the arms away. You really had to think about what.
00:27:16
Speaker
you were trying to say with your body, with your eyes, with each gesture. On top of that, it was a lot puffier dancing it than I expected with all the little jumps and patita legro and footwork. So it was a very challenging rehearsal process, but it was also very rewarding and fulfilling.
00:27:37
Speaker
to get to do it on stage. And when the time came to perform, I had one show. And I was excited to get to just go out there and leave it all out on stage and not hold anything back since it was a one and done performance. So in some ways, that kind of took some of the stress off, like, I can just go out there and give it my all. And that's it. Well, and you were gorgeous. I told you this, but I cried. I was so beautiful.
00:28:04
Speaker
tell you I also want to talk about being in a musical. I read this in your bio when you sent to me and I didn't know you had done that. And I think that's so cool. So I'd love to hear about that experience. ah Yes. So a few years ago, there was an opportunity to collaborate with a company here that puts on musicals and they had reached out to Madison Ballet asking if they could use three of their dancers. The musical is on the town, which I hadn't heard of before, but since performing it, I know a lot of ballet dancers have done roles in it. What an incredible, fun opportunity to be a part of.
00:28:46
Speaker
I had no idea what to expect. I do not consider myself a singer at all. You had to sing? I had to sing. We were very much in the background and I was definitely brought in for my dancing, not the singing. But it was a great experience the first day I remember walking in. I did have two of my colleagues with me, so it was very nice to feel like I was not alone. The first thing I noticed was how welcoming all of the cast was. And I don't know if that's typical, but it definitely felt like a different culture outside of ballet. It felt like
00:29:23
Speaker
Very, very positive. It just was a very different energy than I had typically experienced. I feel like usually on the first day of joining a ballet company or something like that, everyone sizing each other up and it feels a bit competitive. But this was such a warm, welcoming environment, such high energy.
00:29:41
Speaker
And we would start by learning our lines and singing for part of the day and then the second half of the day. We had dance rehearsals and it was all very fast paced and a lot to take in. But at the same time, it was so fun and exciting. And I would say that performance was definitely a highlight in my career. I was singing and I was dancing. and I never thought I'd be doing something like that, and if the opportunity ever presented itself again, I i would love to. I think I would need to take some some singing lessons. At the time, we didn't really there wasn't enough time to prepare. We would practice in the studio, but if I knew I could be in a musical a few months down the road, I would definitely take some singing classes.
00:30:28
Speaker
I know that would totally take me out because I can't carry a tune so I think that's very brave. It was a different kind of challenge to be dancing on stage but be singing at the same time because I find when I'm just dancing I do think about my breath and how I use it in my movements but you're using it in a different way and you can't be too physically exhausted and then have nothing left to sing and give so that was kind of an interesting balance of you didn't want to get too fatigued, but still keep high energy while moving to also be able to sing and be performing from up here. Yeah, were you also like rehearsing with the ballet at the same time? I was not. Luckily, this was during the layoff. So it worked out perfectly with our schedule. I think it the rehearsals occurred after our season had just wrapped up. So that was a nice transition of we finished but we were still
00:31:23
Speaker
used to going in every day, still feeling pretty in shape and on top of everything and then just started these rehearsals. And it was a short process. It was only maybe three weeks, three or four weeks. So we put the whole production together wow very fast and then performed. But it was it was so fun. I loved it.
Balancing Dance with Education
00:31:40
Speaker
I also want to talk about college because I know you're pursuing your college degree at University of Wisconsin in political science. And I think that's really cool that you're taking this kind of unconventional path toward a college degree. I'd love to hear about how you make this work because I think a lot of dancers feel like you either have to go to college out of high school or you don't go at all. And I'd love to hear about how you're making this all work. Definitely. So when I was younger, after I graduated high school, at the time, I was not interested in going to college at all. I had no interest in going to school. I just wanted to leave home and dance all day long. So at the time, that was the right decision for me. I think things are changing, but I kind of felt like there was this stigma, like if you went to college
00:32:22
Speaker
and chose to dance there, then it was harder to get into a ballet company, which is not true at all, nor should it be like that. But I felt like I had heard things like that from teachers at the time. So I thought, if I want to be a professional, going to college is not an option. Once I moved to Madison, when the pandemic hit, I was laid off for 18 months.
00:32:44
Speaker
And I had always wanted to go to school when I moved to Madison. At that time, I i it felt like i I had been dancing. I was interested in going to school. It just never quite felt like the right time. But during the pandemic, I was no longer dancing. I had all this time on my hands. So I thought it'd be the perfect opportunity to dive into school. So I enrolled full time at UW-Madison. I think I did two semesters as a full-time student and that was a huge pivot, but I loved it. It was very different to go from dancing all day long and moving around
00:33:24
Speaker
to just sitting all day and doing homework. And at the time it was all over Zoom. So I didn't quite get the experience of going in person and getting to be on the beautiful campus and have those in-person lectures. So that was a little bit of a transition, but I loved it. I feel like with school, it's less subjective than dance. And what you put in is what you get out. And I really liked that aspect of it.
00:33:51
Speaker
I love checklists and feeling like I'm accomplishing things so with my homework I find it very satisfying to do an assignment and turn it in and get feedback right away and just get to focus on something else. Even now as I'm dancing I feel like it's nice to get to turn off dance at the end of the day and kind of switch gears.
00:34:12
Speaker
and use my brain in a ah whole other way. Now that I am dancing, I am no longer going to school full time. I'm just doing usually one class a semester, and then over the summer, I'll go full time. I am a senior, so I've made progress. I am maybe 18 credits away from graduating, but that's probably going to take a few more years going at this speed.
00:34:36
Speaker
It has been a lot to juggle at times, but I feel like now I've gotten into a rhythm of how to manage my time. And I feel like dancers are really good with juggling their time because before I was in school, I would teach most evenings. So instead of that, I'd replace teaching with my homework and my school classes. So usually I will structure my time where when I'm done dancing for the day I'll come home and make dinner and then just spend an hour or two on school. And i I find that if I do a little bit every day, then it's not so overwhelming where I have to put in all these hours on a Friday night or a Thursday night before a big rehearsal day.
00:35:19
Speaker
So I find that works the best. On the weekends, I'll do a little bit, but it's also important to have downtime too and really enjoy a rest day. So I feel like by doing a little bit every day during the week, then on the weekends, I don't have to stress as much and I can truly have some downtime and some
Life Beyond Dance
00:35:35
Speaker
rest time. Yeah. So what do you like to do when you're not dancing?
00:35:39
Speaker
Well, I have three cats. So I am a crazy cat lady. I honestly love being at home. I feel like I'm a homebody being at home with my cats, watching a good show. I'm currently planning my wedding.
00:35:56
Speaker
I'm getting married next year. My fiancé is not a dancer, so I do not see him at the studio. So at the end of a long day, I love just coming home and hanging out with him and making dinner together and catching up about our days. So honestly, just the simple things. I feel like those are my favorite hobbies, having a glass of wine on my balcony and catching up and having good conversations, something like that.
00:36:22
Speaker
For self-care, I do love baths. I probably take a bath once a week with all the bubbles, all the Epsom salts. I feel like it's so good for like your mind and body. So that's something I'll treat myself to when I have some downtime.
00:36:38
Speaker
Yeah, definitely. What do you see yourself doing after your dance career? Do you have an idea of how you might transition when that time comes? Hopefully not, you know, super soon, but at some point? It is something I have thought about. I want my degree because I feel like it will open up Doors for me, however, I'm not sure. Exactly what that will look like. There's a part of me that has interest in continuing to work for an arts organization, but in a different capacity, perhaps in like development or working with donors for a ballet company or something like that.
00:37:17
Speaker
There is another direction I could see myself going as well where I could bring in my ballet background and that would be as a massage therapist. There is this amazing massage therapist that works with the company and I feel like doing something like that working with athletes or working with dancers would be amazing and I feel like I could bring in my knowledge of the body and injuries I've had and the body work I've had done. So I think that could be another route and perhaps I could do both and maybe massage would be a side thing but that's sort of where my my interests are right now.
Advice for Aspiring Dancers
00:37:54
Speaker
Yeah, you have so many options.
00:37:56
Speaker
Before we wrap up, I would love for you to tell us if you could give aspiring professional dancers pursuing a career a piece of advice, what would you tell them? Ooh, I love this question. I think my piece of advice, what I say to myself every day before I go to work is always check your ego at the door.
00:38:21
Speaker
and I tell myself I'm always a student, I'm always learning. Even though I'm a professional and this is my job, I am a student, I am here to learn, I am here to grow, and to always work hard, sometimes in dance, whether you're a student or whether you're a professional, you might not feel like your casting is reflecting your hard work, or maybe you feel like your teachers don't love your dancing, but if you work hard and you know that you can take pride in yourself,
00:38:51
Speaker
and your work and be proud of that regardless of all of those outside factors. So those are things I just try to tell myself as I approach my dancing. That's really good. Thank you so much for this, Michaela. This has been really fun to learn some more things about you that I didn't know. And could you just tell us how we can find you on social media? but You can find me on Instagram at MichaelaKing94. Okay, perfect. Thank you so much, Michaela. I loved this. Yeah, so great chatting with you.
00:39:23
Speaker
Thank you for tuning into the Brainy Ballerina podcast. If you found this episode insightful, entertaining, or maybe a bit of both, I would so appreciate you taking a moment to leave a rating and hit subscribe. By subscribing, you'll never miss an episode. And you'll join our community of dancers passionate about building a smart and sustainable career in the dance industry. Plus, your ratings help others discover the show too. I'll be back with a new episode next week. In the meantime, be sure to follow along on Instagram at TheBradyValorina for your daily dose of dance career guidance.