Dancers Kayla and Megan Henry are off to New York City for the Youth America Grand Prix, the ‘world’s largest dance competition’, which runs from April 22 – 29, drawing dancers from all over the world.
Kayla, 11, has been invited to dance in the YAGP finals, after placing second in both the classical and contemporary dance categories for her age group in the Seattle regional event last January. She will perform a ballet version of the Lilac Fairy and a modern solo. Megan, a Grade 10 student at Ladysmith Secondary School, has been invited to participate in the ‘intensives’, after finishing twelfth out of 75 dancers competing in her category.
For the sisters, both of whom train at the Kirkwood Academy of Performing Arts in Nanaimo, the stakes are high. A stellar performance, in the company of some of the best young dancers in the world, will bring them closer to their dreams of becoming professional dancers.
I talked to them Wednesday, March 23, in the company of their mother Nancy, and learned that poise, balance and grace are not only attributes they bring to the stage; they also show confidence and precision in conversation about what it means to leap, pirouette and stretch for a dream.
Normally I would not use a Q&A format for subjects as young as Kayla and Megan, but in this case, I felt it best to let the girls speak for themselves.
Hard Work?
Kayla: “There’s some days when you just love dancing – like, ‘wow, I had a really great class’ – and there’s some days when you’re like, ‘that wasn’t my best ballet class,’ and so you always have to just keep working.”
Megan: “Dance is definitely a journey, and that’s something I’ve learned as I’ve gotten older. The progression of dance isn’t instantaneous, so it takes a lot of perseverance. You’re constantly being critiqued by your teachers, and you have to realize that they’re not doing that because they don’t think you’re very good; they’re doing that because they care about you and they see the potential in you.”
“One challenging thing about dance is it’s so hard, and you’re moving in ways that the body isn’t designed to, you’re going against the natural structure, and you still have to go on stage and smile, and make it look easy.”
Motivation?
Kayla: “When you’re tired, and you’re like, ‘Oh I don’t want to do it again,’ and then you do it again, that’s what makes you stronger, and that’s what makes you a better dancer, is going past your limits.”
“If you just keep doing something that you’re comfortable with, then you’re just going to keep doing that, you’re not going to get better.”
Megan: “I think it’s really important to know when to push yourself, and really find the satisfaction in working hard. Definitely being a dancer, it’s really important to eat right and get enough protein – that’s one thing I make sure I get enough of, and knowing that you might have to sacrifice hanging out with your friends late at night, because you know you need the sleep to be able to go to dance the next day.”
Inspiration?
Kayla: “I still remember when I was about seven, that’s when I was like, ‘I really like dance, I want to be really good at dance.’ When I was younger it was just for fun, but then as you get older you decide: do I want to become a dancer, or do I just want to be a kid, and then I was like, no, I want to be a dancer. I really love dance, and that made me work ten times harder.”
Megan (who started dancing when she was about three): “Dance is really fun. Dancing is fun for most people, so I always enjoyed the fun of it, and I had really great friends, and I liked my teachers and the atmosphere, but then I think around the age of 12 or 13 is when I actually made a decision that, ‘no, I love dance, this is more than just a hobby, so I think from then on, that’s when I got serious about dance, which is a lot later than most people.”
Favourite thing?
Kayla: “When you’re dancing you’re not thinking about anything except dance, because that’s what you love. You’re not thinking ‘Oh I need to get my math homework done,’ cause you’re just so calm because you’re dancing. It’s just so much fun.”
Megan: “When you’re at dance, everything just goes away. It’s just a space where you get to work hard, and you get to enjoy yourself, and nothing else matters… In class you have these moments of clarity and satisfaction, where everything just goes right – you land that triple pirouette perfectly and you’re really on balance – those moments they pull you through the hard times and make everything worth it, and it’s even better when those moments happen on stage, and you get to show everyone else and they get to see your progress.”
