Foreign Art Forms

As an acting major, I obviously have a very strong appreciation for the performing arts. I find any type of art inspiring because it creates a common energy and a common bond between all people. Though there is one type of art that I admittedly don’t know enough about. The art of dance. I tried when I was little to get my mom to sign me up for ballet… I even promised her I would play baseball if she let me take classes! Well, I played baseball (ran to third base first most of the time) and she never got around to enrolling me in dance classes. Nonetheless, I have always wished I possessed the grace and poise that professional dancers hold. This past Friday evening, I attended Ball State’s semester dance show, Icons In Motion. The premise behind the show was to create pieces around famous icons from history. There was an entire piece dedicated to the Beatles and one inspired by a classical composer who’s complicated name I cannot remember at the moment. But the piece I found most intriguing was the one dedicated to Billie Holiday. Maybe if my mom had followed through with her promise of dance classes, I would be able to tell a little bit about exactly what kind of dancing they used to portray Billie, but I can at least say that all of the movements very clearly represented Billie’s spunk and class in the time period she comes from. It was more of a story than the rest of the pieces. It actually inspired me to research more about this icon when I left the show. Her story was one worth sharing. Now, don’t get me wrong, the rest of the pieces were absolutely wonderful. The show offered me a glimpse into the world of a dancer; a fellow performing artist. We tell our stories and spread our messages in different ways, but I could see in each dancer the same passion that I see radiating from my fellow classmates every single day. I gained an appreciation for this art that has always seemed foreign to me.