My love of dance was present for as long as I can remember. I will never forget

when I was 7 years old being in a video rental store (where you used to go

before streaming to pick a movie to watch!). My family did not have very much

money at the time, so as children we knew to never ask for items we saw in the

store. However, on a shelf, I saw the New York City’s Ballet’s Nutcracker and

accompanied illustration book, and knew I had to have it. Even though it was the

day after Christmas and we had just received gifts, I brought it to my dad and

begged him to have it. He relented and purchased it for me. I took it home and

watched it over and over again, memorizing the music and dancing along to the

best of my ability. My parents found a way to pay for ballet classes for me the

next year. My first ballet classes were in the basement of a teacher’s home who

taught some classes out of her house. Those few classes fanned the flame of

love I had for ballet and dance that would last for years to come. When I was 10,

I started at my first real studio, and when I was 13 I moved to a pre-professional

ballet studio that focused on Vaganova technique. Those were challenging years

as I was “behind” everyone else in my level when it came to pointe. My technique

in ballet class was good, but everyone else in my level had been en pointe for

two years before me, so I had some catching up to do. Thankfully, I had amazing

teachers who pushed me to my best. I began teaching at 16 years old to the

youngest of little ballerinas and discovered a whole new passion for how dance

could impact my life and also be used to impact the lives of others.

Dance has been a stabilizing point in my life, helping me to release stress,

express emotions, build friendships, create, and discover confidence in myself.

Ballet has left me in tears of frustration and joy. It has taught me had to push

through “good pain” and recognize when I need to take a break due to “bad

pain”. I love challenging my students to be their best, express their true selves,

create beautiful art, challenge themselves, and never give up. I have been

blessed to dance, teach, and choregraph around the world and love to see the

confidence, joy, and growth that it can bring.

Ms Alyssa teaches Company Ballet, Intermediate 3 Ballet, Intermediate 2 Ballet and Pointe and Variations