I'm surprised at how much effort I ended up pouring into this speech. I thought I might just improvise, as improvisation is critical to who I am as a professional jazz dance artist, and I'm certainly comfortable performing in front of people! That said, I don't tend to improvise in front of people with WORDS - unless you count the ridiculous yet, at least I'm told, often funny ramblings of my St. Paul Saints Baseball Entertainment Team character Nerdette!
I struggled to land on something that didn’t feel self-aggrandizing. But I love to reflect and write, so, I’m gonna take the whole five minutes - she says, to the shock of NONE of her English teachers :)
Being inducted into the Prior Lake High School Laker Hall of Fame really is an honor I feel quite proud of, and I know my K-12 schooling had a big positive impact on my trajectory as a professional artist, and my life in general.
That is to say . . . I think my life so far has been neither ordinary nor extraordinary. I've built a pretty unconventional career, in as competitive and sometimes unforgiving a field as the performing arts no less, but I'm not a household name (is there such a thing as a 'famous choreographer'?! Depends on who you ask!). In the grand scheme of things, my work only directly impacts a small group of people. At least once a year, I find myself wondering whether how I spend my professional time makes any difference beyond myself. But I do keep landing on 'yes, it does.' If I didn’t, I’d change careers! I’m proud of the career I’ve built in the arts, the teaching I do and the professional dance performance company I co-founded and run. I do believe that what I've chosen to spend my career on - dance - creates a worthwhile positive impact. It fosters free expression, which is critical to the health of ourselves and our societies. It asks us to joyfully reconnect with our embodied selves alongside others. It, like any art, encourages finding the beauty in our seemingly mundane, the extraordinary in the ordinary.
It means a lot to me that my nominator Carol Ottoson has seen the extraordinary in myordinary, in context with the education I received in independent public school district 719, and nominated me to be recognized for it. My own equation for success has included elements of both hard work and privilege, both intentional living and good fortune. Within this, most importantly, I've had many overlapping circles of outstanding people who see my spark and support me. People like my English teachers - many of whom were also my theater teachers - Myka Hanson (who was Flanny to me), Jeff Hoeg, Chuck Lundstrom, Carol Ottoson and Sarah Strege. My music teachers - Rob Hahn, Thomas Hassig, Keith Koehlmoos, Jim Miller and Terri Thomas.
These teachers really understand how important it is for young people - and really, all people - to express themselves, no matter how mundane or ordinary that expression might seem on the surface. While I’m under no illusion that as an artist, I’ve thought or created anything “new,” per se, these teachers taught me, among many other things, that what makes an expression impactful is the unique perspective of the person that delivers it. Many teachers in other subjects, throughout my schooling, also made a big difference in my life, including math teacher Jeff Yost, who, despite knowing I strongly disliked the topic, showed up early many mornings while I was in his class to help me understand lesson content that was hard for me. It made me want to achieve, even when it comes to tasks for which I don’t particularly care (see how I didn't end that sentence with a preposition, English teachers?!).
I also want to thank my parents for the love they've poured into me. Being a parent now myself, I have a different kind of appreciation for how they often bent their lives around the many interests I pursued, driving me countless places in the process, and how, when many parents would discourage their child from doing so, they supported my desire to become a dancer and artist. They continue to show up for me, in so many ways. As do my colleagues, my friends - many of whom I met at PLHS - and my incredible spouse Kris. Not to be left off this list are my little kiddos Niko and Jovi, to whom I owe a debt of gratitude for being constant reminders that the world is full of beauty just waiting to be noticed.
Let's keep finding the extraordinary in our ordinary, friends. Thank you for this honor!
Again, this honor brought up a LOT for me. Through it all, I’m really grateful for the experiences of this past weekend, and for the honor itself :)
No comments:
Post a Comment