What makes me a dance teacher?
megan hoyle
How's the weather?
Y'all been busy?
They grow up so fast don't they?
All questions that are mindlessly asked everyday stranger to stranger just to pass the time. And we have our pre-meditated answers don't we?
Good, but I wish this pollen would go away!
Girl, I can't complain.
I know! Tomorrow, she'll be driving!
The one I never really tire of hearing is "What do you do?". When I get that question I proudly exclaim, "I'm a dance teacher" or "I own a dance studio" or "I teach dance". I say it with a proud smile and a secret wish they'd ask me for more details because then I could get to the good stuff. I could talk about all the styles I teach, the ages of children at my studio, my own dance education, and my teaching experiences. No one dance teacher's journey to studio-hood is the same. But I'd like to take a minute to let you in on mine.
I began dancing at my mama's dance studio, Ms. Renee's Dance Studio, now known as MR Tappers... and if you haven't seen her traveling tap group... uuuuhhhh you should, their skills are amazing! I, of course have a fondness for tap being that it was my first love but I was a jazz diva with a capital J and I was a hip hop dancer... there was noooo denying that!
I danced on my high school dance team where I participated in several training camps and extended my dance education in a more commercial driven way. I saw the ECU dance team perform when I was 15 and that was it, I had my mind made up... I WAS going to do that one day... until, that is, I saw the ECU dance concert and I made an addendum... I was ALSO going to do that!
Well I traveled everywhere... all around NC dancing at intensives and festivals... traveled to New York City to dance in an off-Broadway tap show... then out to Colorado to partake in a Jazz Festival and Performance. I wanted to soak up everything dance I could get my hands on before I went to college and I truly was the most dance obsessed person I think I knew.
When I was 17, I was forced into teaching dance. Ok... forced maybe not be the right word. But it really didn't seem like there was another option or choice for me. See, when I was 17, my brother, four years older than myself was off being a big shot playing for the ECU baseball team. He had a massive stroke and all the sudden my world changed and turned upside down. My mom, like any amazing mother, was there by his side... and I, well I was there too when I could be. But I couldn't put a senior year on pause and had to find a way to cope and deal with what was going on in my life. I did the only thing I thought I was capable of doing, emotionally and physically... and that was to teach dance in place of my mom being that she couldn't be there.
I truly believe everything happens for a reason and as awful and horrible and confusing as those reasons maybe at the time, they are contributing to a bigger picture you might not be able to see yet. I went to ECU and tried out for the dance team and made it. I auditioned for the dance department and got in. I applied to be a Broadway Dance Center Summer Intern my junior year and was accepted. And all these authoritative figures, advisors, mentors, and professors would sit me down and asked what I wanted to do with my dance education and I said "I don't know... share it?". I didn't know what I meant at the time but I do now.
I graduated with this abundant knowledge from principal ballet dancers, and modern innovators, and jazz masters, and leading hip hop choreographers, and tap geniuses! And I still couldn't stop. I wanted more. I left NC after I graduated and went to NYC (for my 8th time I think) and I lived in Harlem, ate romen noodles like it was my job, and actually worked two jobs to pay for my rent and my dance classes. I had the opportunity to intern with Monica Bill Barnes, a crazy exceptional woman of creative dance power, performed in NYC again, and dreamt of choreographing and creating
all
day
long.
Throughout my dance education, it didn't seem right or fair to hoard all this amazing-ness to myself. So, I taught and passed on what was given to me. When I was younger, often for free, just to get it out of my head and into someone else's body. In college, I still drove 2 and a half hours back home to do so. I ended up teaching later at community art centers, studios all around NC, and created and choreographed for my own contemporary jazz dance company, Dior Dance (that might have a revival in the future)... still pretty much for free. I've taught beginners... dancers that were just starting out... and have seen some of my students go embark on their own dance journeys on university dance teams, prestigious college dance programs, and students that find success in their own terms.
I know now that all paths led me here. And all current paths will lead to my final destination one day. But I know for sure I will be teaching. I can't imagine a life where I didn't teach or choreograph. My professional training and my 15 years of teaching experience is really just a blimp on the radar compared to the legacy that that passion will leave behind. I'm still full of thoughts, quirky ideas, and inspired by my students to come up with various ways to keep them motivated, engaged, and progressing.
I think dance was always fun and something I enjoyed doing with my friends until it was something I HAD to do to save myself and used teaching as an escape to a different world. I've had parents come up to me and say "It's obvious you love what you do" and it's true I love teaching dance and I hardly think about anything else when I'm in the studio with those kids. I've enjoyed every moment of my education and I enjoy every moment trying to provide your students with the best dance experience possible.
Enjoy some pics from my past college days... hehehe
Left to Right: From a photoshoot down for Dior Dance, A photo from a performance piece choreographed by Monica Bill Barnes, My cast from my senior choreography piece at East Carolina University (and yes, we danced with feathers... so many feathers), and a performance action shot of me dancing on the ECU dance team.
Until next time,
Megan