I’m the mother of a dancing son, Julian, who began dancing when he was three. At 13, he spent six, sometimes seven, days a week in the dance studio practicing ballet, jazz, modern, contemporary, lyrical, hip hop, tap, and break dancing. His junior year of high school he decided to pursue only ballet at City Ballet School in San Francisco, CA. The next year, his senior year in high school, he moved to New York City, to attend the School of American Ballet. From there, he went on to live his dream. He’s now a soloist at SemperOper Ballett in Dresden German.
When he was younger, he had dreams of being an all-around dancer and possibly even becoming a triple threat — singing, acting and dancing his way to stardom on Broadway or in movies. In high school, he decided he wanted to just dance and then to focus on ballet (although he wouldn’t turn down a movie deal).
I realized what a difficult road it was for young male dancers to hoe early on in Julian’s career. So, I decided I wanted to support them. I thought I’d do it with a book based on interviews with some of the top male dancers. I began compiling the interviews, which asked these dancers for their best advice, worst experiences and tips for surviving the tough early years as dancers. The purpose was simple: provide role models and support for young boys who want to dance. I hoped the boys would be inspired to follow in these professional dancers’ footsteps.
Long ago, this book fell by wayside as my career as a writer, author, blogger, author coach, and Certified High Performance Coach evolved. My commitment to supporting young male dancers never waned, though.
This blog was meant to chronicle my struggles, what I learned, and my experiences with my son in the hope that maybe I would mentor some other parents of young boys who want to dance. I also hoped to mentor some dancin’ boys along the way.
While the blog lay mostly dormant from 2016-2018, more recent developments in the world of dance and my son’s career have prompted me to begin publishing posts here again. The purpose remains the same: to help young male dancers realize their dreams of become elite, world-class professional athletes and artists who grace the stages of the world’s top ballet companies.