Dance is my life, and when I say that, I mean that. I dance everyday of the week, at least for 3 three hours a day, private lessons, group classes, duos, trios, anything you can think of.
     

According to an article on the Physics of Dance, dancers seem to defy gravity while performing amazing feats such as leaping through the air, gliding on the floor, or maintaining balance on their toes with minimum contact on the floor.  They must be athletes and artists all in one and maintain precise control over their movements.
     

I have been participating in dance for 11 years, and my passion continues to grow throughout every practice. Seeing myself improve keeps me motivated, and makes me work harder than I ever have. Not only am I a dancer, I am also a dance teacher; to portray my passion of dance through the kids I teach is an unbelievable experience. You cannot force a kid to love everything they do, but when I see those kids having the time of their life, enjoying every second and soaking up all the information I’m throwing at them, it fills my heart with joy and gives me a purpose. As you can see, I am extremely passionate about dancing, and nothing makes me angrier than when people have the nerve to tell me dance is not a sport. The physics behind dance, and the strength needed to dance, make dance a sport. The balancing for turns, the difficulty of dancing with partners, the ability to defy gravity when leaping, etc. The main concept in a dancers mind is to make the performance look effortless, when in reality it is the opposite.

After I am done performing, I always have people tell me that I look like I can “turn for days”. Even though I make it look like a piece of cake, there are so many elements involved in being able to do 20 turns in a row. Physics of Ballet references that because of "conservation of angular momentum, you can change the speed of a turn when en pointe by extending or retracting a leg,” in a Fouetté turn, you extend your leg every time you face the front, and swing it around to keep your momentum going. Once you start to lose your rhythm, or balance, everything goes downhill. Also, besides focusing on your leg extending at the right time with your knee straight and toes pointed, and balancing, you must keep a “spot”, focus on one item in front of you and try to keep your eyes on it at all times. Don’t forget your arms, they don’t just hang there, they play an important role too. When your leg swings to the side your arms open, and when your leg comes back into a passé position, your arms close. Its never fun when I go to a competition and the stage is super slippery, it takes ten times more control to make sure your foot doesn’t wobble, that you have that constant rhythm with your balance.

Turning is one of the most difficult things to conquer, but besides turning the other important quality is jumps/leaps. It’s like magic; you must be able to jump high enough to create a full split in mid air without allowing gravity to drag you down. It looks pretty, and seems easy. So stand up and try to do it. Not so easy now is it, gravity loves to pull you to the ground, and the more force you use to go up, the quicker and harder you come back down. Gravity is the only force acting on a dancer in mid-air.  Dancers must create the illusion of floating, with a taller height, the jump looks more elongated and elegant, yet its harder to have long legs and be able to get up in the air and stretch both legs out. Watching professional dancers might have you question the physics of dance.

Turning and leaping is a hard concept, now imagine doing that with a partner in sync. I have done my fair share of partner dancing, and judges of competitions say that duos are the hardest dance to dance. Everyone has their own style when they dance, but when dancing with another person, you must lose all of your own style and do EXACTLY what is taught. My friend and I did duos for 5 years in a row, because we were practically sisters, we understood each other and danced very similarly. I could never imagine dancing with someone I just met; everyone adds his or her own special flares. When doing partner work, such as lifts, it is defiantly a science; my weight must not over bare my partner’s weight. Otherwise we will topple over, you have to find that perfect medium of balance, and practice.

After dancing for so long, it seems like a second nature to me. But I look at videos and pictures of me in the beginning and I look clueless. Practice really does make perfect and when you see improvement it works wonders. That is why it frustrates me and makes me upset when people say dance is not a sport, it is more than just running around and getting dressed up. Dance requires dedication, motivation, and strength.

Dance is more than a sport; dance is the one way I can express myself without having to say a word.

Work Cited

"Physics of Ballet." Physics of Ballet. Web. 4 Nov. 2015.
"The Physics of Dance." The Physics of Dance. Web. 4 Nov. 2015.