Dance Student Spotlight: Janessa

My name is Janessa, 13, and I live in Singapore. I will be dancing at Yan ballet academy(starting June 3rd), and I have danced at ballet music company (since 2011, till June 3rd, 2021).

@_jxn_dance

Can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.

So I started when I was 3, and what inspired me was a video of Misty Copeland in Swan Lake and the music and the way her movements responded to the music was really graceful, and it just inspired me to dance. For the first few months, I would be watching ballet videos every night, and when I had nothing to do, I would be just at the corner "choreographing" /improving to any song in my head. When my parents saw, they decided to sign me up for class... And looking back, I have definitely grown a lot, and I remember my dream was to get pointe shoes, but now that I have accomplished that dream. I won't stop there. I want to go further, and I want to reach higher.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?

In my opinion, growth, improvement, and development are never easy. I remember wanting to give up every time I couldn't do a move perfectly, or I always got the same corrections over and over again no matter how hard I tried. But just closing my eyes and thinking about the end product was always my main goal and my drive.

What personal limitations if any did you go through in your young career?

My personal limitation was definitely myself because I am a perfectionist and everything has to be perfect. I slowly grew out of that, but sometimes I still want it to be perfect.

Has anybody ever tried to limit you on what you could do? If so how did you fight it?

No one has ever tried to limit me. Instead, I have my parents who keep on encouraging me and are proud of every single thing I accomplish.

How do you conquer negative talk?

I believe that they are just jealous of what I have achieved. I know that I have come this far from believing in myself and doing what I think is right.

What is your favorite quote?

"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement." - Helen Keller

So, what’s next? Any big plans?

I plan to go to competitions soon. I love the stage and can only be on stage during yearly performances. But I want to do more than perform. I really want to compete.