Dance Student Spotlight: Kiera Wong

Meet Kiera Wong, 16, from Vancouver, Canada, where she dances at Studio Pointe (@methodofmodernmovement @studiopointe).

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

I started dance at the age of 3, doing preschool classes at the local recreation center. I didn’t find my love for the art form until I was about 7 when I first watched a performance of The Nutcracker Ballet. It was then that I discovered that ballet was my passion and what I wanted to do and joined my community’s dance studio. This past year, I wanted to improve further and elevate my training and now dance at Method of Modern Movement as part of their level 4 Studio Pointe program.

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?

Like many dancers, I’ve faced and had to overcome my own challenges. With ballet being so difficult and demanding, I constantly am faced with obstacles.

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

As stated earlier, the journey of an aspiring dancer is never easy. It’s very tempting to get caught up in constantly comparing yourself to others. I’m not a naturally flexible person and constantly have to work towards this. I also have flat feet, which can make it difficult to dance en pointe. I’m also quite small and often don’t fit in dance ensembles. I noticed this a lot at my old studio, where formations were oddly formed, or the costume never fit. As many dancers could also tell you, dance is not at all cheap. With the cost of pointe shoes, leotards, costumes, etc., it all adds up. When not dancing or doing schoolwork, I run my small business @ballet.bun.blooms as my contribution to dance fees. Each Bun Bloom sold goes towards supporting a dream. If all this has taught me anything, if you work hard and persevere, you can make anything possible.

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

Not so much now, but I’ve definitely experienced a small amount of this at my past studio. As a young dancer, it’s easy to let negative comments get to your head and this was no exception. Because of my flat feet, I was told that I’d never be able to dance en pointe at the same level as those who naturally had arches. This greatly impacted my thoughts towards pointe work and caused me to always have a negative attitude towards pointe. I soon realized that having flat feet or lack of flexibility isn’t the end to one’s dance training and used this negative comment as motivation to try harder. Some do have natural arched feet that look beautiful on pointe, but I knew for myself that this was something I would have to work for. The main thing to remember is that having to work harder for something is ok. It doesn’t make you better or worse than anyone else. I now do constant exercises for my feet, including the use of a foot stretcher and thera band.

How do you conquer negative talk?

To conquer negative talk, I think of my values and what is important to me. This keeps me from slipping into that negative mindset hurtful words can cause. I often try to turn negative comments into motivation to try harder and persevere towards a goal, such as working on my feet for pointe work.

What is your favorite quote?

“I may not be there yet, but I’m better than I was yesterday.”

So, what’s next? Any big plans?

Though I don’t plan on dancing professionally, the art form will always be a part of my life. This, of course, doesn’t mean I don’t have hopes and dreams for the future. I’ve always wanted to compete in YAGP and live the experience and hope to do so next year once the pandemic loosens its grip. Until then, you’ll find me at the studio, working hard towards my goal.