The young women at Padua Academy have a variety of amusing talents, fascinating gifts, and inspiring stories. Padua 360 took the time to hear a few of their individual stories and share them with you.
Carly, Senior at Padua Academy has always had a passion for dancing. From the time she was two years old, her aspirations in dance have only grown stronger. Now at eighteen years old, Carly has seen her dance career blossom into something she has always dreamed of becoming.
As an older and wiser mentor, Carly devotes time teaching younger dancers who one day hope to become a role model for others. “Practice is key,” says Carly, “talent doesn’t come to you overnight. You have to work for it. My dance career has inspired me to never settle, no matter how perfect a dance piece can be. It has brought me to a place where I still continue to push myself further than my previous achievements, and I think that is something every dancer should take away everyday when they leave their dance studios.” Carly spends roughly five hours a day at her dance studio, Cecil Dance Center, in Maryland, where she adds on additional hours choreographing younger dancers. She comments, “I think teaching younger dancers helps them learn something new every day from an older figure who has once been in their shoes. I think it shows them a different perspective; learning from a dancer like me rather than their everyday choreographer gives them a new flavor of inspiration.”
Carly has taken the role as Sugar Plum Fairy for the past three Christmas shows on behalf of her dance studio, and she has also performed as the Black Swan last spring in a featured performance. Aside from her studio performances, Carly received a scholarship to Point Park University’s six week International Summer Intensive 2011 ballet workshop, where she was able to dance amongst a nationally ranked university in dance majors. She has also received a scholarship to Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet’s five week summer intensive 2010 workshop, and a scholarship to White Marsh Ballet Academy located in Nottingham, Maryland. In 2011, Carly attended the Dance Awards in New York City, where she took classes from multiple Emmy nominated choreographers such as Travis Hall, Mandy Moore, Sonya Tayeh, and Stacey Tookey, season five’s winner from SYTYCD, Jeanine Mason, and so forth.
Carly has been recently accepted to Shenandoah University with a $ 9,000 annual scholarship, which is where she will attend next fall. Shenandoah University is amongst one of the top universities and accepts only 20 applicants for BFA in dance. Carly shares her thoughts about how her dance career has brought her to where she is now. She says, “Dancing takes a lot of time and focus. Obviously the process isn’t easy. I learned from the beginning that if I want to make something to happen, it can happen. I believe that mental determination can beat any physical setbacks, as long as you continue to push yourself towards what your dreams tell you to do.”