Dancing Through Life: Lessons in Artistry, Resilience, and Growth
Reflecting on my journey as a dancer, teacher, and mother, I have learned that dance doesn’t end when life changes or gets busy—it transforms. Each season has deepened my understanding of what it truly means to move, create, and inspire. Looking to the future, I hope to show my students and their families that dance isn’t confined to one stage of life. It grows with us, adapting to who we are and where we are headed. Each dancer will have a different story to tell, but this is a glimpse of what my journey has been like so far and the reflections I have made.
Isabella with her Dance Professor Dan and sister Willow Donnachie at the Hylton Performing Arts Center at her final performance at George Mason University.
Fresh out of college and newly married, I was a bright 21-year-old at the peak of my dance potential—or at least it felt that way! With relatively few responsibilities aside from our “straight jobs” (a term borrowed from a wise professor who warned us that most dancers can’t expect to pay the bills through dance alone), the opportunities seemed endless. I could hop on a train to New York for a workshop with Complexions Contemporary Ballet, fly to London to audition for the iconic Rambert, or assist with choreography for local theatre companies like Servant Stage Company. The world felt open, full of potential and opportunities. Young dancers have an ideal vision of what a “successful career” as a dancer will be like… typically something along the lines of moving to a major city to perform in a top tier company. The reality is that each dancer will have a unique path that is almost guaranteed to be nothing like what we expected.
My husband, Emmanuel, had begun performing with Kun-Yang Lin Dancers, a Philadelphia-based company. After a season of commuting, we were seriously considering making the move to Philly in pursuit of further dance opportunities—par for the course for professional dancers. Then came March of 2020 and suddenly the world shut down. In the midst of the covid pandemic, dance changed all around the globe. Stages went dark and many studios had no choice but to shut down. However, in a providential turn of events, this was the push that we needed to take over the direction of Susquehanna Dance Center and preserve the vision of ensuring quality technique classes for dancers of all ages here in Lancaster, PA. With the challenges the studio faced, it would have been reasonable to close the doors, but we envisioned what a fresh start could look like post-covid. We took a risk that has more than paid off as we see the flourishing of the studio today! That period reshaped how I viewed dance. It stopped being just about achievement and performance, and began to center on connection, creativity, and resilience. Teaching and dancing through Zoom and YouTube gave me the chance to connect with other dancers online and push my physical abilities to the maximum (being stuck at home for weeks with nothing to do but exercise definitely helped!). I also challenged myself to explore personal creativity and sharpen my focus as a teacher, preparing for our return to the physical studios with a renewed sense of purpose.
Years later, dance continued to evolve for me—more recently, through the lens of motherhood. My oldest daughter was just under a year old when I danced alongside our talented students and fellow alumni in our brand new ballet, Sylvia. I didn’t know what to expect dancing postpartum, but this performance gave me the encouragement and confidence that I needed to continue pursuing dance in this season. Two years later, after delivering my second daughter (twelve days fashionably late!), I found myself breastfeeding a two-week-old baby between calling cues and managing backstage chaos at SDC’s spring recital. These were surreal moments that perfectly captured the balance between my roles as an artist, teacher, and mother.
Earlier this month, I had the unplanned opportunity to dance in LUNA Dance Company’s season performance. Four months postpartum, on my first day back to company class, one of the dancers broke her foot. Before I could overthink it, I was stepping into her role for the guest artist piece. This performance came with a sense of pride and also frustration. I surprised myself at how I was able to step up to the opportunity and be present in the dance world even as I struggled to feel like myself with changing hormones and physical challenges that were the result of a body that was and is still healing. Postpartum dancing so blatantly exposes physical limitations which can be frustrating, but I have also felt the push to explore other aspects of myself as a more mature dancer. My capability for emotional depth and authentic artistry is greater, despite the more present physical restrictions and challenges due to postpartum or just getting older! To be honest, I feel like I’m only scratching the surface of what it looks like to explore artistry in this new season of life. I can already feel the burden of self-deprecation weighing me down as I struggle not to compare myself to others or to former versions of myself as a dancer.
Isabella in rehearsal with Luna Dance Company.
When I envision my students at Susquehanna Dance Center—kids who have danced since they were three-years-old, adults who have just started their dance journeys, and all the students in-between—I am reminded of the genuine value this art form holds at every stage of life. I share these reflections to encourage students to continue their pursuit of dance in whatever way life allows.
Isabella teaching Level A2/B Ballet
Instead of being frustrated or disappointed at the limited opportunities to perform, or all the movements my body cannot execute perfectly, I am learning to have gratitude for the way that dance continues to be present, challenge me, and foster growth in my life. This is something we strive to communicate to our students and by experience, I believe it has made me a better teacher. Students are not limited to only one path when it comes to dance. It's not about fitting into a mold but instead, letting dance evolve into whatever it needs to be in each season of our lives.
It is a gift to move the bodies that we are given no matter how that might change over time. The restrictions, the aches and pains, the exhaustion, and the mental fog are evidence of how challenging dance can be, on top of the existing challenges of daily life. I have felt the temptation to give it up and questioned whether I should continue performing. But I am constantly amazed at how strong and resilient our bodies are when we choose to push through. This is the type of sacrifice that leads to so much reward. In every season of life, dance teaches discipline and fortitude; it fosters creativity and confidence. These are values I continue to learn myself, ones that I hope my beautiful daughters will absorb, and what I will strive to pass on to each student I have the privilege to teach.