Ballroom dancing brings out best in student

From choreographing dances in her kitchen as a child to taking professional lessons, Bonnie Coleman, ’19, is taking the technically-sound steps toward her dreams.

Starting in May 2017, the psychology major starting private ballroom lessons as well as group classes. Growing up, Coleman was always passionate about dancing but she never took any lessons because of her parents’ work schedule.

Going from no formal experience in dance to a ballroom studio may seem like a big leap, but after some hesitation, Coleman decided to go for it. She was first asked to join the studio while waiting for a friend’s lesson to end.

“An instructor came over to me like ‘why aren’t you dancing?!’ and I explained that I wasn’t really a fan of partner dancing,” she said. “I tried swing dance here at North Central but I didn’t care for it.”

However, she decided to try out a consolation lesson and quickly realized she loved it. “I realized I could totally do this and I was competing with myself a bit like ‘if other people can do this then why can’t I?’” she said.

The time commitment at her studio is large, ranging from six to ten classes each week, but she has found a balance between school, work and dance.

“I put ballroom into my schedule just like anything else I have to do so it’s a priority,” she said. “It’s a big stress reliever for me. If I’m having a rough day just going there and focusing on the present and not worrying about school for 45 minutes helps.”

Because she spends so much time at the studio, she has become close friends with many instructors as well as the other dancers — even though few are close to her age. “It’s really fun being with people that are not necessarily my age because they have such different stories and perspectives,” she said.

While she has yet to delve into the competitive side of ballroom dancing, it is something she is looking forward to in the future. Ballroom is an expensive hobby, but it is something she cannot imagine her life without.

“Right now I’m just putting money and time into a learning experience,” she said. “If I were competing and potentially doing something to earn everything back, it would be even more rewarding in some ways.”

At the moment, she is working on perfecting the foundation skills she needs to move toward competing. Through this process, she is gaining new insights.

“I’ve definitely learned a lot about myself and being patient, just letting the process play out and not trying to force myself to do something I’m unable to,” Coleman said.