The Dancer

Brenna Cleary

Department of Theater and Dance

First-Year Portfolio Review

3 March 2024

Strengths and Areas of Improvement

            My greatest strength is the ability to quickly comprehend and execute class combinations and choreography. This is a skill that I have always seemed to have since I began dancing at age ten. The most recent example is when I missed three rehearsals for Spring Choreography Projects due to practicum requirements and illness. When I was able to return to rehearsals much of the previous material had been changed and a great deal had been added, but with this strength, I was able to learn the material in two hours and have the steps memorized in proper order with the transitions cleanly executed. This skill is coupled with a strong performance aspect. I strive to always present my steps as if I were performing, with expression and perfection. This skill was grown through my eight years of ballet, modern, tap, and jazz training. A second strength is my emotional investment in the dance. Because I feel the emotions deeply, my storytelling can be more believable. I have always said that I express myself best when I am dancing and not through writing or even speaking. When I connect to the dance and understand what it is trying to portray, I can let myself perform it without worry and can share with the audience the message that is in the dance itself.

            My greatest strength is tied to an area that needs improvement. Since I am able to acquire the choreography fully and quickly connect with a dance piece, I get bored really easily with continuous repetition of steps in the classroom. Then my boredom shows in my actions. As a result, people observing me get the impression that I do not care about the choreography. I need to learn how to overcome this tendency and approach every step as if it needs to be perfected again. I do not experience this boredom when onstage since I am engaging an audience, but I realize that I could end up simply “performing what I practice,” and so, I need to address this issue.

             Confidence is also an issue with which I struggle. I am never positive that I know a step until I am being told that I am doing it correctly. Even though I can understand and perform combinations quickly, I question if I am right and constantly second-guess myself. I may appear to be confident on the outside, but on the inside, I feel very unsteady. This often leads me to portray an air of uncertainty or even hesitation when I am rehearsing. As I write this, I realize that these two areas of improvement almost counteract each other. On one hand, I can be seen as uncaring due to my lack of challenge with repetition, while on the other hand, I am terrified that I am doing it wrong. Until I step on stage with an audience, I deal with both weaknesses constantly. I want to engage in every step with attentiveness and with the confidence to not second-guess every movement whenever and wherever I dance.