By Minah Seo
Sara Matthews is a member of the graduating class of 2014. Even with a busy schedule, she manages to keep on top of her academics and volunteering. She does dance both outside and inside school and leads the newly re-created Junior Dance Company at Collingwood. She is a very talented member of this year’s senior class and she hopes to go into an engineering program in post-secondary.
I chose to interview Sara because although she isn’t a full-time professional dancer, she is, nevertheless, an accomplished dancer with a passion to continue dancing regardless of her schedule. She admits that she would have wanted to dance more, but she is happy with what she has accomplished. In addition to dancing, she has also been actively playing soccer and sailing, especially with her dad during the summer. Sara is an active reader, browsing theoretical physics papers and reading cheesy novels.
Sara Matthews is a member of the graduating class of 2014. Even with a busy schedule, she manages to keep on top of her academics and volunteering. She does dance both outside and inside school and leads the newly re-created Junior Dance Company at Collingwood. She is a very talented member of this year’s senior class and she hopes to go into an engineering program in post-secondary.
I chose to interview Sara because although she isn’t a full-time professional dancer, she is, nevertheless, an accomplished dancer with a passion to continue dancing regardless of her schedule. She admits that she would have wanted to dance more, but she is happy with what she has accomplished. In addition to dancing, she has also been actively playing soccer and sailing, especially with her dad during the summer. Sara is an active reader, browsing theoretical physics papers and reading cheesy novels.
Sara has been dancing for as long as she can remember; it has always been a part of her life. Dance allows her to express herself in ways that she cannot do with words or any other medium. She believes that dance brings people together in that people have to collaborate in order to produce a piece or a show. She says that when an individual choreographs dances, the dance expresses the person’s thoughts and emotions – even if it is subtle and hidden within another story. When people choreograph a dance, they are inputting their thoughts and feelings openly for others to see and feel, like with other types of art.
Sara is inspired by literary and visual artists more than by dancers. She feels that their artwork and novels are what resonate with her for a greater amount of time than a dancer and his fleeting dance. Though the brevity of a dance is what makes it beautiful, she finds other artwork more memorable. Two people who inspire her are Oscar Wilde and Vincent van Gogh because both had challenges in their life but overcame them in order to pursue their passions.
As a dancer, Sara mainly does ballet, lyrical, and contemporary. Though she would love to do hip-hop or jazz, she likes the slow, emotion-giving feeling of the other styles. “Lyrical and contemporary are very expressive and contemporary allows you to move in interesting new ways. I like ballet because it is very traditional and makes me feel connected to the past,” says Sara. She is currently choreographing dances for the Junior Dance Company and working on a trio with Christine Joo and Shaquinna Perron for the Student Choreography Show. Her advice to the future artists of Collingwood is to do what they are passionate about and do what they love, regardless of the challenges and judgments.
Sara is inspired by literary and visual artists more than by dancers. She feels that their artwork and novels are what resonate with her for a greater amount of time than a dancer and his fleeting dance. Though the brevity of a dance is what makes it beautiful, she finds other artwork more memorable. Two people who inspire her are Oscar Wilde and Vincent van Gogh because both had challenges in their life but overcame them in order to pursue their passions.
As a dancer, Sara mainly does ballet, lyrical, and contemporary. Though she would love to do hip-hop or jazz, she likes the slow, emotion-giving feeling of the other styles. “Lyrical and contemporary are very expressive and contemporary allows you to move in interesting new ways. I like ballet because it is very traditional and makes me feel connected to the past,” says Sara. She is currently choreographing dances for the Junior Dance Company and working on a trio with Christine Joo and Shaquinna Perron for the Student Choreography Show. Her advice to the future artists of Collingwood is to do what they are passionate about and do what they love, regardless of the challenges and judgments.