Wayland Teen Dances Her Way to a Fairy Tale

Dana Vanderburgh remembers the moment she fell in love with ballet and it has nothing to do with her favorite tutu or pair of ballet shoes.

Vanderburgh had been dancing for a couple of years -- she thinks she was about 5 at the time -- when her director at Wayland's asked her to present a visiting ballerina with flowers at the end of the guest performance.

"I was amazed and enthralled and excited and so inspired to give these flowers to what was this prima ballerina in my mind," Vanderburgh said. That moment sealed the dancing deal for Vanderburgh, who will next perform as a Royal Court Dancer in the upcoming Walnut Hill School for the Arts opera production of "Cinderella."

"It's going to be the classic fairy tale shown through opera and dance," Vanderburgh said. "It's for all ages. I hope that it will appeal to the young at heart."

At 17 years old, Vanderburgh has already danced in 11 seasons of Walnut Hill School for the Arts' productions of "The Nutcracker" and as Aurora in the Community Dance Academy's production of "Sleeping Beauty." Her favorite role so far was her stint as a member of the core in the ballet "La Bayadère."

She said she knows that many people brush aside the core dancers for a ballet to focus on the lead dancers, but Vanderburgh said she recognizes the core is a "very important" part of ballet.

As she turns and leaps her way through the many ballets in which she participates -- she is currently preparing for "Cinderella" as well as the spring repertory performance for Walnut Hill -- she said it is the role itself, not the steps, that separate each performance for her.

"The process is different for each show and each role that you're given," Vanderburgh said. "The choreographer and teacher demand something different for each role. It's not necessarily the steps because pieces can have very similar steps."

Even with the focus on the role and not the steps, Vanderburgh said she sees herself first as a dancer -- though she admits there are elements of acting in any dance performance.

"You can't be a dancer without being an actor," she said. "But I don't see myself as being an actor. I find that it's a different experience when you're dancing because you have to rely on your body instead of your words."

Vanderburgh, a junior, said she hopes her dancing can carry her through college -- her dream right now is to attend Indiana University, which has a "very good academic program as well as a very strong ballet program" -- and on to a professional dancing career.

She said she has learned through her years of dancing that there will be ups and downs during the training process, but she said dancers going through those tougher periods should take heart.

"Those discouraging moments are important because it means that you are committed to your art enough that you see room for improvement," Vanderburgh said. "And even though you may feel like it's not working out … the fact that you care about it shows that you still want to grow."

Though she loves dancing, Vanderburgh said she also dreams of some day doing humanitarian work in Africa, specifically in the Sudan.

For now she'll focus on dancing and spending the spare time that she does have with her family and walking their "big ol' mutt," Major.

"Cinderella" will play at the Perrin Theater at the Keiter Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday, March 31 and Sunday, April 1. Tickets are $15.

For more information or to buy tickets, visit http://events.walnuthillarts.org.