Historically, dancers in the DFW area have faced the same choice that dancers in every other part of the country must confront---whether to stay among the ranks of the amateur, or to pursue the professional path. Both lifestyles, unfortunately, carry significant personal cost for an artist. Those dancers that choose the professional route are frequently forced, due simply to the nature of their art, to sacrifice some of the fundamental ingredients of happiness, such as family, health, financial security and longevity of career. Contrarily, those artists who forgo the professional prospect to experience the everyday joys present in a more traditional lifestyle frequently find themselves missing the fulfillment and challenge of artistic study, collaboration, and most profoundly, the opportunity to express themselves creatively---to perform.
The formation of Dallas Dance Company, however, has bridged the gap between these two formerly divergent worlds. Founded by Michelle Davis, DDC was created for the specific purpose of providing quality, gifted, disciplined dancers, who have, for varying reasons, chosen professions other than that of dance, with a venue through which to showcase their considerable performance abilities.
Perhaps the most compelling aspect of DDC is the company members' belief in and dedication to the merits of dance education. Over seventy-five percent of the company members are either full-time dance instructors, or are corporate professionals who make the time to teach on a part-time basis in the evenings. The members of Dallas Dance Company possess a conviction that the lessons learned through an exposure to the field of dance are invaluable attributes for young people to acquire, and therefore, have dedicated their careers to imparting these characteristics to their students.
Classified as semi-professional, and possessing the non-profit 501c3 status, this troupe of twenty to twenty-five women engages in intense weekly rehearsals, focusing primarily on the genres of contemporary and jazz dance.
