By Sarah Schofield
“If you train for something your whole life then one day get an injury you think, ‘What am I going to do with the rest of my life?”
-Hailey Proud
[1]Hailey Proud, 15-year-old contemporary, jazz and ballet student of Angela Maracle Studios on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2011 has been dancing since she was five years old. While she has dreams outside of her dancing, at this point it plays an integral part of her life. Photo by Sarah Schofield.
Silver eyeshadow, thick black eyeliner applied in a way that resembles a young Elizabeth Taylor and a single braid tucked in a low ponytail on the left side of her head say it all: Hailey Proud is a perfectionist.
Walking into 377 Front Street’s Angela Maracle Dance Studio one afternoon a couple of weekends ago on one of those idyllically perfect autumn days, it seemed that chilly weather had arrived as fast as the falling leaves in Belleville, Ont. There was a sense of excitement downtown that day as the city was hosting its Flavours of Fall event. The excitement wasn’t just limited to the streets though. Walking in the dance studio, young students were running up and down the long hallway, which was lined with the students’ performance photos, into doorways which led to their studios.
Among the dance students was a 15-year-old blond who immediately gave the impression that she took whatever came at her seriously.
Asked why she has continued to dance all these years, she said, “I feel like I’ve made so many friends. Dance gives me the physical exercise aspect of course but I feel like without dance I would just be lost. I wouldn’t know what to do with my time. I love it and it’s the highlight of my day. It’s the way I can forget about stress. I just couldn’t imagine my life without dance right now.”
Proud has been dancing since the age of five. She has tried many styles of dance over the years including jazz, ballet, and contemporary which she practises consistently. Hours are spent at the studio each week and weekend attending classes and even involves volunteering for events like Belleville’s Santa Claus parade. Dance is something she probably spends the most time on apart from going to school. While she loves it, she knows what she wants from it in life. She talks of going to McGill University to be a lawyer someday and maybe minoring in dance.
Arriving a week later, this time on a weekday, the studio had quieted down. The sound of the young dancers’ feet running back and forth was no longer there. From one of the studios, the faint sound of a female’s voice could be heard, singing a repetitious phrase played over and over from a cassette player. Peeking my head into a doorway where teenage laughter was coming from, I saw three girls lying down on the floor on their stomachs, like the way girls would at a sleepover. I barely got out, “Do you know where I can find Hailey Proud…”, when one of girl’s jumped up and said, “Hi, I’m here!”
She was barely recognizable from the week before when she had her hair down. This week she had her hair pulled back neatly into a ponytail. We walked into the waiting room consisting of a billboard with upcoming dance competition dates where she sat on one of the brightly painted chairs.
Asked about becoming a professional dancer she replied confidently, “Every dancer would love to become a professional dancer. It’s the dream of a dancer, but realistically it’s just so hard to make it in the dance world. It’s not just dance skill. When you try out for the National Ballet, it’s like, how much do your parents make, your weight, your size: everything matters. It’s really hard to fit the criteria and your dance career is really short. Then what are you going to do with the rest of your life?”
She has not just limited her thinking to the big role that dancing plays in her life,
“In 10 years, I see myself going to McGill University and doing a double major in dance and something else I was to do. I’ll just be starting out my career as whatever I want to be. I hope to see myself as independent, moved away from home. I hope that I’ll have some serious relationship and a future planned out. I won’t be married at 25 but hope to have the promise of a future. I want to have a business and make a difference.”
Sitting with her right leg crossed over her left, one hand placed onto the other, she looks at the cracked magenta polish on her nails and absentmindedly plays with them.
“If you train for something your whole life, then one day get an injury or are told you’re too big, you think ‘What am I going to do with the rest of my life?’ I started dancing when I was five years old, I loved dance right away and have been dancing ever since. I found that dancing was the thing that I was good at and looked forward to.”
As she spoke, that same female voice on the cassette player continued from a couple studio rooms over. The studio rooms were not the pristine, neutral coloured mirrored rooms we had been used to seeing in dance movies. Each of the rooms was painted at least two different shades of bright colours. Parts of the walls were missed which gave it a patchwork look, similar to the one your grandmother might have made. However, anyone could see that this place was special to Hailey and she would miss this place when she was gone. She would miss every imperfection just as much as she would miss every memory.
“My last competition I did with my best friend who has since left the studio last year. We competed against three other people and we came first. I remember running outside screaming and running in the pouring rain. Everyone was laughing and I think it’s the best dance memory I’ve ever had.”
With the end of that phrase she said goodbye and ran off to join her other dancer friends to create more memories.