Life Backstage: How A College Senior Balances Dance And Pre-Med
What’s the reality behind balancing modern dance and pre-med? Amari Norman tells all about the busy college lifestyle.
In the heart of endless career choices, Amari Norman spends her college years acing a performance one night and an exam the next morning. A lifestyle calling for balance beyond the dance studio.
Amari Norman is a rising Oklahoma University, or OU, senior. She is working through a modern dance performance major, a social justice minor, and on the pre-med track.
In the science lab, she conducts experiments looking for the correct chemical equation. Meanwhile, she looks for the perfect combination of steps in the dance studio.
She uses the analogy that the dance studio is a lab for experiments within her movement, thus building an understanding of the two career paths. She credits her OU professors for this mindset.
Time management helped her master balancing modern dance and pre-med with her time management.
Day in the life
Norman faces a challenging schedule when balancing modern dance and pre-med. Therefore, discipline is a must — the summer requires it as she prepares for the upcoming dance season.
Here is a break down of her daily schedule:
During the school year
9 a.m. — Dance class
Firstly, Norman attends a modern dance class. The class requires improv or spur-of-the-moment dancing.
They exercise the connection of movement and breath and importance of momentum through suspend and release motions.
Specifically, the class includes a warm up, across the floor combinations, floor work, improv, and arranged dances. After that Norman feels ready to continue her school day.
11 a.m. — Class
Next, Norman moves from modern dance to courses like organic chemistry, changing her focus from one passion to another.
At Oklahoma University, she completes the required courses for her pre-med track. In addition to class time, Norman spends hours each week on homework.
No doubt, she needs rest throughout her day to keep up.
12:30 p.m. — Lunch break
2 p.m. — Lab for class
Following her lunch break, she attends a lab course.
Many of her pre-med science courses include a lab section. As a result, physical learning helps Norman understand complex concepts.
This section typically lasts two to three hours.
5 p.m. — Dinner break
6 p.m. — Rehearsal
Lastly, depending on the day, Norman returns to the studio, where the OU Modern Dance Team rehearses for the upcoming show.
Instructors give music and counts for the dancers to learn. The group perfects the piece with practice.
Rehearsals for the upcoming show typically last until 9 p.m., sometimes giving her a 12-hour school day.
During the summer
She keeps up with her fitness by taking pilates classes. Pilates is a series of low-impact motions that work the entire body. This helps Norman maintain her strength and flexibility.
Unless she can dance at a professional company in a summer workshop, which is what she is up to now.
Workshop Daily Schedule
9 a.m. — Ballet class
Firstly, the workshop begins the day with a ballet class.
Although Norman is a modern dancer, she mostly did ballet growing up.
The workshop is with Big Muddy Dance Company, a St. Louis-based contemporary dance company. St. Louis Post Dispatch’s Go! Magazine recognizes them as the “Best Local Dance Company.”
The class begins with a warm-up at the barre before dancing in the center.
Then, Norman moves to center work. Center includes adagio, pirouettes, petite allegro, and grande allegro. In detail, each combination focuses on a different skill: controlled movements, turning, small jumps, and big jumps.
11 a.m. — Contemporary class
Secondly, Norman takes a contemporary dance class. This is a style of dance that combines the strong legs of ballet and the fluid torso of modern. Norman works to find the overlap between the two techniques.
Contemporary classes include a warm-up, center work, improv, and arranged dances.
The class can be more engaging than other styles of dance. The instructor guides Norman through finding the intention behind each move.
1 p.m. — Lunch break
1:30 p.m. — Jazz class
Jazz is a lively style of dance that focuses on energy and rhythm. Following a morning of strict technique, she enjoys the change in style.
Another focus of jazz is isolating body parts in steps. Differing from ballet and contemporary, changing weight between feet can be an immediate motion. Each step needs style, but not grace.
3 p.m. — Repertoire
Repertoire is time learning material for the performance at the end of the workshop. As a result, the dancers spend hours learning movements, counts, and formations.
Students receive corrections to improve their dancing. Repetition helps alter their muscle memory and create good habits.
Finally, each day of the workshop ends at 6 p.m.
Making it to Med School
Medical school sounds intimidating to most, including Amari Norman. But her dream to provide preventative care for children leads her there.
Ever since I was little, I wanted to be a doctor.
Amari Norman
While Norman was in high school, she helped at her local hospital. This volunteer opportunity confirmed that this was her career path.
She loved working with children as a camp counselor and wanted to include it in her medical career. It confirmed her choice to be a children’s doctor.
The challenge of balancing modern dance and pre-med is worth it to reach her long-term goals.
As she nears graduation, she anticipates her final classes before moving on to medical school.
How does she do it?
The feeling of performing makes the long days worth it.
Norman feeds off the energy of the audience during each show. How she interprets the material can differ from how the audience perceives it. The reaction of the audience fuels her love for the art form.
It’s almost euphoric. I feel pure love for what I do and I hope it shows in my artistry.
Amari Norman
Power of Positive Thoughts
To beat the nerves before a show, she uses positive thinking.
Dancing takes confidence and ambition. Although the audience sees the final product, they miss the long rehearsals and hard work creating the show.
Group work is standard in modern dance. The dancers must match each other’s energy and movement.
Norman and the other OU dancers huddle behind the curtain to soothe the performance jitters. They take three deep breaths and then repeat a positive quote together.
Nothing to prove, everything to share. No guts, no glory.
OU Modern Dancers
She understands that relaxation is vital for her success in school. The ultimate challenge is making all three work in harmony.
Sometimes an exam and a performance fall during the same week. Time management is critical. With breaks between rehearsals, she uses this time to study so she can rest at the end of each day.
How can you do it?
Take it day by day.
Choosing a career path for money over passion is the expectation. However, Norman believes choosing her two career paths for passion has helped her succeed.
She advises college students to build their stamina slowly. Take on one task at a time to prevent feeling stressed out.
As a freshman, Norman didn’t understand her abilities. Still, she continues to surprise herself.
She reflects on her college experience so far. What does she consider the best part?
All the people you meet and spending time with them.
Amari Norman
Following your passion can bring you the support system you need. Norman found these connections at OU.
After graduation, she plans to dance professionally for a few years before attending medical school.
