Claire Anderson: Leaping Into New Experiences at UNC School of the Arts

Claire Anderson in a recent Photoshoot with Andrew Bowen Studios Photocreds: Andrew Bowen Studios self submitted by Claire Anderson

Rosalyn Rabinowitz, Staff Writer to The Powderhorn

Emotion, movement, and expression define the art to which sophomore Claire Anderson devotes her time. Dance has been a part of her life since she was 3 years old and throughout the years, Anderson’s skill and love for dance has only continued to grow. As she entered high school, Anderson knew that she wanted to continue with dance post high school, leading her to audition for summer intensives, participate in Dance Conventions, and apply for UNCSA, one of the most prestigious art schools in the state. While continuing to excel in school, lead the Pacers dance group, and pursue dance outside of school, Claire has also been busy choreographing, training, and auditioning. 

Now that Anderson has been officially accepted into UNCSA, she has started to process her move away from home and her family with a new giant leap into the world of dance.

“I'm excited, but I'm also kind of scared,” said Anderson. “There's a lot of emotions. Leaving home young is stressful, and I'm worried about my parents. I'm going to miss my friends, but I'm really excited to see where it goes. I'm more excited than anything. There's just so many emotions I can't even describe.”

While this change may be big for Anderson, she is no stranger to moving away to pursue her dreams. Every year Anderson applies for a variety of summer intensives. These intensives open up doors to meet new people and choreographers who will elevate her dance, and allow her to connect to important people within the industry. 

“It shows that I can work with other people, and I  have the confidence to go somewhere out of my comfort zone and put myself out there,” said Anderson. “Going to a well known dance intensive looks really good on applications.”

The level of dance that Anderson participates in requires around 20 to 30 hours in the studio each week, which can make balancing school and dance extremely difficult. Although school is important for Anderson, there are times when dance takes priority due to the competitiveness of the dance industry. UNCSA will allow Anderson to focus on dance while also focusing on schoolwork to prepare for her future.

“I definitely want to go to college to dance,” said Anderson. “I ideally want to get a BFA in dance, which is a bachelor in arts, and I want to choreograph and get a choreographic degree later. But I definitely want to go to college for dance and then hopefully end up in a dance company somewhere, whether that's ballet or contemporary.”

UNCSA represents the first step towards Anderson’s dance dreams. With dedication, hard work, and determination, she is prepared to thrive at UNCSA and take the needed steps to enhance her dance abilities.

“I'm really excited to be surrounded by people who are equally as motivated as me, people who are better than me, and people who are just as good as me. That really helps me push to get better," said Anderson. “I'm really excited for the teachers and the opportunity and just excited for everything. I'm the type of person that, if I was in a room I would want to go stand beside the best dancer there to make me work harder and make me get better.”