| Title | An Interview with Colorado Native, Jill Inglis | ||
| Description | An Interview With Jill Inglis Interviewed by Jesse Werner Colorado native Jill Inglis has enjoyed a successful career in the commercial dance industry, performing in California, Chicago, around the world on cruise ships, and most recently in Las Vegas. In August, she returned to the Rockies to dance at the Colorado Springs Dance Theatre Wine Festival. One of CDA’s star volunteers, Jesse Werner, recently interviewed Miss Inglis about her career. Where did you train and in what disciplines? I started off at Barbra Ellis School of Dance in Colorado Springs, just doing ballet, jazz, and tap. And how old were you then? I was three years old. I was there for pretty much ten years and then went off with Nancy Derby of Derby Dance for about four years, doing the same things - ballet, jazz, and tap, and then added a little musical theater in. Also trained with Zetta Alderman of the Colorado Jazz Dance Company. What was the most important aspect of your childhood training? Probably the notion of making it fun. How did you first get involved in dance? My mom put me in because I always asked to wear a tutu. Did you know you wanted to be a dancer at a young age? I actually did not, I didnʼt think that I would dance past middle school or high school. When did you decide on as dance as a career? It was probably in high school when I started dancing with the Colorado Jazz Dance Company and I had to choose between volleyball and dance for college. Did you major in dance in college and where did you go? I graduated with a dance performance degree from Oklahoma City University. What was your favorite thing about the program at Oklahoma City University? Probably that they gave us several different disciplines - ballet, tap, and musical theater. They required a lot out of us and they switched our teachers around quite frequently so that we had a lot of variety. What has been the most surprising moment in your career? I guess it’s just all of the travel and being able to pick up and move to a new city and be able to dance right away. […] I just thought that you would be [in] one place all the time, and yet Iʼve moved to so many cities and been successful in all of them as a dancer. And where are you living now? Las Vegas. What has been the proudest moment in your career? Probably getting asked to come back to Colorado and give back to the Colorado scene when I came back for the Colorado Springs Dance Theater Wine Festival. When I got asked to come back to dance for that, it was a very big deal. Most of the time as a dancer you donʼt really think that people are thinking of you that often, so that was a really big thing. How did you become involved in commercial dance? Really just meeting the right people. Once I found a niche in Chicago, it just kind of went through. It’s all about finding the right people. What was your first big break in Chicago? It was probably for a company called Martin G Productions. It was a corporate event where they hired performers to come perform at their big annual party. That got me connected with different people in Chicago and I got numerous jobs from different people that I met at that one gig. Where did you go after Chicago? I went to Atlanta, but I didnʼt really dance while I was there. I guess you could say that I took a little break and then I went on a cruise ship. How did you find the experience of dancing on a cruise ship? Personally, it wasnʼt my favorite. If I would have been a little bit younger I think that I would have loved it. It taught me a lot of things, and it’s an experience I will keep but I probably wonʼt go back to. What projects are you currently working on? Right now Iʼm dancing for the Tournament of Kings and Iʼm in training for different shows out here - probably ones that [are] a little bit more demanding dance-wise. As of right now, Iʼm just training and preparing myself for bigger and better things, in my eyes. What kind of training are you doing? I basically train by myself. I go take dance classes from others. And I do some ariel, like silks, to make myself more diverse. […] Now it’s not just dancing, you have to be able to do twenty other things, especially out here. What would be your ideal job in Las Vegas? It would be La Reve. What inspires you? What inspired me to want to do this is the people who come to watch, and putting a smile on peopleʼs faces. As weird as it sounds, I didnʼt really enjoy performing for the people on the cruise ships because they didnʼt pay to come see the shows, therefore they werenʼt really involving themselves in our show. […] People who pay to come see [your] show […] give you energy. which you are able to give back to them and then it turns into a great show. And all the little ones. At our show we have to do what we call meet-and-greet, and we have to go out at the end and say hello to people. Thatʼs one of my favorites because I stop and take pictures with all the little girls. […] I remember when I was that little, I thought it was the coolest thing to take a picture with a dancer. The little kids inspire me to be a dancer. In what aspect of your dancing do you feel most fulfilled and why? I would say probably all the training that I do, whether its taking class myself or teaching class, thatʼs really what keeps me going, and it keeps building me. The most important part for me is that I always want to learn more. There is never an end to learning in this profession, or giving - giving away the knowledge that Iʼve received from people to other dancers. Who has been the most influential person in your career? I honestly canʼt say one person. Iʼve had so many different people influence me. I feel like [I] have bits and pieces of every single person Iʼve worked with or worked for or learned from. I donʼt think that just one person could sum it up for me. What is the most important thing you have learned about the business aspects of dance? Not losing what youʼve worked for, what you know. A lot of times, it’s not about your dancing ability, it’s about what they are looking for. You could have the wrong hair color, or be the wrong height. So just keep going, because you hear ʻnoʼ nine times out of ten. It’s just that tenth time youʼre looking for. What advice do you have for young dancers? To build a strong sense of self, or self worth for yourself, and to stick with it and believe in yourself and find people that believe in you too. |
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| Date | 01-01-2012 | ||
| Contact Info | cdasubmissions@codance.org | ||
| Category | Articles | ||
| Created | 01-04-2012 | ||
| Contact Information | cdasubmissions@codance.org | ||
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