My name is Isabelle Brown. Don't call me a ballerina.
Ballerinas are the stars of the company. They dance centre stage under the spotlight, and they get their own curtain calls. Their head shots are printed in the program, with their names in large print. Me,I'm a dancer in the corps de ballet, just one of the dozens of girls who dance in graceful union each night. My mother thinks I'm a star, but she's biased. Besides,the word ballerina sounds too pink, too froufrou. Yes,we wear tutus and tiaras, but only when we perform each night. We spend most of our time hidden from the audience, working as hard as we possibly can to strengthen and control our bodies so that we can step onstage,everything looking so perfect and effortless. We rehearse in old leotards,threadbare tights, and torn leg wear. We rarely buy new dance clothes because we know that most ballet careers are short-lived. Today for example, I'm wearing a faded navy cotton leotard and black,slightly less faded leggings. There's nothing pink about that. Our teachers force us to fight our bodies and our friends. You need to be careful who you are friends with because if they have a bad reputation or aren't the best then your going to be shamed on. We starve ourselves day and night and have no friends on the outsides. So yes I am a ballet dancer but I am not a ballerina.
