While this may sound quite unglamorous, something truly beautiful can happen during this time in the theater. I am always so touched by how close we all become. I feel so blessed to share a dressing room (and second home) with seven of the most wonderful girls! We come in tired in the mornings, cheer each other up, coach each other through the days, and then congratulate each other on the way out. We are each other’s support group, entertainment, and most importantly, we are each other’s biggest fans. It’s always at the end of the season, that I’m reminded of how much the theater becomes a home away from home for all of us during the performance season. We often find that during these busy weeks we aren’t home much.

I am often asked what the competition is like behind the scenes. While there is, of course, healthy competition, I feel so fortunate to say that the girls in my dressing room are so proud of each other. You can count on the fact that if one of us has a big role on a given night, the rest of us will do everything in our power to be present in the wings, or in standing room, watching and cheering her on.

So next time you are at the Ballet, take a second and picture the eight of us in our dressing room. There we are, with the radio playing, our magazines and pointe shoes spread about on the floor. Some of us will be putting on our makeup and doing our hair for the next ballet, others will be lying on the floor–with their feet up in the air, and of course at least one of us will be singing and dancing to whatever the latest song of the week is!

Corps de Ballet Dancer Ashley Muangmaithong in our dressing room.

Me backstage with fellow Corps de Ballet Dancer Jennifer Stahl