Performing
Isa Bayona
worked extremely hard for. As an individual, I was lucky enough to win the first overall Dancer of the Year at two regional competitions.” Because of the different culture of competition within ballet, much of Karatsu’s competing correlates with auditioning for roles in ballet showcases. Given that the majority of ballet performances are presented as a narrative with lead characters, Karatsu has achieved her dream role of Clara in the annual Nutcracker. “In 2018, I got my dream role of Marie/Clara. It was such a learning experience because it was my first lead role, and I really had to act in it. 2019 was also a really eventful year. I was originally cast for four roles (Russian/ Columbine/Spanish/Flower Queen) but after someone dropped out, I ended up having to cover for Sugar Plum in addition to my four roles. It was extremely exhausting to be at the studio seven days a week for hours at a time, but it really was all worth it in the end,” Karatsu said. Bayona states that she loves the performing part of dance. Once she starts dancing, the world fades away and she forgets every little insecurity and every bad day. Karatsu believes that dance compels people to feel something, whether that be joy, sadness or hope. She found the beauty in dance as a universal language and how beautiful it was to see it bring everyone together. Both of these senior dancers have strong motivations that push them to perform at their best. Bayona has passion for the art and the people she dances with; she feels a sense of responsibility to lead by example and inspire her teammates. For Karatsu, her biggest motivation comes from her dance teachers. Although her teachers may be her biggest critics, Karatsu believes that they are also her biggest supporters. While both have immense love for dance, they are keeping their options open as they move onto college. Karatsu has decided to take a step back from dance and major in journalism, which is another passion of hers. Similarly, Bayona plans to continue growing in both education and dancing, and will see where to go from there. The Paw Print looks forward to seeing Bayona and Karatsu achieve their dreams and succeed in their college careers!
