Featured Alumni: Fiona Kirkland
Fiona Kirkland now with Festival Ballet Providence
Hometown: Milford, New Jersey
Years at Camp: 2011-2013
Training: New Jersey School of Ballet; Ballet Academy East; Cincinnati Ballet
Work since College: Victoria Morgan’s Romeo and Juliet, Septime Webre’s Peter Pan, and Devon Carneys Sleeping Beauty at Cincinnati Ballet; Ballet Tucson; Festival Ballet Providence
Into the Woods (2013); Fiona as Rapunzel
What is a fond memory you have of camp?
So so many, but just a few are the hours at the pool with folks from different casts going over lines and rehearsing, the talent show (and in general all the evening activities), and working on more technical aspects of the show with my castmates, like helping make the set for Bomb-itty (of Errors)!
Who are some folks from camp who made a lasting impact on you?
So many. Chris Murrah, Steve Borowka, Tim Brownell, and all my friends that I made that I still am connected with. They have been some of my longest-lasting friendships to this day.
Where has life taken you since camp?
I am now a professional ballet dancer with Festival Ballet Providence, in Providence RI! Since camp I’ve moved across and around the country dancing with several different ballet companies, and have found myself at a wonderful company that supports and encourages me. I’m so lucky to have ended up in such a warm creative environment with people who let me belt out show tunes all the time
What have you carried with you from camp?
The openness of camp, and the acceptance. I felt truly accepted by people there and really feel like being able to be myself around people who had similar passions as me helped me going forward. I also still carry a lot of the guidance and acting coaching I had there into my ballet performances now.
What is something about your life right now that surprises you?
How artistically fulfilled and challenged I feel!! Ballet and the arts are a hard life to chose but it is so worth it to feel so full of joy. I choose every day to be grateful where I am and be able to pursue what I love as a career.
What is a piece of advice you would give to a camper who sees the path you took as something they may want to try?
Put in the consistent work, and don’t be too hard on yourself all the time. We all make mistakes, especially as performers, and that’s the excitement of a live show. There are days when you don’t want to show up to class or put on your pointe shoes, and you feel like garbage. Push through those feelings and trust yourself and your body. It’s one day, one class, or one performance. There is always tomorrow.
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