Passing the torch

Now is the time that I am starting to think about succession; who will take over for me when I retire? What will happen to Thespians, which was handed to me 27 years ago? The decision to start thinking about this is relatively new, and feels daunting. The dance and Thespian programs are very important to me; I’ve spent over half my life building and maintaining them. I can’t bear the thought of not leaving them in good hands. So, I have quietly begun my search.

How to begin?

I realize that the amount of things I do is more than any one person on the outside would be willing to take on all at once. My feelers are out now for people that might like to continue the legacy and build the organization even better than I can. This year, for the first time, I’ve decided to start the process by passing the torch for one of my jobs: spring musical choreographer. As with everything, I was dual-minded about the transition.

On one hand, I’ve done both direction and choreography together since I walked in the door in 1996. While doing both jobs is an immense task, the effort has always been seamless; I never had to collaborate with anyone else or deal with someone else’s schedule. I could come up with whatever ideas sprung into my head and make them happen whenever I wanted. There was no one else to consult with or answer to.

On the other hand, my body and memory are both getting tired more easily. Coming up with choreography is one thing. Remembering it is a whole other story. Teaching it over and over again takes a huge toll on this body. The last few years have been challenging with managing injuries and brain fog (thank you, perimenopause) and keeping up with everything has been…well, exhausting.

So, despite the fact that I run the dance program at the school, it felt most natural to hand this part of the job to someone else. The question was always, who? Over the years, the dance studio was blessed with some incredible dance talent. Of course, after graduation, most went to college to pursue other interests; a career in dance is not easy, even for the most talented people. Once in a while, I’d see one who stayed connected to dance studio life, and it always made me smile to see the joy continue throughout their adult lives.

Back in the day

One of those people was Denishah Desroches. She was spunky, talented and had a sturdy work ethic like few students I’ve known. She loved the spotlight, but she also loved working for it. In the studio, she was always trying new moves, stretching (she was and is ridiculously flexible), taking mirror selfies and was one of my dance captains for years.

Denishah took the dance studio at Spring Valley by storm from the moment she walked in. It was like she was home. For four years, she explored what her body could do in class, rehearsals and performances. She took on leadership in Thespians and choreographed for dance concerts. She was an impressive force even then, took her space by the mirror, and made sure everyone knew that the rehearsal studio was her domain. She somehow elbowed her way into the dance captain position early on, which was fine by me because she had the chops to back up all the bravado. She was a great student, a good soul, and it seemed her mission was to elevate dance in our school.

A decade later

Now, ten years after graduation, Denishah is a dancer, dance educator and choreographer. I’d say she’s “taking after me,” but really, she’s carving her own path. In the New York dance world, she’s known as Stormy. She’s on Instagram showing off her incredible flexibility @stretchwithstormy and her dance and choreography videos @stormyd_ . But to her dance Mom back home, she’s my Denishah, my tiny dancer. I’m so proud that she’s moved on to pursue a career in dance performance and education, and she continues to put in the work every day to do so.

In our chat, we talked about her time in the high school studio, what that experience taught her, and how it led to her career now. I learned that she was still living locally, and she was back on my radar.

A year later, I asked Denishah come in and create a piece with dance club for the spring concert. I loved seeing her back in the studio, infusing her spark into the work of my current students. Watching her as an adult in her element was a wonderful connection to the years when we worked together, beautifully blending the past with the present. I loved seeing that familiar drive and discipline shine, this time as the teacher. A professional through and through, she brought all of herself to each rehearsal, and demanded that the kids elevate themselves to a new level. She has a no-nonsense attitude with high expectations for the kids; she also understands that the only training they have is what I have exposed them to, and that they are always capable of more.

I knew she had choreographed a show at Ramapo High School (our sister school), but it felt more apropos for her to come home to Spring Valley and pay it forward. After all, she is a Thespian for life. With that in mind, I asked if she would be interested in taking over the spring musical choreographer position for the next school year. She smiled, squeaked “really??” and agreed.

Always learning

Fast forward seven months, and Denishah is now seated firmly at the mirror, by my side, taking charge of all the musical numbers in our version of Chicago: Teen Edition. I admit, it’s tough to sit on the side while someone else makes the dance numbers in my studio. I sometimes have to check myself and try not to jump in while she’s doing her thing. I can’t actually turn the choreography brain off, but I can pause, take a breath, and let someone else’s creativity shine.

To be honest, there are times when I watch her process and think about my own. These are my observations so far as we have gone through the first month of rehearsals:

• Denishah is a stickler for proper studio etiquette, some of which I may have let fall a bit by the wayside in the post-pandemic fight back to normalcy.
• We share the sense of struggle in the moment when someone is late or doesn’t come to rehearsal, and we have to blend our understandings and experience together to figure out how best to move forward.
• She is learning what it means to teach and communicate in a school setting that feels very different than when she was a student there, and even more different than in the professional dance world.
• I am learning that, despite my understanding of the students’ challenges (and there are many), I must keep the expectations high.
• She is learning to be more patient as the adolescents act like, well, adolescents.
• I am also working to be a better communicator, organizer and listener.

That’s just the beginning; I suspect there will be a lot more learning as we move forward.

Settling in

Despite the strangeness of this transition, I am slowly getting more comfortable stepping to the side – slowly. I’m not used to sharing the load, but I have to say I do like the feeling of it, especially with someone I know and love. Together, we are navigating this early phase of my torch-passing.

What I love most is the full-circle nature of this moment: the student becomes the teacher. Seeing Denishah in her element, being her best self, sharing what she has learned since she graduated almost ten years ago, gives me the greatest joy. While I can’t predict the future, as life brings all sorts of twists and turns, I think this loving collaboration is a great start. We have a lot to teach each other, and I’m having a great time learning in this new paradigm.