Gotta dance

Curtis Dillon balances his passion for dance with his love of learning. (Nick Pearce Photo)

For many people, attending The Nutcracker is as much a part of the holidays as candy canes and carols.

But it has a much different meaning for Dalhousie student Curtis Dillon. His involvement in the Halifax production of The Nutcracker means long hours in rehearsals and learning moves he may never perform in front of an audience.

But that’s exactly what’s expected of him as the understudy for the lead role of the Nutcracker Prince.

“It’s go, go, go at every rehearsal,” says the fourth-year student, who is doing a double major in Mathematics and French. “It’s basically preparing for the possibility that I could be called upon to be perform.

“I have to know everything as well as the lead. I just don’t have the pressure (Henry Jackson) does.”

His involvement in the Nutcracker has also brought back the 21-year-old dancer to ballet. After an intense year at the National Ballet of Canada when he was 13, he decided to leave ballet behind and concentrate on other less structured styles of dance, like jazz, hip hop and tap. “I was pretty proud to get into the school,” he says. “But it wasn’t for me, I like dance to express personality, and that’s harder to do with ballet.”

These days, as well as finishing his degree, he teaches at the Joseph Wallin School of Dance in Dartmouth and here at Dalhousie through the student-run Dal Dance Society. The society has more than 200 members and offers a wide range of classes, for beginners to advanced level dancers, in the studio in the Studley Gymnasium.

Teaching dance, rehearsing and taking classes himself, as well as going to university, takes a lot of organization. “There’s a lot to balance,” he says.

After graduation, Mr. Dillon wants to move to a city where he can pursue his love of dance “while I’m still young.” As much as he enjoys Halifax, the dance community is small and everyone knows each other. After a chance to pursue his passion, he hopes to be accepted into teachers college and become a teacher.