At ‘Homecoming,’ Vassar Repertory Dance Theatre Alums Take an Honest Look at Life After Vassar
It’s said that “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” But what happened to those who danced those steps before you? How did their training and education at Vassar help their careers after graduation? The Dance Pathways panel discussion, which took place during the first Vassar Repertory Dance Theatre (VRDT) Homecoming, provided students and other attendees a unique opportunity to hear from alums about their real-world experiences after graduation.
“I am so honored to have been a part of VRDT’s very first Homecoming,” said Melissa Edmon Slotnick ’97. “My years at VRDT were some of the happiest of my youth!”
The idea for the Homecoming was born at an alum basketball weekend, which Slotnick attended with her husband, Joe Slotnick ’99. “I watched him play, reconnect with coaches, alums, and student athletes and I wanted to do that for my VRDT community,” said Slotnick.
After two years of meticulous planning by Director of Affinity Engagement Sharon Parkinson, Chair of Dance Miriam Mahdaviani, and VRDT Director John Meehan, the VRDT Homecoming was born on the 45th birthday of VRDT and on the heels of VRDT founder Jeanne Periolat Czula’s passing.
“It was a very special reunion, bringing together an impressive number of VRDT alums from the 90s to the present and an homage to Jeanne to share stories about how she touched our lives,” said Slotnick.
The VRDT Homecoming took place on campus April 4–5. Alum activities included a welcome reception, observing current dance classes and VRDT rehearsals, an alum dance session, and valuable time for conversations with current students.
“There isn’t one pathway, and this [panel] discussion is a good illustration of that,” said moderator Peggy Cheng ’93, who formerly served as director of development at Danspace Project in New York City and had a 30-year career performing with such choreographers and directors as Maura Nguyễn Donohue and Yanira Castro.
“I graduated and danced freelance with different choreographers, but I did what I could to pay the rent in New York City, which was working in arts administration, a familiar path for a lot of graduates. It was great, though, because I got into grant writing and became Director of Development at the Danspace Project.”
Benedict Nguyễn ’15 said she never expected to continue dancing after Vassar, but decided to give it a shot for a year and moved to New York City. “Now, I’m still dancing and have been freelancing for choreographers,” said Nguyễn, who has worked with Sally Silvers, the Illustrious Blacks, Kris Seto, John Jasperse, and in Nick Mauss’s exhibition Transmissions at the Whitney Museum, among others.
Natalie Nixon ’91 studied cultural anthropology and Africana studies, but was rejected by VRDT when she first auditioned. “Dance taught me how to fail,” she said.
After campaigning for an understudy role in VRDT, she made it into the company, but after graduation, her pathway took an unexpected detour. “I consider myself a lifelong dancer, but I have a very diverse background, and worked in the fashion industry,” said Nixon, now a creative strategist, CEO of Figure 8 Thinking, LLC, and author of The Creativity Leap: Unleash Curiosity, Improvisation and Intuition at Work. “I connect the dots between creativity and business impact, but I always promised myself in college that I would never stop dancing.”
After dancing as part of VRDT, Sophia Massie ’20 discovered that administration in dance education was her calling. She has been working at the New York City Ballet since 2021. “I work on the city’s public school residency programs, and I just feel that I connect with ballet and dance so differently on such a wider perspective, and every day it's so joyful and creative,” she said.
During the Homecoming weekend, alums got to put on their dancing shoes, having fun in a class geared to former VRDT performers.
Today, Emily Lesorogol ’22 applies her passion for the arts as the operations assistant for Juilliard’s Dance Division. After earning her bachelor’s degree in American studies, focusing on English and studio art, Emily moved to New York City and worked as an artistic assistant at American Ballet Theatre. “I got an intimate look at the professional industry behind the scenes, assisting with all administrative processes,” she said. “I learned so much, and there were many pinch-me moments.”
Slotnick said that she decided to pursue a career that allowed her to combine her interest in immigration with her passion for dance, working for the Rural Migrant Ministry in Albany, NY, to create its first youth arts group. “It brought together farm-working migrant children who normally are quite nomadic and who got an opportunity to express themselves artistically. It was such a wonderful experience that it motivated me to move my career into immigration.”
She has had a 20-year career in the federal government, working in national security, immigration, and international affairs.
Russell Baker ’91 began dancing while pursuing his BA in English and later earned an M.F.A. in ballet teaching and choreography from the University of Utah. He danced professionally with the Kansas City Ballet for ten years. He has since taught ballet and is now executive director of the National Dance Institute of New Mexico (NDI). “I do less teaching and less choreography, and I raise money for the organization,” he said.
Mikey Graceffa ’14 started dancing around his bedroom as a little boy and hasn’t stopped. After graduation, he achieved his dream of performing on Broadway. He has since been a consistent working performer with opportunities in TV and film.
“I'm still continuing to dance and act, and currently, I'm in the original Broadway cast of Death Becomes Her, performing eight shows a week, six days a week,” he said. “They let me take these two days off so I could have a nice, nostalgic homecoming with all you beautiful dancers.”
The panelists reflected on the importance of their dance education at a liberal arts college versus a conservatory. “I was able to receive amazing training with the dance department and the drama department, but I also just experienced life and academia from such a beautiful perspective,” said Graceffa. “I felt very lucky and privileged to have had this community.”
Lesorogol said she learned a lot academically, but also learned many life skills. “There's also things to gain from intellectual discovery and learning how to work with people and learning how to build relationships that might end up helping out your career, but also just sustain you in life,” she said. “It’s not all about getting the job.”
Baker said that he learned how to communicate effectively. “If you can't communicate your idea to other people, or if you can't listen and engage, then you're not going to be able to be as successful,” he said.
However, alums admit that life after graduation is not without its challenges. Difficulties finding funding for dance education and making money as a performer were common themes. “It’s been great to say I've never had to have a job outside of performing, but it's also so scary and so frightening to not have any job experience that isn't being a performer,” said Graceffa. “Every year is different, and I make a very different amount of money, just depending on what happens in my life and what I've been able to succeed in. So being a performer is financially so scary.”
Graceffa is happy that he has his Vassar education to fall back on should he want to go to grad school or do something other than perform. “I don't really have a lot of savings, but I have health insurance, which I'm very grateful for,” he said. “And, at 34 years old, I’ve still been able to sustain my career. I'm really proud of myself.”
Cheng agreed about the challenges to financial stability. “I work full time, but I also have a part-time job, and then I pick up gigs,” she said. “I constantly check in with myself about whether this lifestyle is sustainable.”
Nixon advised students that whatever their career path is, they should be able to educate and, to the extent that they are able, invest in partnerships that can help this very important art form to persist. “Do not underestimate that everything is figure-outable,” she said.
To Slotnick, the timing of this Homecoming was essential. “These are very dark and divisive times that we find ourselves in right now, and I look at artists as the last line of defense against the erosion of our humanity,” she said. “As discussed during our dance pathways panel, the sacrifices of performing artists, especially those entering the field, are enormous. However, we are in a particular moment in history that demands artists to be our bastions of light, hope, and faith.”