As CESJDS high school classes sit in their second to last class of the day at 2 p.m., freshman Noa Dvir is headed to ballet practice at the Maryland Youth Ballet (MYB) in Silver Spring, Md. Noa has practices at MYB for at least 20 hours a week.
Noa has been in a tutu since she was 18 months old and has continued dancing ballet ever since. She practices for four hours every weekday and sometimes on the weekends. All practices take place at MYB. Noa is one of five freshmen in her level seven class that combines with a mostly upperclassmen level eight class, the highest level her studio has.
“It is really fun and interpretive,” Noa said. “I can make it my own.”
Classes at MYB are taught by teachers with extensive dance backgrounds. Artistic Director and Principal of MYB, and Noa’s coach, Diedre Byrne, has been a ballet teacher for over 25 years. Byrne is an MYB alumna and danced professionally with Cleveland San Jose Ballet for 13 years.
“She [Noa] loves ballet and dancing,” Byrne said. “And I know all her teachers enjoy working with her.”
Noa has gotten used to performing and does not get extremely nervous. She still loves to be on stage and shows are something she always looks forward to.
“I love it,” Noa said. “I don’t get nervous because we’ve been practicing for so long. It’s just muscle memory.”
MYB organizes a spring show that all dancers in Noa’s level dance in. With 21 performances every school year that her entire class of 16 dancers perform in, Noa devotes a lot of time to dance practices and shows.
Noa has to leave school at 2 p.m. every day, missing two classes because of her dance commitments. Despite this, Noa is on top of her school work and keeps her grades in check by working with administration, her teachers and her parents to craft a schedule that accommodates her dance commitments.
Her dance schedule takes precedence over many planning decisions on the daily, but also impacts her physically, not just logistically. Last year, Noa broke her foot, and for some athletes that would mean they were out for the season, but for Noa this wasn’t the case.
Showing up to practice while injured was simply doing what was expected of her. Instead of allowing her injury to bring her spirit down, she spent her time off stretching and doing as much to prepare for her return to the sport as she could. Allowing her injury to put a dent in the progress she had been making was simply not an option for Noa.
“I went to class and I took notes on corrections that the teachers were telling the other kids,” Noa said. “I was watching them to see what I could improve.”
Noa’s dance commitments aren’t limited to the school year. During the year, Noa tried out for 10 summer intensives. This summer, she will be attending The Houston Ballet at the University of St. Thomas where she will spend five weeks perfecting her skills. Summer intensives take place around the country and are led by instructors, but the staff also include athletic trainers, conditioning coaches and more.
Noa said that she is not sure if she will ever want to dance professionally, but she loves the sport passionately. She does not mind missing out on social events and school because she deeply enjoys dance, even if she is not sure of what she wants her dance future to look like.
Karri Dvir, Noa’s mom has supported her ballet dreams since the beginning. She said that she never forced Noa to pursue the sport, and that she was very surprised by all the dance and performing arts world had to offer.
After watching Noa grow and find herself in dance, Karri has a newfound respect for those on stage and behind the scenes, including parents, guardians and support systems, in the world of performing arts. She said that she never realized how much time and effort went into supporting a young performer until she was in the position of being a parent to one.
“I see somebody performing, and all I can think about is how many years and hours they’ve put into it to get there,” Karri said.
Karri said that as a family, they all believe that the time commitment pays off because of the immense love they see that Noa has for the sport. As long as she continues to maintain her grades, Karri and her husband Ittai say that they will continue to support Noa’s dancing career.
“We think it [Noa missing school for dance] is worth it,” Karri said. “We think it’s teaching her or encouraging her to continue, to be so dedicated and motivated and we just want to support that.”
