Dancing Spirits

By: Ericka Aguilar

With dance auditions and recitals on her “To-Do” list, Michelle Gonzalez, 17, a student at Cristo Rey New York High School, is dancing her way into performing on Broadway one day.

At the age of seven, when Gonzalez first began taking ballet lessons, she realized that all she wanted to do was dance. She would attend her dance classes in her church’s basement three days a week and also practice at home in her spare time. With all the skills Gonzalez acquired, she was able to participate in more than five recitals, two plays and one solo. So far, she’s won six trophies in competitions, many of which she won first place.

“Many people think that ballet is boring,” Gonzalez said, “To me, ballet is my yoga with the blisters and the pain.” According to Gonzalez, her career is just beginning. As a child, she enjoyed dancing as the fairy in a school play, but now she wants to dance as the fairy in a dramatic musical on Broadway. “I love it,” she said, “but I’m not the only one competing to dance on Broadway.”

Marissa Hunter, 18, another dancer who is also competing to dance on Broadway, says that Gonzalez is a very hard worker. “She is an ambitious person, but I will do whatever it takes to get to Broadway,” she said, “even if I have to knock her out my way.” Hunter notices Gonzalez’s hard work and sometimes she feels that they are both in a race or competition. “She’s very competitive,” she says, “Sometimes I don’t want to get in her way, but it’s showbiz.”

Gonzalez believes that her number one supporter is her mother, Blanca Gonzalez, who has always stood at her side. “Michelle is a very strong person. I’ve seen her fallen so many times, but obviously she learns from her mistakes,” she said. Mrs. Gonzalez says that she attended all of her daughter’s performances and says she’s getting better and better every time.

Gonzalez will be attending her senior year in the fall. She still doesn’t know what college to look forward to, but she is setting high expectations for herself. “I’m just letting the world know to look out for me,” she says, “and to keep an eye out for me in Broadway.”