Everyone has a passion. Some people love to sing, others have a talent for photography. For neuroscience sophomore Lana Grasser, the passion she’s had for dancing has been prevalent in her life since she could stand on her own two feet.
Grasser said she’s been dancing since she was just 2 years old and her love for it has only become magnified since then.
“I was very hyper and (my parents) figured that (ballet) would be something that I could do to release all that energy, so I started really young and grew up with it,” she said. “It really stuck with me and I’ve just always loved it.”
Grasser said she’s practiced all kinds of dance, including jazz and tap, but her favorite is ballet.
She said she finds it to be graceful, aesthetically pleasing and compatible with any style of music.
The tricky part, though, is the human body wasn’t necessarily meant to move in the ways ballet requires. If a dancer isn’t extra careful, an injury can easily happen.
This is a reality Grasser said she knows all too well. She said she’s suffered from a hip problem, a torn ligament in her ankle and issues with her metatarsals on the side of her foot, the latter of which forced her to take a break from ballet for a couple of months.
She said she did the best she could getting to class despite her injury, but it was a struggle.
Once the side of her foot was healed, though, she said she was determined to make up for lost time.
Being at college has given Grasser less time to practice, but she said her dedication remains strong.
She stretches every day and tries to do barre in her room by holding onto her bed as though it were a ballet studio barre.
She may be a neuroscience major, but Grasser said she plans on incorporating dance into her career. She’s interested in the crossover between neuroscience and arts, particularly in studying how dance can be used as a therapy for children with mental illnesses.
Grasser said ballet has changed not only her life, but herself as a whole.
“I learned to have a lot of respect, especially for ... adults ... and respect for people in general who are trying to teach you things,” she said. “I think (ballet) was a really good thing for me. I think it gave me something to do to keep busy, and without that, I think I ... would’ve been just a little lost.”
