Listen! I'm Dancing

By Rachel Sheehy

There are all sorts of ways to express yourself and communicate. You can write, sing, draw, or most commonly, you can say what you are feeling. For Annie Scott, OU freshman, the best way to communicate is to dance.

Childhood Experiences 

Scott outside of Putnam Hall, where she spends
 most of her time doing her dance classes. 

Annie was born in Hilliard, Ohio, on February 16, 1993. The first vacation she remembers going on was when she was 3 years old. Her family went to Disney World. Unfortunately, this isn’t the greatest memory because Annie was really sick for the whole trip. “I had this awful ear ache and no fun. My siblings have never let me forget how I ruined the trip for them," Scott recalled. 

Favorites:
Color	Green
Movie	Black Swan
Book	In Cold Blood
Song	Reverly
Season	Spring
Drink	Dr. Pepper
Meal	Fajitas

Scott studying outside and enjoying a nice fall day.
 Ohio University campus,  2011.

College and Beyond 

 “I fell in love with the dance program,” Scott said, talking about her reason for deciding on a dance major. “I’ve grown so much already in the weeks that I’ve been here.” After graduating from Ohio University, Scott has set her goals high. She wants to join a modern based dance group, Pilobolus. She has seen them perform two times and the performance was “truly phenomenal” and the dancers do “amazing things with their bodies.” She wants to perform in a production of the Lion King on Broadway. To be specific, she has “always wanted to be one of the animals that leaps across the stage.” Scott wants to “conquer the dance world.”

Dance Stats

Annie Scott doing a leap. Aladdin Shrine in Columbus, Ohio, 2010. 

Scott has been dancing since the age of 3, beginning with a combo class of ballet and tap dance. For Scott, the easiest style of dance to learn has been musical theater style dance, which is related to jazz. She is “able to perform it well enough even without having the choreography.” With a flair for acting as well as dancing, Scott finds it easier to get the character down before the technique. Tap has been the hardest style for Scott to learn. She is “scared to get off the beat” and has always had difficulty with learning the choreography for tap style dances. So far, Scott has done a total of 70 productions in her dance career, with hopes to do many more.

The Tough Stuff

Scott’s father was diagnosed with cancer last year, which was an obvious blow to her and her family. After chemo and radiation, everything seemed to be just fine. But two weeks after this, it turned out that the cancer had returned, this was during Scott’s first week of her senior year of high school.

Scott putting on her pointe shoes. 

“I choreographed a dance that symbolized me leaning on my dad my whole life and now at the end he can lean on me,” Scott said, tears welling in her eyes.

Talking Without Words

“When I started doing modern, it made me feel more comfortable with dancing. It made me more comfortable with my own body, it opened doors for me and helped me learn I want to pursue choreography,” Scott said.  Dancing has always been a part of her life, even her family would say she was going to be a dancer from the time she could walk.

Scott has made great friends through dancing, learned to be comfortable with herself, and has learned more about herself and what she wants to do with life. Dancing is Scott’s drug, she “really enjoys the feeling you get from dancing.” The best part for her is “when the audience feels something from watching you dance” and being able to truly express herself.