Pointe shoes covered in powder, waiting to hit the stage. The lights start to gleam and the audiences voices lower. As she walks across the stage, the audience’s eyes fix on her, waiting for her next move. She turns and leaps with the audience gazing at her in awe, with a majestic and elegant vibe roaming through the theatre. With years of practice, senior Heather Wolle knows that she’s a great dancer.

Wolle has been dancing since she was three years old and has used dance to show her personality.

“My favorite part of dancing is being able to express myself through movement,” Wolle said. “For me, dance is different way to tell stories and show emotion.”

Wolle currently dances at “Grace Ballet Conservatory” but has also been previously trained at other studios.

“I’ve been to a total of 3 dance studios, and each has brought me wonderful training and a richer knowledge of dance,” Wolle said “I can’t say that I have a favorite, though, because as much as I gained from them all, they’re all so different.”

Dancing has been a common thing for well, with Wolle’s mother, Stacie Stalmach, being her teacher for most of her life.

“Since Heather has been at my studio, her attention to detail has improved which has moved her from being an advance level student to working towards a professional career,” Stalmach said “It’s all [about the] fine tuning details and how [she’s] doing a step, how’s the musical phrasing while you’re doing it, and incorporating facial expressions.”

Stalmach recognizes Heather’s passion for dance and thinks that dancing has helped her academically.

“I think she has a passion for dance and in order to pursue that for the level that she does, she has to stay super organized and disciplined in her other areas of life [in stuff] like her schoolwork,” Stalmach said. “I think dance has given her a good sense of discipline and setting goals and working toward them.”

Wolle’s passion for dancing has bloomed over the years; so that she plans to dance professionally in her future.

“I’d get a degree in dance, then hopefully after college go dance in a professional dance company,” Wolle said “After that, I’ll most likely end up teaching and or choreographing dance but that’s not to say I might not choose to pursue other things as well after dancing in a company since the time span of professional dancers is so short due to the stress it puts on your body.”

To prep for her future, Wolle not only practices at her studio but every summer, she goes to summer camps that help her work on her dancing technique.

“I go to ballet intensives every summer for for years at professional ballet companies that you have to audition for in order to attend,” Wolle said. “The summer intensives I attend include Texas Ballet Theatre for one summer and Kansas City Ballet for three summers. Out of these two programs, my favorite is Kansas City Ballet because of the unique staff, rigorous classes, and the overall enriching experience I had there.”

Wolle’s friend, sophomore Emma Hettlinger, has been dancing with her for three and a half years and notes that their dancing has enhanced their bond.

“My bond with Heather has grown insanely strong since meeting her and dance played a huge role in that,” Hettlinger said. “When we didn’t know each other very well, [dance] gave us something to talk to about. I’ve lived with her for a total of teen weeks in dormitories for dance, and it’s just a constant in both our lives.”

Hettlinger also has created memories with Wolle through dancing.

“I loved performing Cinderella with Heather because we got to spend so much time together rehearsing and making memories,” Hettlinger said. “She was a stepsister and I was the stepmother so we spent many months together in practice and during breaks.”

Wolle doesn’t exactly know where she wants to go to pursue her dancing career yet but knows that she wants the school to have one of the best dancing programs.

“I haven’t fully decided where I want to attend college, but wherever I go will need to have a strong dance program as that’s what I plan to major in,” Wolle said. “As of now, Texas Christian University is my top choice because of the dance program there but like I mentioned before, I’m not 100% sure.”