Getting to Know DWC Ambassador Alberto Gaspar
A Professional Dancer’s Thoughts on the Local Industry
By Madison Huizinga, DWC Blog Editor
Photo by Staria Belle | click below to shop the look!
Naturally, when many dancers graduate high school, they ask themselves “what’s next” as they decide which path to take with their dance career. The professional world is a space that can seem out of touch and impermeable. However, DWC Ambassador Alberto Gaspar is here to share that the professional realm has just as many ups and downs as the amateur dance world. Read on to learn more about Alberto’s dance journey and upcoming plans as a local artist and DWC Ambassador. Be sure to check out Alberto’s original choreography in Olympic Ballet Theatre’s summer performance on June 4th at Edmonds Center for the Arts.
Alberto was introduced to ballet when he was invited to a summer program for musical comedy by a friend. After getting more involved with dance, he was later accepted into Escuela Nacional de Danza Clásica in Mexico City. Alberto shares that he’s danced with various companies across the United States, Europe, and Asia, including Miami City Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Horiuchi Ballet, Saint Louis Ballet, and Ballet Memphis. In 2017, he joined Olympic Ballet Theatre, where he dances, teaches, and choreographs full-time.
Alberto shares that what initially attracted him to dance was the challenge it presented to him. “It felt like something that you would have to try forever and never be perfect,” he says. “[That] was something very alluring to me.” Today, he has an appreciation for the numerous skills dancers acquire, including musicality and coordination.
Alberto describes his approach and outlook on ballet as “old school,” sharing that he places great value on tradition within the art form in addition to embracing changes. He also appreciates the fact that dance acts as a place of common ground for people from different backgrounds. Alberto says that he’s often felt a lot of safety with this attribute of dance. Being able to view dance as a blank canvas for artists of all identities to express themselves upon can bring about a great deal of security.
Alberto looks forward to seeing more companies have a human-centered approach to dance, valuing the common threads of humanity that unite dancers together rather than the things that can keep them separated. “We’re all human beings!” he declares. “I’m happy to be living right now in these times because change is happening. We just have to make sure changes are happening in the right way and not in a way that… [causes people to] lose their true identity.”
Alberto shares that “consistency” is one of the biggest challenges he experiences and witnesses in the dance world, particularly in terms of finding work as a professional dancer. Reasons why certain dancers book jobs can be completely arbitrary, which is important to keep in mind when auditioning. And as much as Alberto loves to dance, he also recognizes the necessity of finding other passions outside of the practice. He wants his students to know that they can have an identity outside of the art form.
Photo by Staria Belle | click below to shop the look!
Alberto learned about the DWC Ambassador program through Dancewear Center’s Instagram, where he shares that he loves reading the blog interviews and looking at the professional photographs. “The diversity is something that I really enjoy about [Dancewear Center],” Alberto says of the types of stories that are shared across the DWC Blog and social media. He loves seeing people of all backgrounds participating in the dance industry in a range of capacities. “You don’t have to be a professional…to be a part of the community,” he shares.
As an ambassador, Alberto looks forward to sharing his perspective as a local professional dancer and showcase the challenges many professionals face. “No matter what level you are, you will have ups and downs,” he shares.
A change that Alberto hopes to see made in the dance world is dance becoming more accessible to people from different socioeconomic backgrounds. He points out that ballet is an elitist art form, often only available to more affluent community members due to the expenses of classes and equipment.
In May, Alberto performed in Don Quixote with Olympic Ballet Theatre at Edmonds Center for the Arts. And on June 4th, he’s excited to be showcasing new classical ballet choreography at Edmonds Center for the Arts. Alberto encourages those interested to look into the summer program at Olympic Ballet School. He also does private coaching and choreography and encourages people to reach out to him if they’re interested in either of those services.
Keep an eye out for more from Alberto at DWC in the coming months!
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