Jasmine Cooper - Featured Dancer
My name is Jasmine Cooper, I have been dancing for eleven years, and I recently finished my senior year as Dance Captain for Ballet Caliente's Studio Company. I started training at Ballet Caliente in 2nd grade, and since then, I've had the opportunity to become an incredibly versatile dancer, practicing ballet, pointe, jazz, modern, contemporary, and tap weekly. As a result of the skills I developed at Ballet Caliente, I have been able to perform in a variety of roles, from the title villain, Medusa, during their production of Madeline at the Musee D'Orsay, to an ensemble member in Summerstock Theater's 2019 musical, Newsies. Some of my favorite pieces of choreography involve more contemporary styles and I remember absolutely falling in love with the storytelling aspect of dancing, especially after performing in shows such Pastiche, Peter Pan, and The Wizard of Oz at Ballet Caliente. However, the moment dance solidified its importance in my life was when I saw the Liaoning Ballet of China's original production of Hua Mulan, the traditional story of Mulan, in Washington D.C. It was the first time I had ever seen an all-Asian cast use ballet to tell a story of Asian origin, and being a Thai-American dancer, it was an incredibly inspirational experience that motivated me to continue telling stories through dance and continue that representation for others like me.
This year, I graduated from Leonardtown High School's Global and International Studies Program (GIS) and was accepted to Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. At Northeastern, I will be studying as a Game Design major with a minor in Animation in hopes of pursuing a career in game and/or film production. As with dance, I fell in love with storytelling and character design within video games, and it has become a passion of mine to provide voices for underrepresented communities and their untold experiences. Additionally, I hope to combine my love for animation with dance to elevate the performance experience; I've always believed there was untapped potential in combining digital arts with dancing, and my dream is to experiment with that once my studies begin in Boston. I plan on continuing my dance training while at Northeastern University, either by joining their dance company, dance team, or by participating in workshops and small projects in my own time. Dance is something that I couldn't live without, and I cannot imagine a future for myself that does not involve it in some capacity. Not only has it given me the best found-family I could ever ask for, but it gave me the resilience, ambition, and creativity I intend on taking with me wherever I go, and for that, I could not be more grateful.
This year, I graduated from Leonardtown High School's Global and International Studies Program (GIS) and was accepted to Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. At Northeastern, I will be studying as a Game Design major with a minor in Animation in hopes of pursuing a career in game and/or film production. As with dance, I fell in love with storytelling and character design within video games, and it has become a passion of mine to provide voices for underrepresented communities and their untold experiences. Additionally, I hope to combine my love for animation with dance to elevate the performance experience; I've always believed there was untapped potential in combining digital arts with dancing, and my dream is to experiment with that once my studies begin in Boston. I plan on continuing my dance training while at Northeastern University, either by joining their dance company, dance team, or by participating in workshops and small projects in my own time. Dance is something that I couldn't live without, and I cannot imagine a future for myself that does not involve it in some capacity. Not only has it given me the best found-family I could ever ask for, but it gave me the resilience, ambition, and creativity I intend on taking with me wherever I go, and for that, I could not be more grateful.
