Full name/age/job title:

Sara Dos Santos, 24, Freelance Dance Artist/Choreographer/Teacher and Artistic Director of EIC Dance Theatre.

Please give us an overview of your average day.

An artist’s daily diary can be very unpredictable. Just a phone call can have you running around London like a headless chicken. However, the last couple of months have been pretty steady. I’ve been working alongside a jazz theatre company called BOP, which means having rehearsals three to four days a week between 10am and 4pm. Alongside that I held my own company rehearsals two days a week, choreographing for a charity fashion event for Mayamiko Foundation Trust, as well as teaching at a couple of schools in Lambeth two days a week.

What is the most common misconception about your job?

That dancers spend all day dancing around in pretty costumes having lots and lots of fun. This may be the case for some people but for the majority it’s sweat, blood and tears until you achieve your goal. You have to love dance to stick with it. The reward is that single fleeting moment, when you actually feel alive! It’s irreplaceable.

What is the hardest thing about your role?

Time management. I am constantly keeping myself updated with auditions, funding opportunities, performance platforms and of course keeping my body in shape. Staying motivated and remembering that I have a passion for dance and I want to inspire generations to come with it. Not allowing myself to become overwhelmed by work.

When did you decide what you wanted to do with your life and how did you set out to achieve it?

Theatre is something I’ve always been interested in. At the age of eight I was taken to see Swan Lake at The Royal Opera House. It really amazed me how clean and precise the dancers were. They expressed their passion so clearly through movement. Their facial expressions told a great clear story and the music was breathtaking. Soon afterwards, my mum placed me in a stage school taking ballet and jazz classes twice a week. This turned into dancing after school four times a week, preparing for shows, competitions and ISTD [Imperial Society of Teachers Dancing] exams.

A real passion for dance soon began to grow, which eventually lead to applying and auditioning for full-time vocational schools at the age of 16. I was accepted into Bird College musical theatre school and after three years of intense dance training, I graduated and commenced my professional dance journey.

What can you do to get a head start?

Don’t be afraid to dream and dream big! Nothing is impossible. Be prepared to work hard, ensure you take time out to plan and research. You may not achieve all you set out to do at first, but stay confident that trying is just as important as achieving. Always practice to refine your instrument and never give up.

Could you describe the creative element to your job?

Listening to great music and combining movement. I really enjoy listening to a wide variety of genres. When a track inspires me I tend to go into a studio and begin exploring new ways of moving, researching my own expression through different sounds. Sometimes it leads to great choreography, sometimes it doesn’t. But the journey in exploring I find extremely enjoyable.

What’s the one thing you wish you had known at the start of your career that you know now?

That being a freelance dance artist can be so unpredictable; that there’s hardly any job suitability and that whatever you put in you get out. At times you may not see the fruits of your labour until further down the line. And finally that self-motivation and confidence play a very important part in your journey.

Which organisations/websites/resources do you think would be useful for people entering your industry?

Full time training:

Bird College

The Place

London Studio Centre

Middlesex University

Trinity Laban

General Dance Classes:

Dance Works

Greenwich Dance

Studio 69

Pineapple

Resources:

Equity

London Dance

Dancers Pro

Spotlight

Photo by Michael Petiafo

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