High kicking Rockette, Samantha Jo Harvey, has been dancing ever since she has been in the womb. As the daughter of a dancer, Samantha even took her first steps at the dance studio. It’s easy to say then that Samantha was born to do her job. Having recently graduated from Towson in 2008, Samantha’s whirlwind career has taken her from the classroom at Towson to the stage of the famous Radio City Music Hall.
It was a combination of hard work, determination, and luck that got Samantha to where she is today. While a student at Towson she double majored in dance and sociology and took up to 25 credits a semester. During her senior year she went to New York for an open casting call for the Rockettes with over 500 girls.
“Being a Rockette was never my dream,” she said. “I just wanted to be a professional dancer.”
After enduring a grueling two day audition where she danced and tapped her heart out, Samantha made it to the end, but was not hired on the spot. She went back to Towson to finish out her senior year and graduated, as the Valedictorian, determined to make her dreams as a dancer come true.
That July, Samantha moved to New York without a job and prepared to survive as a struggling aspiring dancer.
The day she moved into her apartment, the phone rang, it was Radio City offering her a job.
“It was really amazing,” she said. “I was just planning on moving to New York and being a starving dancer.”
Samantha has hardly had the life she imagined, having first danced on the Radio City Christmas Spectacular Tour across the country to sell out arenas of 9,000 people. She now is dancing on the famous Radio City Music Hall stage. Samantha says that sometimes she can’t believe it herself.
“It’s really amazing,” she said. “It just has really changed my outlook and opened so many possibilities. It truly is amazing.”
Even though the Rockettes have to endure grueling six day a week practices from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m and sometimes up to four shows a day during the holiday season, Samantha said it hardly feels like work.
“It doesn’t feel like a job because it is my passion,” she said. “It’s so rewarding.”
Samantha’s astoundingly fast rise to success has led her to perform on the Today Show and the CBS Morning Show, but she has still maintained her level head.
“I miss being close to my family and all that support,” she said. “It’s not the same in New York. Everyone is doing their own thing.”
Samantha says she can’t imagine doing anything else right now. Her dancing feet may have gotten her to arguably one of the best jobs a dancer could have, but Samantha sees no end in sight as to where her career can go.
“I want to get my masters and teach at a University,” she said. “I miss learning. I also would like to assist or choreograph a Broadway show one day.”
So what is Samantha’s advice to hardworking college girls who sometimes feel like their dreams are unattainable?
“I’ve always looked to others,” she said. “Hold onto your passion and remember it in the things you do.”
She also says to never lose the positive attitude in your journey.
“It’s about leading a positive, strong life around goals,” she said. “Plan a future, a future that is based on your passion.”
Want to know more about Samantha? Check out her website!