Friedrich Nietzsche once said: “I would believe only in a God that knows how to dance.” The nineteenth-century German philosopher was a convinced atheist who found sacred only through dance, that is practiced daily. To him, there was much more about dance behind the sparkly dresses and the shiny parquets. Dance is a philosophy in itself, with its theories, practices and rituals, and the liberatory, energising and moving sensations it provokes. Nietzsche also wrote: “We should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once”.
To find out more about the intriguing world of ballroom dance and get to understand better why we should practice daily, we met with Anastasiia Gorodetckaia, life-long dancer and student at Cass.
Name: Anastasiia Gorodetckaia
Major & Year of Study: BSc Investment and Financial Risk Management, 2nd year
Country of origin: Russia
Relationship status: In a relationship
So, dear Anastasiia, I’ve heard you are passionate about ballroom dance. When did you first start, and why? That is so true! Dance has been my passion since I was a little child. Of course I didn’t get to serious ballrooms and Latin dance straight away, but my parents decided to sign me in the youth club of National Russian Dance when I was 5 years old. They noticed that every time I heard music somewhere, even just in the streets, I started to dance. I really enjoyed dancing Russian dances, until at the age of 7 I was offered by my parents to go to the Ballroom and Latin Dance Club. As soon as I saw some older couples dancing Waltz, I realised that it was exactly what I wanted to learn. And that’s how my dance life started.
What do you like the most about it? For me, dancing is a way to express my feelings and my emotions, and that is what I love the most. Sometimes it helps you to relax and get away from the daily routine. I have also noticed that dancing is such a good way of socialising and meeting new friends.. And even of finding love!
Which is your favourite style, and why? Out of Ballroom and Latin dances I would definitely say that I am a Latin girl. I love Samba, Cha-cha-cha and Rumba especially, maybe also due to the fact that I better at it.
Is London a good place for ballroom dance? Definitely! There are quite a lot of schools and people who love dancing here. The only problem is that it’s quite expensive. However, luckily student ballroom dance is really developed in the UK and it’s not as expensive as professional dancing. Even if you’re not a dancing super star, you still have the chance to compete on your level and to enjoy the professional performances of the dance masters.
What is your life philosophy? I always have in my mind the line “Never give up, it’s such a wonderful life” from quite a famous song by Hurts. I think that this idea of not stopping in front of difficulties came up to me exactly by dancing, when I realised that if you want to achieve something you need work hard to reach a result. So I can definitely say that I live the same way I dance, but maybe sometimes I am a bit more open in dancing than in my real life.
Any messages to our readers out there? For those who are looking for filling the gaps in their uni weeks, for those who are willing to find more friends or their love and for those who can’t wait to express themselves, I can definitely advice to go for dance classes! Dancing is something you try once and then cannot stop it.