Holly Gannett is an amazing dance teacher in Augusta, Maine. Her passion for dance shines through everything she does and her positivity lights up a room. An inspiration to all, here is her life story along with a few words of her wisdom:
Can you explain your career path?
Growing up a dance teacher’s daughter, dance was part of my life at a very young age. My first job out of college was teaching at a ballet school in Wisconsin. While I was there, I got a call from Sesame Street Live with an offer to perform, but unfortunately, I was already under contract.
Soon, I came back to Maine and got a job teaching at my mom’s dance studio, along with several other part-time teaching jobs at local colleges. By bringing the choreography to the Dancers Inc. Competition, I was discovered and hired to be a judge for them.
I also had a full-time job in the financial services industry for about 3 or 4 years before I realized it wasn’t my calling. After that, I worked as a personal trainer at a hospital for 12 years teaching fitness classes before becoming the dance director for a new charter high school, where I stayed for just over 4 years.
Because of all the dance in my life, I had been in a lot of pain over the past few years and recently had to get a hip replacement. I realized doing that much dancing was too much to ask of my body, so I left the charter high school. Now, I’m still teaching at night and judging competitions, but my job during the day is a librarian at the local elementary school.
What was your experience at college like?
I went to the University of Buffalo in New York and got a degree in dance. There are about 30,000 students there, but only 60-100 students in the dance program. I lived in the dorms my first two years and enjoyed meeting new people and learning about new cultures.
My roommate from freshman year and I were very close and lived together for all four years. The friendships I made in college have been and will be lifelong. I also had a job waiting tables in college and was in the dance company. It was busy, but I always found time to have fun with my closest friends.
What have your biggest obstacles been?
There is such a stigma around weight, body size, and body shape. I went to so many auditions where I was told I had talent, but I needed to lose weight. It got to the point where I realized, yes, my dream is to perform, but does it have to be professional? How much is it worth sacrificing my health and my happiness? I performed at other venues locally instead that accepted me for the way I look. My biggest obstacle has been being okay with what I look like, and realizing I have talent but I don’t look like a “Barbie doll.” I dealt with an eating disorder for 15 years because of it, and in hindsight, I wish I had as much wisdom then as I do now. I’ve learned how important it is to accept who you are and that no matter what size or shape you are, you’re beautiful.
What have your biggest successes been?
We always say “If you can touch one person’s life you’ve made a difference”. In my first year teaching at the charter school, I had a student who was very doubtful of themselves. He wasn’t a dancer but ended up taking 5 or 6 dance classes. At the end of the year, he wrote a paper about how if it wasn’t for me, he wouldn’t be the person he is. That was incredibly rewarding because I made a difference in someone’s life on a deeper level.
What’s the best piece of advice you could give someone just entering adulthood?
One piece of advice that was given to me by my dance professor in college, Tom Ralabate, stands out. It seems really simple, but he told me to always have a plan B. For me, especially with the obstacles that I faced, it was really important to broaden my view and think, what else can I do with this career? I always tell students, not only should you have a plan A and a plan B, but also a plan C and D and so on. Doors are going to open that you may have not realized, and they’re going to lead to other paths that are meant to be.
What is the number one thing that has contributed to your success and ability to maintain a positive attitude through everything?
There are so many things to be grateful for and there are so many things we can bring to the table, we just have to find out what that is for each for us. For me, I don’t want to get stuck in that dark place because I’ve been there, I’ve seen it, and I know there’s so much more. Wanting to encourage people to find that for themselves is really important too.