01 Jun Reflections From Our 2020 Seniors
by Kristine Maus
Each year we bid farewell to our graduating seniors with mixed emotions, and this year is no exception. Our two graduates this year, Neela Kausik and Kelley Yu, have been dancing at Los Gatos Ballet for well over ten years each. Los Gatos Ballet’s Artistic & Executive Director Marcie Ryken comments, “it has been a privilege to be a witness and mentor to Neela and Kelley, as they’ve journeyed from tiny dancers, full of awe and wonder, towards accomplished company dancers with such beauty, grace, and poise.” The feeling is mutual. Both of these dancers have put in countless hours of practice and rehearsals over the years, and with great support from teachers and other dancers, both view the studio as a second home.
Neela Kausik
Neela has been in 12 Nutcracker performances with Los Gatos Ballet. Her debut role was a lamb in 2008, and she is thrilled that she was able to perform Dewdrop in her final Nutcracker in 2019 after several years dancing in the Flower Corp. It felt full circle for her to have this solo role, which was also her favorite overall role to dance. Marcie describes Neela as having a passion that “fuels her drive towards excellence. She strives to push her boundaries to discover what’s possible.”
After graduating from Los Gatos High School, Neela plans to study computer engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She hopes to attend graduate school and ultimately design secure hardware as her career. While in college, she will take classes with the dance majors and later attend open classes at a nearby studio.
Neela reflects on her time at Los Gatos Ballet,
“Being a student at Los Gatos Ballet since Kindergarten has provided me not only with unparalleled dance training but also the ability to present myself and work hard. Through the challenging classes taught by encouraging teachers, countless performances every year, as well as several years of involvement in Los Gatos Ballet’s student run fundraising program, Junior Guild, Los Gatos Ballet has fostered a supportive environment in which I have gained confidence, drive, and leadership skills. I have used these skills to lead the Junior Guild this year with fellow dancer Kelley Yu, to attend the Boston Ballet and Joffrey Ballet summer intensives, and to find the courage to pursue a career in a male-dominated field.
Additionally, the balance between a strong ballet education and cultivating personal growth has given me the strength to overcome unforeseen obstacles. When a knee injury in 2018 kept me watching from the audience for 7 months, the Los Gatos Ballet community cheered me through recovery. Emboldened by their support, I was able to recognize my tenacity as I hit milestones such as my first step without crutches, first ballet class, and best of all, dancing one of my longtime dream roles, Arabian Princess, in the following Nutcracker.”
Kelley Yu
Kelley enjoys when ballets include substantial acting. Her favorite Los Gatos Ballet production was Alice in Wonderland, and her favorite role to perform was Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty. Marcie recognizes Kelley’s love of acting and her strength of expression. She states, “Kelley’s ability to journey inward allows her to discover her truth, authentically expressing herself through dance and beyond.”
After graduating from Los Gatos High School, ballet will continue to be a large part of Kelley’s life. This fall, she will be attending the University of Utah as a ballet major. Her hope is to dance professionally one day and to possibly teach after that.
Kelley expresses her thoughts about her years at Los Gatos Ballet,
“The years I have spent at Los Gatos Ballet have been essential in my development. I have learned how to be persistent, strong willed, determined, and driven. However, I believe the most important things I have learned at Los Gatos Ballet are the value of communication and how to find my voice. Throughout the years I spent at Los Gatos Ballet, the staff taught me how to properly communicate with others and speak my truth. I have always been encouraged to speak up and voice my own opinions, even if they conflict with something a person in a position of authority has said. I first started to notice this when I was about 15 years old. Dancers often repeat core roles in Nutcracker for a few years, which means that many of us already know the choreography when rehearsals roll around. Every year the teachers respect our voices and encourage us to speak up if we know that they are teaching a certain part of the dance differently than it was done in previous years. Having my voice heard and respected by people I looked up to helped me realize that my opinions have worth, and I should never be afraid to speak up.
This encouragement continued and increased as I got older, and it culminated when I started participating in Junior Guild, Los Gatos Ballet’s student run fundraising program. As a Junior Guild officer, I often found myself meeting with the staff in a more formal setting. During these meetings, they treated me and the other officers as equals and encouraged us to speak up and tell them about what Junior Guild was working on and how we wanted to proceed in the future.”
While Los Gatos Ballet is sending off two wonderful dancers, we all wish them the best! Marcie says it perfectly, “As both continue their journey, they will always be a part of Los Gatos Ballet. We are truly grateful for the impact they have made, the beauty they have bestowed, and lives that they have touched.”