Hello, my name is Mayowa Ogunnaike. I am British Nigerian, currently based in Leeds but born and raised in London. My journey into dance had been relatively straightforward. I was obsessed with ballet from a young age and after watching Barbie and The Nutcracker all I wanted to do was prance about in glitter infested tutu’s. I pressured my parents to take me to ballet classes and began dancing aged four doing ballet, tap, modern and jazz at my local dance school.

My parents were always supportive of my passion for dance and my mum has always enjoyed going to the theatre. They encouraged me to do my best and work hard but accepted it as a hobby rather than something I might take seriously and into higher education. But I had other plans! I was introduced to contemporary dance through my high school dance teacher and from there I auditioned and joined various contemporary youth companies whilst I was studying at school. I knew I wanted to dance professionally but I had a lot of pressure from my family and the majority of my schoolteachers to pursue biomedical science at university and to keep dance as a hobby. I felt quite conflicted in deciding which career path to take but when I was offered a place at Trinity Laban this made my decision a lot clearer. 

During those precious three years of study I felt I really came into my own. I had many ups and downs, lots of therapy and regular trips to the doctor and a certainly wouldn’t say I have overcome whatever difficulties I had at the time. But despite all this, I got to nurture my passions, connect with inspiring people and carve my identity as a dancer. It was all so overwhelming!

I think transitioning from study into the professional realm of dance is such a fundamental and life changing experience for a dancer; not only in terms of career but on a more personal level. It can in some ways be quite traumatic, being discarded from the safety bubble of an institution to a vast, scary and somewhat obscure network of professionals all with different backgrounds, different experiences and skills. It may sound cliché, but upon graduating I really did feel like a small fish flapping about senselessly in a big ocean. My advice to my younger self would be to not stress too much about which direction you are headed, take a deep breath and allow the flow of the ocean guide you.

I’m grateful to have had a lot of support during this transition period. Immediately after graduating, I became an apprentice dancer at Phoenix Dance Theatre. This was an incredible experience! It was my first time moving out of London and dancing full time without term breaks (a legitimate shock to the system). I was there for a year and within that time I learnt a lot about professional conduct, technical skill and gained a greater perspective on the industry I was stepping into. Before graduating, I had spent so much time imagining what I thought working for a company would be like, but it was nothing like I had expected.

Above all else, the most important thing I learnt during this time of transition was distinguishing between my passion and my job. My passion is dancing, and my job is dancing; it’s easy to see how the two may be muddled into one. I love my passion, and I love my job. However, there was a point a few months after graduating where I started to feel somewhat dissatisfied and unfulfilled. I was very confused. I had imagined beginning my career so often, knowing that it would be gruelling physically and mentally, but I didn’t expect this feeling of dullness, especially when things were going well. After communicating with other dancers and artists it became clear that I had forgotten to simply enjoy dancing! I had neglected the little black girl prancing about in her tutu and awful pink tights and was expecting all sense of fulfilment to derive from my work. It left me feeling flat.

Identifying a distinction between these two concepts, I believe, has eased the sense of pressure I felt and allowed me to feel more fulfilled. What I had always found most exciting about working was performing, being surrounded by creative people and developing new work. This is where my passion and my work intersect. So, with advice from mentors, I began to practice these elements on my own terms; I spent more time dancing for myself (outside work hours), watching more performances and many other things that ignited joy. In turn, I began to feel more energised, enthusiastic and inspired. Nurturing my passion has made me feel more connected to my job.

 Since that initial transition period, I have continued to work for different companies, and I am continuing to learn and to grow. There definitely have been new challenges along the way and many moments of reward. In many ways, I feel I am in a continuous state of transition. My advice to graduates would be, remember to have fun, to identify what your passions are and to be confident in yourself.

Much love,

Mayowa xx