Forever brown and gold: Jacquelyn Nowicki
Posted by Brandi Engel on June 3, 2019Heading out into the "real world" after graduating college isn't a straightforward or particularly easy process for anyone. With major life choices to make, an aggressive job market to navigate and never-ending bills to pay, the transition can be tough. When you're in a competitive and not-always-steady industry like professional dance, you'll face another layer of challenges entirely.
WMU dance alumna Jacquelyn Nowicki, who will be returning to campus this fall as the Department of Dance's 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award honoree, managed to make it through the world of professional dance with great success. As artistic director for NOW Dance Project, faculty member with Peridance Capezio and company member of BARE Dance Company and Pilobolus Dance Theatre, Jacquelyn's journey has been multifaceted and full of challenges and rewards alike. Whether you're anticipating your own professional pursuit or you're a recent graduate currently in the line of fire, take it from Jacquelyn: It's worth the fight.
More advice and inspiration from Jacquelyn below:
NOT EASY
Words of Wisdom from WMU Department of Dance alumna Jacquelyn Nowicki
Being a dancer is not easy. It isn’t a glamorous life filled with money and fame. There are no rule books on how to pay your rent or create a savings account when you choose to be an artist. You fight every day. No one makes your career happen but you, so you fight harder. You have to be strong. You have to be fearless, and most of all you have to constantly be ready; ready to learn and grow; ready to stand up for who you are and allow others to see just how much you believe in what you have to bring to the table. It is that faith in yourself that makes life as an artist worth every second.
As a dancer, choreographer, and teacher, you are putting yourself out into the world as the product. This can be an intimidating realization, but there are many elements that will make your “product” desirable. One piece of advice I have been giving a lot lately is to be a good person above anything else. Be the company member every director wants to have in their rehearsal process, the teacher every student hopes to hug at the end of class, and the choreographer who has a wonderful reputation for not only their creativity, but also their incredible spirit. In this industry, everyone is talented, so how you carry yourself can be the number one factor that sets you apart from the rest.
Life as an artist will also be much more rewarding if you are appreciative of every opportunity, whether enlightening or disheartening. The moments that knock us down as artist truly are where we learn what we're made of. How cliché right? I’m sure you have heard that a million times already and I’m sure you want me to say that it's when you book the job or win an award for your choreography that you feel truly successful and proud. Although the movements of recognition and success are appreciated and necessary, it’s when you don’t book the audition that our true selves are revealed. I have a very specific body type and my entire career I have fought to prove that I am the dancer every choreographer wants to work with because of my talent, even if my body doesn’t fit the aesthetic they were going for. I once had a choreographer say he couldn’t hire me because the company donors would not pay to see my body dance. That one statement made my career. I booked my first job with Pilobolus two weeks later and never looked back. Don’t let negativity bring you down, use it.
Being a dancer is not easy but it is worth the fight. As artists, we are rewarded for being ourselves. Have a voice, make choices, and be the most incredible version of yourself. Never change to make someone else see your greatness. Acknowledge what makes you unique, work hard and then work even harder than that, and go out into the world with a “product” no one can resist. The success of personally finding yourself is the greatest joy of being an artist.