Humans of ACC is a series of Q&A presentations about students, faculty and staff.

Today’s focus is on Tracy Fuller, current Psychology student at Arapahoe Community College and full-time Colorado Ballet ballerina.

Arapahoe Pinnacle: How old were you when you took your first ballet class? Who introduced you to it? Did you immediately feel passionate about it?

Tracy Fuller: I actually started ballet somewhat late.  I walked into my first class as a complete beginner at the age of twelve.  Most dancers start at age five so I had a lot of catch up to do! From that first class, I immediately knew this was what I wanted to do.  It was so clear to me that I needed to do this for the rest of my life.  No one had formally introduced me to ballet. It was something I requested my mother put me in after seeing an advertisement for the Colorado Ballet’s Nutcracker.  I was mesmerized by that picture and was bitten by the ballet bug!  After that first class, the rest was history.

AP: You’re now getting a degree in psychology. Do you feel the same amount of passion for your studies as you do with ballet?

TF: Yes! I have had a unique school experience because of ballet and even though school has been part time for a few years I really love learning.  It is definitely a different sort of passion with different rewards, but I feel so lucky to have a career and classes in things that I am passionate about.  

AP: Do you find any similarities with both dance and psychology? 

TF: In my opinion, there really aren’t any glaringly obvious similarities between the two.  However, in order to succeed in both you need to always push yourself to do better and keep improving and learning.  Though the two fields are very different, I think the life skills you build in ballet only help you in the other aspects of life–flexibly, focus and hard work will get you very far! 

AP: What’s the typical schedule of a Colorado Ballet ballerina? How are you able to juggle that with teaching ballet, as well as taking classes at ACC?

TF: A typical work week for us at Colorado Ballet is Tuesday through Saturday, starting with class at 9:30 AM.  This class serves as a warm up and is the place for us to work on continually improving our technique.  It is a necessary part of the day and helps us focus our minds and prepare our bodies for the day ahead.  After class we have rehearsals until 6:00 PM with an hour off for lunch.  The closer we are to a production, the more rehearsals we have.  It definitely keeps me busy!  I teach ballet to students on Monday nights, which is my “Sunday” since we have an abnormal work week.  I do all my classes online, which is a lifesaver.  If it weren’t for that flexibility, I wouldn’t be able to pull it off!  Evenings, mornings, lunch breaks and random times off during the day I try to power through a couple things for school.  Often its a great distraction and break from all the craziness at work to think about something else besides tutus and pointe shoes!

AP: How do you respond to critics who may or may not like your dancing? Is it similar to how you respond when getting good and bad grades? 

TF: When someone criticizes or dislikes my dancing, it is more emotionally difficult to me than receiving a bad grade.  When I receive a bad grade, it is often because of lack of trying on my part.  I am the only one to blame for that!  When someone criticizes me as a dancer, it feels much more personal. I strive to give 100% of myself to every rehearsal and especially every performance.  Performing is my favorite part of my job. There is truly nothing like it.  However, when receiving good reviews or good grades, it is much more the same feeling.  With both of these situations, I feel proud of my work and happy to have been recognized!