Junior Yayoi Tomaszewski fell in love with hip-hop dancing at first sight. Eight years old at her first lesson, she watched the advanced dancers in awe, hoping that one day, she鈥檇 be able to dance like them. Little did she know that she would be honing her hip-hop skills for the next eight years of her life, learning new techniques and gaining confidence.
Tomaszewski joined her first hip-hop dance crew at Dance Connection when she was 11 and participated in her first hip-hop competition with them. Although it seemed daunting at first, competing proved to be enjoyable.
鈥淚 had so much adrenaline,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 sleep because I was experiencing so many new things. (But) we had a really good time, and I built friendships with people who were much older than me. Some of those friendships still last to today.鈥
Attending these competitions helped Tomaszewski improve both her hip-hop and communication skills.
鈥淚 was able to get out of my comfort zone in dance, but that would also apply to meeting and talking to new people,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t just broke me out of my shell and made me less shy.鈥
However, it has not been easy for her to master the dance style. Tomaszewski initially struggled with moving fluidly during quieter, slower parts of songs.
鈥淓ven though people think (hip-hop) is very carefree, chill and easy, there鈥檚 still a lot of technique that comes with it,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t took me a long time to be natural with it, and there would be a lot of internal frustration.鈥
To Tomaszewski, one of the unique advantages of hip-hop is that it allows dancers to express themselves freely.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e able to express yourself in a way where, if you want to have a chill vibe or calmer energy, you鈥檙e still able to execute a hip-hop dance through that, but you can also be really hyped with it,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t gives me a much broader spectrum to be able to express myself in different ways.鈥
As Tomaszewski stopped dancing competitive hip-hop at Dance Connection, she joined other studios, where she refined her hip-hop personality.
鈥淚鈥檓 very creative and energetic,鈥 she said. 鈥淢ost of the dances I
want to learn or perform have a lot of energy in them. I (also) try to incorporate improv a lot in dance too, so that鈥檚 where the creativity comes in.鈥
Tomaszewski draws comfort and inspiration from the authentic, like-minded peers she has found in the hip-hop community.
鈥淭he way a lot of hip-hop dancers interact with each other and other people is that they鈥檙e genuine with their kindness and compassion,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e super, super supportive, no
matter what, even if you鈥檙e not at the best level of hip-hop. I don鈥檛 feel like I鈥檒l ever be truly judged by a hip-hop dancer.鈥
Even though Tomaszewski has taken a break from competitive hip-hop this year to focus on school, she continues to take classes occasionally to maintain her technique. In the future, however, she wants to join a dance team again to re-immerse herself in the community she knows and loves.
鈥淚鈥檓 hoping to be surrounded by that same kind of community, because I do miss making a lot of friends and meeting new people,鈥 she said. 鈥淪o, wherever I end up going to college, I hope I can find a local dance team that competes to have a good time.鈥