Today we’d like to introduce you to Brittany Monachino.
Hi Brittany, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I began dancing when I was three years old in the church. I always say they made the “mistake” of allowing me to be the line leader because that began my love of dance and opened my eyes to what I believe is one of the gifts God has given me. Dance was always a kind of asylum and sanctuary for me. It made me feel at home. It was truly like my first language and before it ever happened in a studio or a stage, my mom and I danced together at home in our living room. We danced for fun, for freedom, and even sometimes as prayer.
Today, that same love of movement has come full circle through my work as a Fitness Thru Dance instructor at Orlando Ballet, where I get to share the joy, freedom and connection I’ve always found in dance with others.
I quickly transitioned into more conservatory style training as it became more and more apparent that I had a deep love and joy for dance with The Draper Center for Dance Education and then The Washington School of Ballet. I spent summers at The Chautauqua Institution, Alonzo King LINES Ballet, The Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Philadanco, and Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet. After completing my college studies at Purchase Conservatory of Dance and SUNY Brockport, I began working with Dianne McIntyre and Ntozake Shange on “Why I Love to Dance” at The Cleveland Playhouse and Oberlin College before dancing and touring with Philadanco, The Norwegian Cruise Lines in Hawaii and all over Europe and North Africa. I quickly started developing a new found love in theatre and began working on West Side Story, Kiss me Kate, and Saturday Night Fever which eventually led to my Broadway Debut in King Kong and a later National Tour with Wicked. Living in New York, gave me the opportunity to work on developmental projects such as The DDLJ Musical: Come Fall in Love under the direction of Aditya Chopra with choreography by Rob Ashford and later Carmen The Opera with The Houston Grand Opera with choreography by Rob Ashford. Performing on Saturday Night Live for their 50th Anniversary celebration was another big dream and career highlight for me to be on TV!
I have been truly blessed to accomplish some of my long-held dreams, and I’m so excited to continue dreaming new ones as an artist and as an educator!
I could not have done anything that I’ve done without the grace of God and the support of my family, close friends, teachers, physical therapists, therapists, pastors, and my community.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Any journey worth taking takes an incredible amount of hard work, persistence, passion, and enjoyment, most importantly. There can be questions of worthiness or capability at every corner, but the desire to continue has to be greater. I definitely felt a call on my life to dance and something inside of me wouldn’t let me quit!
I had quite a few surgeries throughout my career and injuries can really pull on your self-confidence and resilience.
I would say the most important skill oftentimes is knowing how to control your mind in hard times and not letting a setback or setbacks overtake you. I had to learn how to build a life outside of dance that could nourish the person first. We give so much to this career that sometimes we neglect our mental and emotional needs. It took an incredible amount of prayer, surrender, willpower, and a faithful team to minister to me and tell me to keep going in moments where I didn’t feel the strength in and of myself. I’m so grateful to still be learning and growing as a person and artist!
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a dancer, singer, actor, and educator. I’ve been blessed to perform and most recently teach in many capacities through Orlando Ballet’s Fitness Thru Dance program, community enrichment programs such as RISE and STEPS through the Orlando Ballet, and choreographed for The Dr Philips Center’s production of West Side Story for the Florida Musical Theatre Intensive. I also directed and choreographed at Spotlight Performing Arts in Lima, Peru for their production of “In the Heights” and “Chicago.”
I’m most proud of the hard work that it took to reach my dreams! I remember once upon a time working 4 jobs and commuting to and from Philly to New York before seeing my dream of Broadway come true! I have stories for days about that!
But also, possibly even more than the performances themselves I’m proud of the resilience that it takes to keep going! The mental fortitude and training and prayer that it takes to succeed in this business. The many times that you have to pick yourself up again and regroup and try again, and learn a new skill or refine the ones you already have. I’m most proud of keeping my heart and my mind together in an industry that demands so much.
What is so special about teaching dance for me now is the privilege to share these lessons with my students and to encourage them to move their bodies with whatever capacity they have, joy, and appreciation. It’s a blessing to help them take on new challenges, believe in themselves, and grow through it all!
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
No luck!
I wouldn’t say any part of this journey has been luck for me. It has been so much prayer and hard work. It has been protecting the play and joy that is also such an important part of being an artist. It has also been knowing when to stop, try again, dig deeper, and make use of your team.
This artistic life has taught me so much and it is still teaching me every day! I’m incredibly blessed to have been given the gift of dance in my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://orlandoballet.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orlandoballet/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OrlandoBallet/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/orlando-ballet/posts/?feedView=all
