Spotlight Iowa City: Freshman ballet dancer
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It's early in the afternoon, and the sweltering heat outside has crept into Halsey Hall. The fans are on high speed, but they don't seem to soothe the nerves of the students lined up in the main hallway.
Dressed in sweats and without shoes, the students await an audition for one of the most anticipated events of the year: the University of Iowa Dance Gala.
But amid the heat and the hype is one student who is calm and cool. For Sean Laughead, there isn't room for anxiety — he's danced across a professional stage before walking on a college campus.
The 20-year-old freshman is a dance major at the UI from West Des Moines. Instead of spending the last year sleeping in a dorm room, Laughead opted for hotel rooms in Chicago and the Twin Cities aiming for a spot in a professional ballet company.
His passion for ballet began in the seventh grade.
"I began intensive dance training in the seventh grade, starting out in tap and jazz styles," he said. "I really liked river dancing, so that was the appeal to me."
After a few recitals, Laughead's interest curved to ballet when he witnessed other dancers performing the dance.
"I enjoyed the art of it; it was really graceful," he said.
When he graduated from Waukee High School in 2009, his sights weren't set on college — he wanted a taste of the professional world. Trying out for dance companies in the spring of 2009, he caught a break when Ballet Minnesota offered him a seasonal contract.
Kari Jensen, a fellow member of Ballet Minnesota, said working with Laughead was pure fun.
"I loved Sean. He was one of my favorite guys," she said. "It's a very small company, and you're rehearsing in small room with the same people every day. You kind of grow into a family, and like every family, there are good days and bad days. But Sean was always in a good mood and enthusiastic."
While he has gone from a professional dancer to a college student, Laughead isn't taking any breaks. His audition for Dance Gala is his way of staying active.
Emery and Melissa Uyehara, who own Capital City Dance Center in Des Moines, say Laughead has a bright future ahead of him.
"I think Laughead will do whatever he wants to do in the future, but he has the dedication, training, and desire to be up on stage doing what he loves one day," Emery Uyehara said. "Supplemented with the training he'll get from the University of Iowa, I think Sean will become a well-rounded professional dancer that makes him extremely marketable."
Laughead draws his inspiration from other dancers, taking what he likes and making it his own. While he doesn't have a favorite professional dancer, he does admire one ballet in particular. "I really like the ballet Paquita. It's a two-act ballet about an estranged girl and her battle to reunite with her royal family," he said.
Jensen said Laughead has future promise.
"He'll make it as a dancer," she said.
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