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Meet Melissa Ludwig of Juxtapose Arts Collective, Vitacca Vocational School for Dance, The JET-PAC

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Melissa Ludwig.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
When I was young my sister, and I took gymnastics together. We decided to start taking ballet to help us get better at gymnastics. A few years later I ended up quitting gymnastics to spend more time focusing on ballet. I began my dance career training at the School of the Grand Rapids Ballet Company in Michigan. I’ve known since I was about ten years old that I wanted to become a professional ballerina. I expanded my training including intensives at the American Ballet Theater in New York, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle, Milwaukee Ballet and Alonzo King LINES Ballet in San Francisco.

I joined the Milwaukee Ballet Company right out of high school at the age of 17. My professional career then took me to Ballet Austin, Ad Deum Dance Company, and Bay Area Houston Ballet and Theatre. Some of my favorite roles to perform have included FIrebird in The Firebird, Myrtha in Giselle, Lilac Fairy in Sleeping Beauty, Sugar Plum, Snow Queen, and Rose in The Nutcracker, Lead Vampire in Dracula, the Dying Swan, as well as the soloist in Mujeres and Bolero.

I continue to perform as a guest artist in many different productions. Most recently, I performed in The Series: III in New York City with Juxtapose Arts Collective. I also performed as the Stepmother and the Autumn Fairy in Open World Dance Foundation’s production of Cinderella at the Hobby Center and Ft. Lauderdale, FL. I was honored to share the stage with American Ballet Theatre Principals Misty Copeland and Devon Teuscher. While I still enjoy performing, I know that a dancer’s stage career can’t last for forever.

Now that I am 34, I am starting to develop what I want the next part of my career to look like. I have always enjoyed teaching and accepted three new positions last year. I am in my second season as the Youth Program Principal at Vitacca Vocational School for Dance Montrose. I am also the Dance Director at The JET-PAC (Juxtapose Emphasis Theatre and Performing Arts Center) in Clear Lake. My most recent role is as the Ballet Mistress for Juxtapose Arts Collective II, setting and staging ballets including Giselle Act 2, The Firebird, and the Bluebird Pas de Deux from Sleeping Beauty.

My hope is to leave the dance world a better, healthier place than it was for me. I have struggled for many years with disordered eating and body dysmorphia, and I keep this in mind with everything I do in my career. I am also in the process of developing strength, flexibility, and conditioning program specifically geared towards dancers. The program is currently being piloted and well received in the Houston and surrounding areas.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has definitely been difficult! I was told at a young age that if I stayed thin, I would be able to make it as a professional dancer. Most people think that models and athletes come about their bodies naturally. As I matured, my body developed a more athletic, muscular look, which was not the body type most ballet companies look for. I was always told I was “so strong,” but I desperately wanted to be wispy.

Unfortunately, this leads to many years of disordered eating. I also used exercise-induced bulimia and developed anxiety and depression. My weight has gone up and down throughout the years as a result of not eating enough or working out to excess, but then bingeing. I remember regularly doing an hour and a half of cardio at the gym before going to the theater to dance multiple parts in the Nutcracker. I even used weight loss pills for a while to help slim down.

Thankfully, later in my career, I went through counseling for almost a year and met with a nutritionist and have since become a much healthier person. There are still bad days, but I now have many more tools and experience to deal with them. As a mentor to young artists, I am hoping to teach them from my struggles, so they do not have to go through the same experience as I did.

We’d love to hear more about what you do.
While I don’t own my own business, I work in a leadership position for three amazing dance schools and companies in the Houston area.

As the Dance Program Director for the JET-PAC, I am able to facilitate professional training while creating and maintaining a healthy environment. Dance can be incredibly healing or horribly destructive, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to make a change to the traditional dance culture. I believe that you can have excellent training without taking the joy out of dance. The JET-PAC is unique because of their focus on creating Well Rounded Artists. Not only do they have an excellent ballet and contemporary program, but there are also Acting, Vocal, Tap, Musical Theatre, and Music classes available.

I am the Ballet Mistress for Juxtapose Art’s Collective. At its core, Juxtapose is a multi-media dance theatre comprised of artists in residence, guest artists, and an educational apprenticeship program – JII. Juxtapose operates in conjunction with THE JETPAC and is the official training facility for all of our JII dancers. Our mission is to bring together artists of all walks of life: dancers, musicians, actors, painters, photographers, and filmmakers to present new and unique work to the ever-expanding arts community in Houston.

I am the Youth Program Principal at Vitacca Vocational School for Dance Montrose under the direction of Kelly Ann Vitacca. Vitacca is an audition only school for dancers ages 5-19. Vitacca provides advanced ballet technique, modern and contemporary movement coaching, which acts as the foundation for professional dance careers and college preparation. Due to the school’s limited acceptance rate, each dancer receives personal attention and coaching from faculty and guest artists. This is my second year working for this school, and I am in charge of developing and growing the Vitacca Kids Youth Program for dancers ages 5-12. We started out with only five young artists and had grown to 15 in less than one year.

Although these dancers are young, each class is held in a structured, professional environment and the small class size allows for individual attention. I am so thankful to work at these incredible Houston companies. Wherever you are in the Houston area, you can find excellent dance training.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I don’t believe in luck. I trust God and believe that everything happens for a reason and as a result of hard work and dedication. Anything that we consider “bad” is just another opportunity to learn and grow.

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Image Credit:
Nick Reynolds, Elena Lexina, Dania Lair, Amanda Hawkins, Chris Nardozzi

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