Getting To Know You Series with Barbara Derecktor Donahue

Apr 14, 2011 by Tom C. Erb

Getting To Know Barbara Derecktor Donahue

Choreographer, Dancing Spirit

 

1. NAS: What would you consider your passion?

Barbara: My passion is my dance – teaching, performing, sharing and watching the growing from the learning – for me and my students

 

2. NAS: Describe two or three things that you learned in your current job or passion?

Barbara: From studying dance I know self discipline, self expression, mind over matter/body/ spirit, where there is a will there is a way, to dance is better than not to dance. Any can and should dance every day.

 

3. NAS: What are your special abilities? How have they helped you succeed in the past?

Barbara: My best gift/ strength is giving/ sharing/ teaching the dance to everyone. Anyone can dance but not everyone knows or feel they can. From teaching many non dancers I have developed a set of teaching images which are empowering/ strengthening from the inside out and can give many students the feeling that they can take on anything in life if they can learn how to walk, to simple rhythms with good strong, proud posture.

 

4. NAS: What about yourself would you like to improve?

Barbara: Some times I think as a teacher and promoter I am so passionate I scare people away. In a way I wish I could be less intense but I’m not sure how I can be passionate and also not intense? There is so much in of world dance there is to learn and I wish I could learn it all

 

5. NAS: What have you done that you’re particularly proud of?

Barbara: I am proud that despite Middle Eastern Dance is a misunderstood and undiscovered dance locally I have continued to explore, teach , share and perform anyhow and have survived on main rd for 5 yrs against almost all odds. I began having high quality mixed dance/ music studio shows in a tiny space which have been where many newbies have begun their careers with pros who have set a standard while sharing their expertise. I also have watched many amazing positive transformations through sharing the dance. I am also proud to still be performing when most of my piers have not danced for a long time

 

6. NAS: Why did you choose your field of work?

Barbara: My field of work chose me – destiny

 

7. NAS: What motivates you? Give me an example from a previous experience.

Barbara: My dance is the best of me and so I want to and must share it and so I do.

 

8. NAS: Describe some of your accomplishments and talk about the reasons for your success

Barbara: My accomplishments are my marriage, my three wonderful kids and my dance studio, students, studio shows and combining my classical roots with Mid East Vocab to maybe create a new form. What I would like to accomplished is – is putting together an established dance troupe together, sharing Mid East dance vocab, culture with classical dancers locally, in dance studios and in college dance depts.

 

9. NAS: What are some things that you would like to accomplish in your career?

Barbara: What I would like to accomplished is – is putting together an established dance troupe together, sharing Mid East dance vocab, culture with classical dancers locally, in dance studios and in college dance depts.

 

10. NAS: What is your favorite kind of music? Give artist examples.

Barbara: I like all sorts of music

 

11. NAS: What was the last movie you saw? Please give a synopsis and opinion?

Barbara: I saw Black Swan. What Natalie accomplished in the dance was amazing. it was a very sad movie with not one happy character but it did show the amazing passion, obsession of dancers

 

12. NAS: Where would you like to visit that you haven’t

Barbara: Greece, Turkey ( again), Egypt ( again) Argentina, Mexico( again) – mostly all places where the dance is growing