GabBY Camerlengo

MY STORY

When I was two years old, I walked up to my mother and told her that I wanted to be a ballerina. Being a chubby two year old that spent more time falling over than on her feet, this was met with laughter from everyone who witnessed this defining moment. 

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Two years later, my family saw that my love for music and dance was not waivering, and they enrolled me in my first ballet class. This is where the love affair with dance started. I didn’t take well to rules and technique, but I found a love for free movement and other styles that allowed me to explore my creativity. It became my passion, and all I could think about. My free time at school would be taken up with choreographing routines for my friends to perform in front of my cohort on a Friday afternoon; my time at home would be spent dancing around to Nikki Webster and Britney Spears, wondering whether I would be like them someday.

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During my teenage years, I struggled a lot with my mental health. The only place I found solace was in my dance studio with all my friends and a supportive mentor that I held in high regard. I think even then, I began to understand how important dance was for my wellbeing; I just couldn’t put my finger on why.

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When it came to choosing a career pathway after I finished school, I took the academic route and fell in love with psychology. I always knew that I wanted to help people - to ensure that no one felt the way that I had felt in high school - yet as I was studying it, I knew I wanted to do more than sit in an office and talk through the problems that individuals were facing on the daily. I also missed dancing, giving it up during my second degree, and as I watched my friends go into the dance industry and succeed, I watched with awe but also a little bit of jealousy, wishing I could do what they were doing.

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After my applications for masters were rejected, I decided to give dancing a go and entered a part time dance course to ensure I could still pursue psychology at the same time. Eventually, I put all my cards into the dance industry, and focused on my desire to perform and share who I was in the way that felt the most intuitive. Unfortunately, the dance industry was met with a lot of rejection and additional struggles including mental health and eating disorders, and as I was experiencing this in myself, I watched others go through the same things. I realised very quickly that there weren’t a lot of supporting resources that catered to the unique experiences of artists, and that something needed to change.

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The pandemic was the worst for artists. Most found themselves without work whilst others tried to make zoom work for them. What was almost universal was the mental health struggles that we all shared. During lockdown, I dabbled with a video that combined mindfulness, positive psychology and dance in order to give artists purpose and a creative spark during their time at home, which was met with resounding success. This is where Posidance was born; online improvisation tasking that could be accessed by artists during times of struggle.

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During the year old Posidance’s inception, I was also awarded a scholarship to study early childhood and become a teacher. It was initially to have financial stability during uncertain times, however what ended up happening was that my love for dance and my need to help others was pushed to the side in order to make this work. During my 2 years employed in early childhood, Posidance took a backseat; episodes stopped, social media was sporadic, and I lost a lot of my drive in my career. I am grateful for this experience, because it reminded me of what I really wanted to do; to use dance as a tool for wellbeing in artists and people alike.

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My time in early childhood also opened my mind to the possibilities of Posidance. For one, I used dancing in all of my lesson plans, and saw how engaging and important it was for children, especially children with additional needs. It was utilised as a voice, as another mode of communication, and I saw how powerful this tool could be for fostering developmental outcomes. I experimented with combining dance and emotional awareness and found the children I was teaching become more open with their feelings and more empathetic towards others. I also thought about the teenagers I was teaching in dance studios, and how improvisation, creativity, and the social aspect of dance was so important to navigating the pressures of being a teenager. This is where Posidance began to expand into early childhood and school settings, to ensure that children reach their potential and learn how to navigate their wellbeing in different ways.

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Posidance now offers workshops to pre-professional and professional dancers, as well as in educational settings. As for my personal story, I’ve found a career that aligns my passions for dance and helping others alongside my values, and for that, I am eternally grateful.