Originally published: Content Magazine, Issue 6.0_DISCOVER, Feb/March 2014
ANYWHERE—BUT HERE
Shannon Bynum
As a company member of Ballet San Jose since 2006, San Jose native Shannon Bynum has danced a number of leading roles and earned acclaim for her recurring part as one of the Spanish dancers in the annual production ofThe Nutcracker. Consummately sane, sweet, and serious about her calling, Bynum shared a little about the journey she has made in the course of her career.
“I don’t feel like me without it in my life”
Bynum’s introduction to ballet was almost accidental. Nobody in her immediate family was a dancer. An extremely shy little girl bubbling with energy, her mother thought dance classes might give her a healthy outlet and help her to make friends. So, at the young age of 2½, Bynum enrolled as a student at the Atlas School of Dance.
Her first classes were not exactly a success. “I just sat and watched the other girls,” she recalls. As the months went by, one of her teachers even cautioned her mother that it might not be worth it to invest in a costume for Bynum for the year-end recital.
But when the curtain went up the night of the show, something magical happened. “There I was, front and center—suddenly, I wasn’t scared anymore,” she says. From that moment, she never wanted to stop dancing, and she never has. “It’s something I love with all my heart. I feel it in my soul. I don’t feel like me without it in my life.”
The virtues of flexibility
As she grew older and increasingly serious about dancing professionally, Bynum left the Atlas School to attend the highly competitive Teen Dance Company of the Bay Area. There, she worked with a number of different guest choreographers and experimented with diverse dance styles. At Atlas, she had studied tap and jazz as well as ballet. At TDC, her horizons were broadened further with African, Indian, and “just about every possible kind of contemporary dance.”
While at college—studying physical therapy at Fresno State University—Bynum worked with both the contemporary company MFK Altered Modalities and private classical ballet instructors. Her teachers began to pressure her to focus on one style. Bynum was sincerely torn. “I loved ballet. I have the build for it, and it seemed like a good fit for me. But at the same time, I was drawn to commercial dance. I didn’t know how I could choose.”
As sometimes happens, fate decided for her. In the summer of 2005, Bynum was accepted into the American Ballet Theatre’s summer program in New York. But she was also selected as one of the top 100 competitors for the televised dance competition show So You Think You Can Dance. When she ended up placing just shy of the cut-off to progress to televised elimination rounds in Los Angeles, she was philosophical. “I figured it was a sign. I just hopped on a plane back to New York.”
“I don’t regret my experimenting with different dance styles at all,” she continues. “If anything, my experience has really broadened my technique and helped my career. Companies today prize versatility. They need dancers who can dance it all.”
The next year, Bynum auditioned for Dennis Nahat, then artistic director of Ballet San Jose, who promptly hired her. She has been with the company ever since. “There have been so many opportunities for me with the company. I’ve danced challenging roles, and keep growing and changing as an artist.”
Of course, Bynum relishes opportunities to travel professionally. She has toured as far away as China, and danced on stages all over Europe. “I love exploring different cities, trying different food, and hearing how the different orchestras perform the same score in unique ways.” But no matter how far abroad she goes, she feels a tremendous amount of satisfaction every time she returns to San Jose. “It’s really a dream come true,” she says. “I love dancing for this city. I feel so proud that I was born and raised here, and so happy that I can give back to my community.”
“You have to keep your balance”
Bynum’s instrument is her body. To hone her control of it takes discipline and focus. Rehearsing for a production, she dances more than eight hours a day. All of this is not without a physical toll. Already, she has had two hip surgeries, one ankle surgery, and suffers from arthritis. “Ballet isn’t natural for the body,” she concedes. “Sometimes it’s very much a mental fight, when your body hurts, to even get out of the bed in the morning.”
The secret to making it all work? Bynum says, “you have to keep your balance.”
Physically, this means finding ways to train that emphasize natural movement—for this, Bynum likes Pilates and cross-training—and making sure to eat and sleep enough and well. Emotionally, Bynum gets fulfillment out of working as a teacher, both of ballet and Pilates, for children and adults. She especially enjoys sharing her knowledge of training and technique with a new generation of students. She also recharges with quality time with her family. “I’m half Middle Eastern,” she says, “and food is a huge part of our lives. My grandmother cooks, and our gatherings are full of food, laughter, and just… the joy of family.”
“This is not a selfish career”
Bynum is without question driven, but she is emphatic that what the dance gives not only to the dancer, but also the audience: “This is not a selfish career,” she says. “Every dancer wants to give (of themselves). We don’t do it for ourselves. We do it for the people in the audience.”
She continues with a smile, “when you’re on stage in position, and the overture begins, and the curtain is about to rise, in that moment, you think to yourself ‘this is why I do this.’ When your profession is your passion, it’s a pleasure to push yourself. Because you know you’re so very lucky, and you never forget it.”
“I don’t feel like me without it in my life”
Bynum’s introduction to ballet was almost accidental. Nobody in her immediate family was a dancer. An extremely shy little girl bubbling with energy, her mother thought dance classes might give her a healthy outlet and help her to make friends. So, at the young age of 2½, Bynum enrolled as a student at the Atlas School of Dance.
Her first classes were not exactly a success. “I just sat and watched the other girls,” she recalls. As the months went by, one of her teachers even cautioned her mother that it might not be worth it to invest in a costume for Bynum for the year-end recital.
But when the curtain went up the night of the show, something magical happened. “There I was, front and center—suddenly, I wasn’t scared anymore,” she says. From that moment, she never wanted to stop dancing, and she never has. “It’s something I love with all my heart. I feel it in my soul. I don’t feel like me without it in my life.”
The virtues of flexibility
As she grew older and increasingly serious about dancing professionally, Bynum left the Atlas School to attend the highly competitive Teen Dance Company of the Bay Area. There, she worked with a number of different guest choreographers and experimented with diverse dance styles. At Atlas, she had studied tap and jazz as well as ballet. At TDC, her horizons were broadened further with African, Indian, and “just about every possible kind of contemporary dance.”
While at college—studying physical therapy at Fresno State University—Bynum worked with both the contemporary company MFK Altered Modalities and private classical ballet instructors. Her teachers began to pressure her to focus on one style. Bynum was sincerely torn. “I loved ballet. I have the build for it, and it seemed like a good fit for me. But at the same time, I was drawn to commercial dance. I didn’t know how I could choose.”
As sometimes happens, fate decided for her. In the summer of 2005, Bynum was accepted into the American Ballet Theatre’s summer program in New York. But she was also selected as one of the top 100 competitors for the televised dance competition show So You Think You Can Dance. When she ended up placing just shy of the cut-off to progress to televised elimination rounds in Los Angeles, she was philosophical. “I figured it was a sign. I just hopped on a plane back to New York.”
“I don’t regret my experimenting with different dance styles at all,” she continues. “If anything, my experience has really broadened my technique and helped my career. Companies today prize versatility. They need dancers who can dance it all.”
The next year, Bynum auditioned for Dennis Nahat, then artistic director of Ballet San Jose, who promptly hired her. She has been with the company ever since. “There have been so many opportunities for me with the company. I’ve danced challenging roles, and keep growing and changing as an artist.”
Of course, Bynum relishes opportunities to travel professionally. She has toured as far away as China, and danced on stages all over Europe. “I love exploring different cities, trying different food, and hearing how the different orchestras perform the same score in unique ways.” But no matter how far abroad she goes, she feels a tremendous amount of satisfaction every time she returns to San Jose. “It’s really a dream come true,” she says. “I love dancing for this city. I feel so proud that I was born and raised here, and so happy that I can give back to my community.”
“You have to keep your balance”
Bynum’s instrument is her body. To hone her control of it takes discipline and focus. Rehearsing for a production, she dances more than eight hours a day. All of this is not without a physical toll. Already, she has had two hip surgeries, one ankle surgery, and suffers from arthritis. “Ballet isn’t natural for the body,” she concedes. “Sometimes it’s very much a mental fight, when your body hurts, to even get out of the bed in the morning.”
The secret to making it all work? Bynum says, “you have to keep your balance.”
Physically, this means finding ways to train that emphasize natural movement—for this, Bynum likes Pilates and cross-training—and making sure to eat and sleep enough and well. Emotionally, Bynum gets fulfillment out of working as a teacher, both of ballet and Pilates, for children and adults. She especially enjoys sharing her knowledge of training and technique with a new generation of students. She also recharges with quality time with her family. “I’m half Middle Eastern,” she says, “and food is a huge part of our lives. My grandmother cooks, and our gatherings are full of food, laughter, and just… the joy of family.”
“This is not a selfish career”
Bynum is without question driven, but she is emphatic that what the dance gives not only to the dancer, but also the audience: “This is not a selfish career,” she says. “Every dancer wants to give (of themselves). We don’t do it for ourselves. We do it for the people in the audience.”
She continues with a smile, “when you’re on stage in position, and the overture begins, and the curtain is about to rise, in that moment, you think to yourself ‘this is why I do this.’ When your profession is your passion, it’s a pleasure to push yourself. Because you know you’re so very lucky, and you never forget it.”