"Ballet helped me a lot during the job interview" - Adina Beer

“It’s not the goal that gives us the pleasure, but the road to accomplish the goal.” - Andrei Dokukin

My guest today who was born into a family of dancers in the former Soviet Union. His career path seemed decided when he started his training at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy. But the world around him changed dramatically and so did his goals for his career path.

He won a full scholarship at The Juilliard School and joined the American Ballet Theatre in New York City shortly after. Today he has been working as a medical doctor for over 10 years. Let's discover together how he managed that. Please welcome our guest Andrei Dokukin!

"A lot of artists can prepare themselves, but sometimes they don’t.” - Aruna Bataa

Today, I have the pleasure to introduce a performer who was born into a family of circus artists.

She was born in Mongolia, and soon moved to Brazil together with her parents. Travelling up and down the country with a traditional circus, she started training and eventually performing alongside with her family.

When she graduated from high school, her parents settled down to allow her to go to university and become a lawyer.

Halfway through her studies Cirque de Soleil knocked on her door and offered her a job.

What should she do? Accept this offer or finish her degree that she had already put so much work into?

Well, there is only one way to find out. Listen to this new episode and welcome the handstand artist and contortionist Aruna Bataa!

“If you don’t like what you’re doing, then injury will happen.” - Toshiko Oiwa

From the busy streets of Tokio where she started her Ballet training, she moved to New York City to attend the Juilliard School.

She went on to work for Twyla Tharp, Billy T Jones and French choreographer Angelin Preljocaj and always found time to pursue her own projects as well.

Today she lives in a small beach town in Brazil, where I had a chance to speak to her.

I do apologise for the weak sound quality in the first couple of minutes But these are live talks and it would have been weird to start over.

Let’s give a warm welcome to our guest Toshiko Oiwa!

“Dancing gave me a good foundation for my job as a pilot.” - Andrés Ferraz-Leite

Our guest today was trained as a classical ballet dancer up to the age of 19. Born in Uruguay he moved to Vienna, Austria with his parents as a young child. Encouraged by his father, he took up classical dance training at the Vienna State Opera ballet school.

Fully immersed into the prospect of becoming a professional stage artist, it slowly dawned on him that he would rather become a commercial airline pilot. And that’s what he did.

So how did he manage that shift and has the dance education been helpful for his training as a pilot? Find out in my new episode of the Me in Ten Years Podcast and please welcome Andrés Ferraz-Leite!

Find out more about career change for professional dancers at https://meintenyears.com

"I just kind of knew, what I didn’t want to do" - Toni Meeks

From a local ballet company in her hometown El Paso, Texas, to the Royal Swedish Ballet in Stockholm. Her start into the professional world of dance was rather unpredictable but successful.
At school she enjoyed English literature and languages. And with her adventures spirit, she took a leave of absence
to work at the Metropolitan Opera Ballet in New York, as a marketing assistant for Polygram Records in Stockholm and in an art gallery in SOHO, New York City.
Today she lives permanently in Stockholm Sweden and works as a specialised medical secretary at the Karolinska Hospital since 2017.
Please welcome Toni Meeks!