We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Miranda Manley a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Miranda, we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?
My assurance and belief in myself stem from the dedication and commitment I have invested into my passion. In my case, confidence was not something that arose naturally, it needed to be nurtured through preparation and effort. For the past twenty years, I have devoted my life to dance and it is the education and training I have received that are the foundation of my self-esteem. Nobody can take away what I have learned and put into my craft.
In addition, disregard the negative outside views to help you stay focused and persevere. No matter what you do, you will always have people speak negatively or think otherwise. If you allow the negativity of others to affect you, you give them control of your power that should be used to get you closer to your goals.
For physical health I go to the gym and eat nutritious foods. For mental health I spend time with people I love and I understand that I am more than the two-dimensional person in the mirror. Making these choices on a daily basis improves my self esteem. Do your best and take care of yourself. Do what you love and try new things. These are great ways to improve your confidence.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I was about ten years old when I attended my first dance class. I was reluctant at first but then it became my first love. I enjoyed performing and seeing the audience smile. I started out with Hip- Hop then broadened my learning into ballet, tap, jazz, and contemporary.
I danced for many hours everyday at the studio all through my teen years and when I graduated at eighteen, I went to Scottsdale Community College and danced in all three of their dance companies, MOCO, SAJE, and Instinct. While at SCC, I became a Radio Disney road crew member where I danced and performed for four years.
While doing all of these different styles of dance I would often come home and listen to Korean Pop music and watch K-Pop music videos. I thought the style was unique, catchy, and cute. I would wish that I could dance that style and to that music but I didn’t see it here in Arizona. I wondered if others in the valley enjoyed K-pop and why there weren’t any classes offered here to learn it. I sat on the idea for a while then I made the decision to start Open Level K-pop dance classes.
It was trial and error and I had to learn the dances and know them well enough to teach to a class. Korean pop is a worldwide dance style that is gaining popularity and it is a social style of dancing as K-pop fans want to know the official choreography and show what dances they have learned at random dance plays. RDP is a game that brings K-pop dancers together by dancing to different Korean songs.
It has been over four years since I opened up K-pop classes and now I teach at Mesa Community College, AZ Foothills Dance studio, and at GIM in Mesa. I’m passionate about creating a safe space for teens and adults to learn K-pop along with providing the benefits of adding dance science to help them with injury prevention, dance longevity, kinesthetic awareness, and improved technique. As more K-pop generations come, the dances become more difficult so it’s important to be smart dancers and keep up without hurting ourselves.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I would say that it’s never too late to try something new. It doesn’t matter if it’s dance, art, or learning a new skill, taking that first step in the direction you are being drawn to is freeing. There are dancers who come to class but admit that taking that first step was the most difficult part. However, they arrive ready to move and feel relief knowing they showed up and did their best.
Learn about people and their culture. K-pop has brought attention to South Korea over the last decade and because of this, I wanted to learn more about the culture that is home to this dance style. I even took up Taekwondo and Korean classes. Be open to learning and you will receive positive feedback for your willingness to learn.
Track your progress. Every once in a while check in with yourself. Is there a goal you wanted to have by a certain time? Is there a book that you wanted to finish or a class you wanted to take? How many hours did you put into yourself this week? Writing down a checklist and marking off small things that you know will get you a little closer to feeling accomplished pays off. I prefer small steps because they feel great to check off that list.
These have been the most important qualities in my journey.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
I am open to collaborating! If you have an event and want K-pop dancers to perform, I am the director of Era K-pop Dancers who perform all over the valley at cultural events, festivals, celebrations, and more. You can find them on Instagram @era_kpop_dancers.
You can also book me for a private K-pop dance class for you and your friends and co-workers.
For booking and monthly class schedule, you can find me on Instagram @mirandancer.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @mirandancer
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mirandancer?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@erakpopdancers
Image Credits:
@somecompanyinc
