Meet Roberta Lavalle

We were lucky to catch up with Roberta Lavalle recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Roberta, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?

Growing up, I was constantly told that if I worked hard, I could achieve anything I wanted. My father was a Professional Tennis player and my mother is a Pilates instructor. So physical activity and especially sports where always part of my life. I would say I was raised by example and my father would tell be stories of how he grew up and trained hard in order to become the top player in his country and later achieve 51 ranking world wide. This constantly inspired me and motivated me to work hard for my dreams. So I would say that combined with my mothers tenacity a hard working qualities, wether that was her healthy habits and love for herself as she always took care of herself physically, moving her body and helping others, really shaped me and instilled the habits that lead me to now be a professional dancer.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I am Roberta Lavalle, I was born and raised in Mexico, and am now a professional dancer based in NYC. I am focused on Commercial Dance and dream about one day touring and dancing with an artist on stage. I recently graduated the Certificate Program at Peridance, and am now a freelance artist in New York. Being an immigrant artist is no easy thing, and I am extremely proud to be a Mexican artist, hopefully setting Mexico’s name up high and actively working and contributing in the dance community. Ever since i was a little girl, i have loved and tapped into my femininity, i find power and strength as well as purpose expressing and moving my body. I am so inspired by music and fashion and performance and i truly live and breath for it. There is no greater high for me then when i am on a stage, it has been my highlight and happy place ever since i can remember. Wether that was on my made up stage in my childhood home, where i sat my family down and choreographed something for myself or even forced my brother to dance with me. To making music videos and or making them up and directing my siblings in them, to now performing in New York City. It all feels and fills the same part for my 8 year old little girls heart. I am super excited that i will be performing in my first evening length show in NYC, along with some other incredible women, and it feels like a milestone that just marks the beginning of all that the universe has planned for me.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Intuition, i believe made an impactful change in my journey. Our whole life we are mostly told what to do and what rules or steps to follow. And the moment i graduated high school and truly had to make my first solo decision as a young adult, i learned that i was not at all in communication with myself and my soul. So i would say tapping into that is truly the first step to a successful and fulfilling life. The second would have to be discipline, once you have set that intention, following through with that plan that your intuition guided you towards is important. Showing up for yourself everyday is just as important. Last but not least, i consider courage and having no fear of failure is incredibly important. There are many points in your life where you will be challenged, but the hardest challenge of all, is self doubt. They say you are your worst enemy, and i think that is only if you choose to be. You should be your number one cheerleader and the rest will follow.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

Showing up. Being there for me when i needed them and always being around. Driving me to tennis practice, to school and dance lessons. Without all of that i would not be anywhere near i currently am. Also cheering me on, even though later on in life you should be your number one cheerleader, i think as a young child your parents shape that. If they are not rooting for you, its very hard to root for yourself. Everything i am, a woman, athlete, artist and human is all thanks to them and the way i was raised. I was never told i could not do something i dreamed of. As my father told me my whole life, “Fight!!!”

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roberta_lavalle/

Image Credits

Victor Ortega, Isabel Cevallos