We caught up with dancer Molly McGivern (she/her) to hear some of her thoughts about her work at CRB, dancing through a global pandemic, her journey as a Pilates instructor and so much more!
CRB: Tell us a little about your journey with CRB. How did you get connected with the company?
Molly: “This is my second season with the company- although my first one was cut short by Covid. I found a video of Wade’s choreography on Instagram while I was dancing in Boston and was totally hooked! A few months later I flew to Chicago to audition, and while I was offered an apprenticeship, the scheduling didn’t work out. I ended up staying in Boston for another six months. Once I moved to Chicago I started taking Wade’s open classes at Dovetail before finally re-auditioning in 2020 and the rest is history!”
CRB: What do you think about the upcoming performance?
Molly; “The idea of just being back on stage at all after being away so long is incredibly exciting! Performing outdoors has always been one of my favorite things and I think that being at Cricket Hill is going to be an unforgettable experience. It’s also such a joy to finally perform with the other dancers after two seasons of rehearsals. They’re such an amazing group of people that I can’t wait to share the stage with.”
CRB: What was the quarantine process like for you as a dancer?
Molly: “Within the first week of quarantine my Grandma sent me a ballet barre in the mail. Every morning I would wake up and either take one of Kathryn Morgan’s ballet barre off of YouTube or Wade/Laura’s class on Instagram. I also taught virtual dance classes from home so my kitchen pretty much turned into a dance studio. The hardest things were keeping my cardiovascular strength up and keeping my body happy dancing on unsprung tile floor. I was sore all the time!”
CRB: A lot of dancers have a cross-training regime. Do you have one?
Molly: “I’ve always been a fan of pilates, and quarantine gave me that extra push to finally do something about it. I’m currently working on a 500 hour teacher training program and I spent at least 3 days a week in the Pilates Studio. I always loved giving myself mat classes at home but learning how to use a reformer has been so helpful to my dancing. Towards the end of last season I was having hamstring issues and Pilates has really helped to strengthen them.”
CRB: Do you have a favorite anecdote about CRB to share?
Molly: “Our themed Fridays! Carly has really worked hard to think of fun themes for the company to wear to class every week (usually alliterations); we’ve done Floral Friday, Funky Friday, Fitness Fridays, you get the point. Last season we did Friend Friday and all dressed as each other, it was my favorite! It’s the little things like that remind me what a great work environment CRB is. You couldn’t find a nicer, more supportive group of dancers anywhere!”
CRB: Do you have a job outside of dance?
Molly: “After most rehearsals I drive up to Evanston to teach. While I love teaching the advanced ballet classes I also spend a lot of time with our little kids. I used to be a preschool teacher so I’ve had a lot of practice! I also just got a job with the Beverly Arts Center teaching virtual dance classes for Chicago Public Schools.”
CRB: What's are 5 things in your dance bag you can’t live without?
Molly: “Spikey Ball, lacrosse ball, theraband, water bottle, and ballet skirt.”
CRB: Do you have a favorite CRB piece to dance?
Molly: “Immortal Beloved is set to one of my all time favorite pieces of classical music. I used to always listen to it back in high school when I first got my drivers licenses so I was thrilled when Marianna told us what the music would be! It’s so gratifying to dance to a piece of music you’ve been listening to for years.”
CRB: Anything else you want to share with the readers at home?
Molly: “ Come see our show and follow our Instagram! I’ve been helping Wade run it since last year and we both work really hard on it. I get excited every time we gain new followers and it really helps spread our message out to the rest of the world.”