Since childhood, Alice Ai ’24 has committed to growing her skills as a dancer. At age four, Ai’s parents introduced her to traditional Chinese dance. Ai is thankful that her parents encouraged her to dance. She said, “If they didn’t, I don’t know what I would be doing.” Now “dance is like a way for me to relax. It’s more like a focus on the physical part and it takes stress off of me. Dance is like the thing for me,” she said.
In second grade, Ai switched from traditional Chinese dance to ballet, which she believes connected her to Deerfield’s Admission Office. Before Deerfield, Ai went to Bement and danced in Deerfield’s “Nutcracker”. She believes it was that performance that caught the attention of Director of Dance Jennifer Whitcomb and secured her a spot.
Before coming to Deerfield, ballet was the only style of dance that Ai pursued. In her freshman year, Ai was immediately introduced to Deerfield’s dance program. She admired the versatility of the program, saying “when I came in I was only a ballerina but coming from freshman year to now I feel like I evolved and now I’m kind of known as the hip hop person.”
Ai has taken part in every single dance showcase at Deerfield. Last year, Ai started choreographing and she noted that, “it was my first year working with a big crew which was pretty difficult at first.” Annie Loring ’26, a dancer in Ai’s piece, said “It was honestly incredible. It was probably one of the best dances of the whole showcase and for her to be able to do that all by herself and be able to perform that and be so committed was so inspiring for a lot of people.”
When performing, Ai emphasized, “people watch how I enjoy this form of art,” noting the experience as “indescribable.”
Ai is thankful that Deerfield’s Dance Program offers and encourages student choreography. The program has taught her a lot about what it means to be a choreographer. She said , “There’s more freedom for me. I visualize the whole dance in my head. When you’re learning from a teacher, you’re just following their style.”
Loring added, “She really has her own unique kind of style and she just has a lot of passion for what she does and it’s really obvious.”
The Dance Program has not only offered Ai a dance education but also introduced her to many friendships. Ai claims the program has created “a community” for her and other dancers. She said, “We’ve become a friend group.”
Ai choreographed a piece for her role as both Chocolate and Sugar Plum in the “Nutcracker,” performed on Sunday, December 10. She is also choreographing a heels piece, a style of dance performed in high-heeled shoes, for the Winter Showcase which she believes will be the first time “heels dance” is introduced to Deerfield. Ai hopes to continue dancing and choreographing in college, and she is looking forward to new opportunities.