Former Pima Dance Student Takes Her Next Steps in New York City

"Where else can I take the movement?," former Pima student Eva Schmidt asks with a smile in the documentary produced about her final dance performance at the College.

说到“动作”，施密特指的是她在一次学期表演中独特的手部动作. In the snapshot of her performance, Schmidt's hands are all angles. They create a daring contrast against her otherwise fluid dance moves.

As she discusses her hand movements in the documentary, Schmidt reflects on how she choreographed and produced this piece, 在皮马的舞蹈星际官方赌钱中，她通过培养专业技能展示了自己的创造力. 

For Schmidt, 她的问题不仅仅是她将如何继续学习新的舞蹈动作和风格. It is also a personal question about where her life will go next.

施密特在2021年春季学期结束时制作并表演了她的舞蹈合奏作品. Now, she is in the midst of a transformative life change. 她最近搬到了纽约市，因为她以前的一个同学需要在一套开放式公寓里找室友.

她原本计划今年秋天去亚利桑那州立大学上学, 施密特决定冒险，搬到全国各地，在这座城市开始新的生活. 现在，她正在休一年的空档年，从学术和创意两方面探索未来. 

While her next steps are largely unknown, 施密特很感激她通过皮马学院的星际官方赌钱获得了创造性的开端 Visual and Performing Arts program. 

“在皮马，我了解到每种风格都有自己的世界，我可以自由地在许多世界中进行实验,” Schmidt said of her time at the College. 

Looking back at her time at Pima, 施密特分享了她是如何在高中时利用大学星际官方赌钱在她的创意和职业生涯中取得领先地位的. 

Getting Involved in Pima Dance

Schmidt was born and raised in Tucson. While at Tucson High School, she began taking dual enrollment courses to start earning college credit while she was still in high school. 

When her high school went online during the COVID-19 pandemic, Schimdt能够在她的学习中发挥创造性，并利用她通过双注册学习大学星际官方赌钱的经验. 

她决定在皮马修读通识教育星际官方赌钱，同时修完剩余的高中学分. 皮马大学的通识教育星际官方赌钱可以帮助你取得副学士学位或学士学位. They can also help you complete your Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC)这是一系列在亚利桑那州可以转换为大学学分的星际官方赌钱. 

在完成大学星际官方赌钱时，施密特接到了皮玛舞蹈团的试镜通知. They were hosting auditions for a Spring dance performance course. 

After a year of staying home due to the pandemic, 施密特认为舞团将是一个认识新朋友和继续她对舞蹈的热情的好机会, which she had started as a young girl. 

“我想在大学里跳舞，获得那种经验，”施密特分享道. “I thought it was a way to get out of the house and do something new.”

Pima’s Center for the Arts puts on dozens of student-led shows each semester, including musicals, instrumental performances and dance ensembles. 合奏团对所有皮马学生开放试镜，是一个鼓励探索新的艺术兴趣的地方. 

LeighAnn Rangel Sotomayor, Pima's Center for the Arts Manager and Dance Discipline Lead, 分享舞蹈项目如何坚持支持学生，并为社区提供有吸引力的节目.

“疫情对我们的舞蹈项目来说无疑是一个挑战，因为它导致报名人数减少. However, it also brought about many opportunities. 我们能够在不同的空间中探索舞蹈，包括在数字空间中的舞蹈，我们将在未来继续探索," Sotomayor said.

She continued, “这场大流行也为伊娃创造了一个特殊的机会，让她在2021年春季学期以高中生的身份加入我们的项目. 她带着丰富的积极性、专业精神、创造力和才华来到我们这里."

"Eva, as well as her classmates, and the director of dance ensemble, Nolan Kubota, 真正深入到一些未知的领域为皮玛舞蹈，并帮助制定了创新和未来的可能性."

Building Community by Creating Art

For Schmidt, 舞蹈表演最终成为了一种比她想象的更亲密、更合作的体验. 

Because there were only three students in the class, 每个学生都有自由和支持去探索自己的创造性兴趣. 

施密特说:“我们有很多自由，但我们总是知道，当我们需要帮助时，我们可以寻求帮助。.

She continued, “Our instructors told us, ‘Just go. Just create.“尽管一开始这有点吓人，但这种心态促使我们在艺术中进行真正的实验.”

“在皮马，我了解到每种风格都有自己的世界，我可以自由地在许多世界中进行实验."~Eva Schmidt

通过这门星际官方赌钱，施密特和她的同学们也能够发展各种专业技能. Not only did they perform in their ensembles, they also directed the lighting, choreography and stage design. 

在这学期的星际官方赌钱中，施密特的研究出现了一个意想不到的方向. She embraced humor in her work, 发展人物和故事情节，使观众在整个表演中开怀大笑. 

她发现幽默不仅在于她在表演中如何表达自己, but also in how she filmed her work. 在整部纪录片中，施密特用慷慨的微笑和笑声描述了她的工作. There is a clear joy in her approach to dance. 

Under the direction of Digital Arts student Abigail Sierra, 每个学生还制作了一部关于他们在这个项目中的经历的纪录片. 由于她在纪录片上的工作，塞拉获得了著名的数字艺术奖.

Through the process of embracing unexpected humor, 施密特学会了对事情的发展持开放态度，而不是像她想象的那样.

“Visions always change. They can start in one place and change to another place. 我已经学会了如何跟随愿景，无论它把我带到哪里，”她分享道.

这条建议同样适用于施密特的个人生活和职业生涯. While Schmidt is unsure of what comes next, 她知道，来到纽约将为她打开新的可能性，这将建立在她在皮马接受的创造性和专业培训的基础上. 

“It feels right to be here," Schmidt shared. "I get to see how I want to be out in the world.”