Alumni Spotlight: Mia Nolte

Mia Nolte credits Nolte Academy for her strong foundation that she carries with her in pursuit of her dreams. While she skipped out on traditional schooling, she continues to take classes online in order to dedicate herself to practicing the art of dance.

​“Dance taught me to be committed to something at a very early age,” Mia said.
 
Although Mia flourished at Nolte Academy, she remembers when she realized what it would take for her to truly succeed. “I remember being held back at level three. I learned then that if I wanted to catch up with my friends, I was going to have to work a lot harder,” Mia said, “Once I started working harder and really trying in class, I learned to fall in love with that process.”
 
Learning to love the process brought her the opportunities to immerse herself in many dance roles. “There are a few roles that I wish I could keep doing over and over,” she remembers. “That’s what made me feel like I could keep doing this forever.” She took that realization and made her dreams to dance forever a reality.
 
Mia is now dancing in Seattle, Wash. at Pacific Northwest Ballet as a professional-division student. She entered a training program in August where she’ll be training with teachers and directors while performing with the company. After her training, she’ll either continue with Pacific Northwest Ballet, or they will help her to get into another company. Throughout late November and December, Mia will be performing with Pacific Northwest Ballet in George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker.

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 “My favorite memory of Nolte Academy has to be the week of the our first Nutcracker performance,” she continued, “We spend so many hours preparing together and in that week you get so close to everyone.”
 
Getting close to those she performed with was extremely important to Mia. When asked what she’d miss the most about Nolte Academy, Mia’s answer was quick, “the feeling of home when you walk into a studio. All of the relationships, everyone feels like family here.”
 
Mia’s advice to the current dancers is three-fold: “One, do everything because versatility is important. Two, don’t compare yourself to anyone else. And, three, understand that you might have to make sacrifices to continue your dream.”
 
As Mia continues her dancing career, her dreams are big. “I want to change the view on dance and the ballet world,” she said, “And eventually, I want to be a principal in a company and have people know my name for making the world of dance bigger and better.”

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