Chloe Smith, a 2024 graduate of the Theatre and Dance Department in the South Carolina School of the Arts at Anderson University, experienced an immersive two-week dance program in Italy July 12-26. 

Atlanta-based staibdance organizes through its Italy program experiences that bring world-class faculty together for two weeks of intensive dance instruction, against the beautiful and historic backdrop of Sant’Agata and Sorrento, located along the Mediterranean coast near the city of Naples. 

It’s been a wonderful experience for Smith, who grew up south of Augusta, Georgia and followed her older sister’s footsteps into dance as a young girl. Looking back, it’s hard to imagine that at first she didn’t want to dance, quit once, then resumed dance lessons when her cousin opened up a dance studio in her hometown of Waynesboro.  

Smith describes her dance style as upbeat and athletic. She loves contemporary and jazz dance styles and appreciates how the staibdance intensive has expanded her horizons. She has been immersed in daily classes that include Counter Technique, Contemporary Ballet, James Wilton Dance Repertoire and Creative Failure. 

Creative Failure, Smith explains, is essentially an improvisational class focused on the idea that creativity can come from the midst of what we perceive as failure. 

“If we completely broaden our horizon and our perspective and just start moving,” she says, “in the end, we might not like what we did, but it’s still creativity. To us it can be failure if we don’t like it, but to somebody else, it might not be. It opens a perspective on the art that you’re making.” 

Smith has learned much from the instruction of the international faculty of staibdance, which includes American and European teachers. 

“I just think experiencing an intensive like this in another country is very beneficial because of the different ties to different countries, the fact that you’re somewhere you don’t know at all and you’re having to totally readjust and meet new people,” she said. “Every bit of it is just an eye-opening experience in both regular everyday life and also the dance culture that you’re used to. There are moments in classes where it can be something that you’re totally used to and are comfortable with, and there are also moments where you’re learning something you’ve never done before. I think it takes you out of your comfort zone.”  

An unforgettable experience for Smith was experiencing a ballet in Naples.  

“It’s one of the oldest opera houses. It was gorgeous,” she said. “We got to see ‘Serata’ by Jerome Robbins, a choreographer we got to know a lot about in AU classes. I also enjoy his choreography style, so getting to see a ballet he choreographed in another country and in one of the most beautiful opera houses—it was very insane, but it was so much fun.”  

The staibdance intensive wrapped up with a performance from the students, followed by a celebration before heading home early the next morning. 

Smith will return to Anderson and teach at Anderson School of Dance. She also plans to continue working in the competition dance world, something she grew up around.  

“I am still very open to performance opportunities and still planning to seek those as well,” she said.