Lauren Bacchus, a member of the Loudoun Ballet Performing Arts Company and a junior at Wakefield School in The Plains, VA, has been dancing all of her life. Well, practically all of her life. Since the age of 2, Lauren has been dancing jazz, contemporary, broadway, and her favorite-ballet.

"I love the endless imperfections and challenges that comes with ballet," Lauren explains.

This summer, Lauren trained at Houston Ballet in an intensive program that focused on perfecting a ballerina's skills. During the school year, Lauren practices nearly 25 hours/week; that includes private lessons, practicing techniques, and rehearsals. She is currently rehearsing for Loudoun Ballet Performing Arts Company's winter performance, The Nutcracker Ballet. Lauren will dance the roles of Lead Flower, Snow, and the Arabian Princess.

And for the role of the Arabian Prince? That will be for none other than the Washington Redskins' Cornerback Josh Norman.

The role of Arabian Princess has been a longtime favorite of Lauren's and she is delighted to be dancing it this year. "It has been a great experience working with Josh," Lauren said, "Opening night is going to be very exciting!"

As for what's next-Lauren will have a small "break" before she and the other company ballerinas start to rehearse for the spring performance.

"Lauren is an amazingly talented dancer and an outstanding student," explains Gray Carr Bridgers, Lauren's faculty advisor and the Director of Admissions and Indexed Tuition at Wakefield School.

When asked how she balances ballet with academics, she said "Wakefield is very accommodating and allows me to adjust my schedule so that I can practice. My teachers are always so supportive...they definitely try to help each and every student succeed no matter their passion."

Finally, Lauren's hope:
"One day, I hope to perform as White Swan in the ballet Swan Lake with a professional ballet company."

Lauren is a bright, charismatic student with an amazing talent and we are looking forward to her future endeavors.