Super star dancer Jaclyn Walsh was stumped when asked what was the last movie that she had seen?

She couldn’t remember the last movie that she had seen.

Now that’s busy.

As Femcompetitor Magazine and Female Competition International continue to introduce the exhilarating world of dance and the artists that propel it to our female submission wrestling audience, another shining star has caught our attention and we would like you to meet her.

It’s Jaclyn Walsh from Lowell, Massachusetts.

Every artist has a vision and a style. She smiles, “I love seeing dancers as people, not as superhuman gods or goddesses.”

The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance……Aristotle

The respected dance site broadwaydancecenter.com provides us with an introduction as well. “Jaclyn Walsh began her studies in dance and gymnastics near her hometown, at Walker’s Gymnastics and Dance in Lowell, Massachusetts. She furthered her training at the Walnut Hill School in Natick, MA under the direction of Michael Owen, and during this time had the wonderful opportunity to perform in Germany and France.

Jaclyn received her BFA from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and was the recipient of the Tisch Achievement Scholarship in Dance. Her choreography has received numerous accolades. She performed her own solo work titled (r)evolve in Mayumi Kamata and Wes Veldink’s Japan relief benefit show NYC FOR JPN, raising funds for CARE-WAVE. Her work has also been included in the 92nd St. Y Fridays at Noon series, Perceptions Contemporary Dance Festival, American Dance Guild Festival, Tisch Dance Alumni performance PAST/FORWARD 2012, Boston Contemporary Dance Festival, SummerStage Main Stage in Central Park and at Dancers Responding to AIDS’s Dancin.”

The energetic site perceptionsdance.org shares their admiration of Jaclyn’s accomplishments as well. “Jaclyn recently performed as a featured dancer in the cast of the Tisch Gala 2012 with appearances by Alec Baldwin, Tony Kushner and Martin Scorsese. Ms. Walsh was featured with her students in Dance Spirit and Dance Teacher Magazine.”

Okay. So she is such an exceptional and accomplished dancer that she gets to rub shoulders with the movers and shakers in film. We promise not to tell them that she is too busy to watch them if you don’t.

Given what’s on her plate, that’s forgivable.

As we continue to move up the timeline, another industry giant highlights more of Jaclyn’s myriads of accomplishments and activities. “Jaclyn choreographed and performed in Vienna Teng’s music video “Level Up.” She was also named a finalist in the 2014 Capezio A.C.E. Awards for choreographic excellence. In 2014, DanceSpirit magazine recognized Jaclyn as one of the thirteen dance world’s “Hottest Young Choreographers.” Jaclyn currently dances with KEIGWIN + COMPANY and has been a member since 2011.”

We viewed some of Jaclyn’s videos and impressive is an understatement. As a dancer she has magical artistic vision.

As an instructor she is possessed with unbridled passion.

No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist……Oscar Wilde

It’s time to visit Jaclyn’s hometown.  

Lowell is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. With an estimated population of 108,861, it is the fourth-largest city in Massachusetts, after Boston, Worcester, and Springfield, and the second-largest in what the U.S. Census Bureau defines as Boston’s metropolitan area.

Incorporated in 1826, Lowell became known as the cradle of the American Industrial Revolution, and many of the city’s historic sites have been preserved by the National Park Service. Lowell is home to the University of Massachusetts Lowell, a Carnegie-classified research university and the second largest public university in Massachusetts. Along with Cambridge, Lowell is one of Middlesex County’s historical county seats prior to the abolition of county government in 1997.

Here is a very poignant historical accounting.

By the 1850s, Lowell had the largest industrial complex in the United States. The textile industry wove cotton produced in the South. In 1860, there were more cotton spindles in Lowell than in all eleven states combined that would form the Confederacy.

The city continued to thrive as a major industrial center during the 19th century, attracting more migrant workers and immigrants to its mills. Next were the Catholic Germans, then a large influx of French Canadians during the 1870s and 1880s. Later waves of immigrants included Portuguese, Polish, Lithuanians, Swedes, Greeks, and eastern European Jews. They came to work in Lowell and settled in ethnic neighborhoods, with the city’s population reaching almost 50% foreign-born by 1900.

By the time World War I broke out in Europe, the city had reached its economic and population peak of over 110,000 people.

What’s happening in the art world in Lowell?

One cultural experience that tourists can enjoy is The Brush Art Gallery.

Their well-designed site lowell.com paints a picture. “The Brush Art Gallery is a non-profit organization that was founded by the Lowell Historic Preservation Commission in 1982. The Gallery is located in restored mill building in Lowell, Massachusetts, and it was originally modeled after the Torpedo Factory Art Complex located in Alexandria, Virginia.

Brush Art Gallery is also home to artist studios. The public is invited to the open studios, which are open daily. People are encouraged to visit with the artists and watch them as they create their masterpieces. Whether you are interested in adding a piece of art to your collection or are interested in watching artists at work, you can do it all at Brush Art Gallery in Lowell.

Brush Art Gallery also offers art classes for children and adults. There are a variety of classes from which to choose that cover many different types of art – from working with wire, painting with oil and water color, creating pottery, weaving, designing glass, and so many more options.”

That sounds like fun. What a unique concept. We’re still energized.

There are many dance studios and organizations that are enticing in Lowell. One in particular that caught our attention was The Donna Miceli Dance Center.

If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.…..John F. Kennedy

Here is why.

“The Donna Miceli Dance Center’s curriculum includes a wide range of classes in dance, ballroom, theatre arts and fitness tailored for “Every Body” — Children, Teens & Adults. Each program is taught by our professional staff with thoughtful guidance to ensure that each student has a positive learning experience. For over 45 years our mission at DMDC has been to inspire, educate and empower our students by sharing with them the highest quality of dance training available.

Since 1967 our nurturing, specialized faculty, artists-in-residence and guest teachers have provided our students with a solid foundation of dance technique combined with the very latest in innovative choreography. Our curriculum includes a wide range of classes in dance, ballroom, theatre arts and fitness tailored for “Every Body” — Children, Teens & Adults. Each program is taught by our professional staff with thoughtful guidance to ensure that each student has a positive learning experience.”

You see. Jaclyn Walsh has blossomed from a community with a powerful historical past and an artistic bright future.

Jaclyn is not only up and coming, she has already arrived.

As the world of dance, cheer, competitive female wrestling and gymnastic performances blend at the Dojo, the world of inside female sports is the next magical wonderland.

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Sources: brainyquote.com, Wikipedia, fciwomenswrestling2.com, FCI Elite Competitor, photos thank you Wikimedia Commons.

https://www.broadwaydancecenter.com/faculty/bios/walsh_jaclyn.shtml

http://www.danj.us/faculty/regular_faculty/jaclyn_walsh.html

http://perceptionsdance.org/festival/2012-festival/jaclyn-k-walsh/

http://www.peridance.com/facprofile.cfm?FID=1284&name=Jaclyn_Walsh

http://www.lowell.com/arts/brush-art-gallery/

http://donnamicelidance.com/about-2/

http://donnamicelidance.com/about-2/faculty/