Alex Kramer is a professional dancer with The Washington Ballet. Prior to this, he danced professionally with Ballet San José, after training at American Ballet Theatre’s Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. He also is the creator of Alex Robert Designs, where he makes beautiful tutus, tiaras, and much more.
1. To get off to an unconventional start, please write a haiku about anything that comes to mind at the moment. The weirder, funnier, or more random, the better!
How do you glue brows?
"Vanderpump Rules" and good wine
Tik tok, confusing
2. How did you get into dancing?
Dance chose me… hahah (cliché). But it’s true. I remember dancing around the house from the time I could walk. When I was a toddler I had a babysitter that was a competition dancer, and that was my first introduction into formal dance classes. I begged my parents to put me in dance. My dad was not about it because he was brought up with the idea that dance is something only girls can do. Eventually my mom and I convinced him, and I started going to a competition school when I was 6. Then not long after I joined a different school focused on ballet.
3. Did dancing help you through anything difficult in your life?
I would say many difficult times. I grew up in a small town in Colorado that is very conservative and religious. I was a very effeminate little boy and that was not accepted so well in my community. The dance studio is the first place I felt accepted and was able to be myself. From then on, I could count on dancing to get me through anything. If I was bullied at school, I could go to the studio and forget about it and focus on my craft. I think dance gave me a purpose to keep pushing and not let the constant negativity of my everyday life take too much of a toll on me.
4. What adversities have you had to overcome to continue pursuing your profession?
After I got my dad on board, it was pretty lucky in my early training years. I had to leave my family at 15 to move to New York to further my training but that’s something I wanted to do and was exciting. It was later when I was 18 and didn’t get the job at ABT that I always wanted. Finding a job was not easy and made me doubt my ability a lot. I finally got a job with Ballet San José and had a wonderful experience (for the most part), but when things were going really well the company folded due to lack of funding. That put me back where I was at 18, looking for a job and doubting myself. Was everything that I accomplished this far by chance? Was it all circumstantial? It took more than a year and some very disappointing and discouraging auditions to land another job in a ballet company, but I finally ended up at The Washington Ballet. I’ve gained many things since joining TWB, but most of all I’ve discovered my worth as a dancer.
5. Tell us your funniest story about the dance world.
My first rehearsal on my first day at Ballet San José, I fully slipped and fell on my face. Great first impression. Funny now, not at the time.
6. In your time as a dancer, what’s the craziest thing you’ve ever had to do/craziest thing that has ever happened to you?
One time on tour we got to the theater, and there was water pouring on the stage from the ceiling. We delayed the performance and got most of the water cleaned up and went on with the show. I don’t know if that’s even that crazy.
7. What would you say to someone who is hesitant to go see a ballet performance?
Give it a shot. Go in with an open mind. I think ballet has something for everyone. Maybe you will appreciate the athleticism, or the storytelling abilities without words. The most common thing I hear is “ballet is boring”…I think those people just haven’t given it a chance.
8. If you had only one sentence to convince someone of the importance of the arts, what would you say?
How well did things go in the movie “Footloose”?
9. If ballet had a slogan, what would it be?
Ouch, worth it.
Responses edited by Adelaide Clauss
Dancers Are 