REAL PEOPLE/LIFE IS A KICK
Once a Rockette ...
Dancer Lillian Colón gained wisdom from time on the kick line
Colón in a Manhattan dance studio
BEING AN OLDER dancer can be challenging. A lot of people age out by the time they’re 30. When I walked into the audition for In the Heights in 2018, I made a beeline for the choreographer, convinced I was in the wrong room. The studio was filled with young dancers. I had thought the choreographer was going to give the more seasoned dancer a break, but that was not the case. I had to do the same dance that all of the 20-year-olds did. But I went through with the audition and became the oldest dancer in the movie.
As a Rockette in the mid-1990s
I’ve always done things on my own schedule. I started working in show business straight out of high school, as a singer, dancer and choreographer. Then at 29, I beat out hundreds of other people for a spot in the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes. I danced with that group, with all its synchronized choreography, until my mid-40s. At 46, I had my daughter and started doing wardrobe. These days, I mainly teach dancing, but I’ll always be proud to have been the very first Latina Rockette.
The Rockettes are unique in their need for precision. If one person messes up, it messes up the whole line. The experience taught me a lot about working together. It’s a lesson I try to impart to my students: On and off the stage, our lives are deeply intertwined, and we all fare better when we support and care for one another. —As told to Julie Goldenberg
Lillian Colón, 70, is a New York City dance teacher and the author of the memoir Lilly: The First Latina Rockette.