Going up the elevator on my first day of my internship, I was extremely nervous. ABT is one of the most prestigious dance companies in the world, and I felt more pressure than ever to live up to its expectations. So when the first question posed to me was “What’s your favorite M&M Color”, you have to understand that I was a little bit confused. I do not know if you are aware, but M&Ms all taste exactly the same. I thought long and hard before I hesitantly answered the intern coordinator Dennis. While this was a silly icebreaker so the interns could get to know one another, this question was the first of many very stimulating and engaging questions posed in our weekly intern meetings.
Every Friday, all of the interns gathered around the conference room to discuss a new topic relating to ABT or career professionalism. What I loved most about these meetings was the fact that they gave us a very holistic overview on the ABT operations even though our internship honed in on a single department. For instance, my internship was with ticketing and membership. This was very time consuming so I did not have many opportunities to engage with other staff members about their positions. However, with the intern meetings, I was able to speak to board members, company managers, intern alumni, and even the dancers themselves. We actually had the opportunity to talk with Sascha Radetsky. He shared his experiences about dancing in the company as well as filming Center Stage. I also really enjoyed hearing more about the administrative side of the organization. We learned about the roles of institutional development and company management within American Ballet Theatre. It is incredible to see how much work is put into organizing these efforts.
Lastly, it has been great getting to know my fellow interns. We are all here because we are passionate about the mission ABT promotes. I noticed this from the first day we all went around sharing which artificial coloring we like best. Additionally, I’ve used my peers as resources when thinking about my future career. As a sophomore, I find it very useful hearing other’s career paths and experiences. My fellow interns gave me great suggestions as to where I might want to look for graduate schools. Even though I wasn’t directly working with most of the interns, I still felt very comfortable with them. The intern meetings definitely fostered this sense of unity.
And just to answer the question you’ve been dying to know, I chose the color green. However, any color besides yellow would have been correct.
Christina Michalski
Ticketing and Membership Intern
Spring 2016
abtinterns 
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