Today we’d like to introduce you to Zara Dimmock.
Hi Zara, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I am a professional dancer from a town just north of Sydney, Australia. I have dreamt of becoming a dancer since I was four and have stuck to it ever since. 17 years of training and thinking big, saving every dollar I made from the age of 14 in preparation for what is about to happen to me. In January 2024, I am scheduled to make the leap to Hollywood. On my own, 21, away from the norm, to build an entirely new life and hopefully, an empire. I have made trips over to the States since I was 16 and have trained with the world’s finest dancers and choreographers, as well as build incredible relationships. I am now signed with the country’s top agency, BLOC LA, before my relocation. I have trained in all styles of dance from ballet to tap but now specialize as a commercial jazz/hiphop dancer. I’ve had a pretty normal childhood, aside from the fact that when I wasn’t in school, I was eating, sleeping and breathing in a dance studio. As soon as I graduated from school, I did my full-time Advanced Diploma in Performing Arts at Australia’s leading performing arts college, Brent Street. Since then, I have gone on to teach, choreograph and dance across the world. The move to the States will mean I finally have access to the bigger jobs I have always dreamt of and make that little girl obsessed with the dancers on MTV in 2003 very proud. That is the great thing about my story; I am an ordinary person doing extremely unordinary things. The only limits in this life are the ones we place on ourselves.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The bare maximum; making the most of what you have. I have always been the underdog. It’s one thing to be born in Australia as an aspiring creative, where the electric hub of entertainment is literally half a world away. I am also not from a major city where what little opportunity for artistry there is in Aus exists. I am from a small town; I am the only dancer from the studio I grew up training at to pursue a career. There are not many opportunities for growth and excellence in the arts out here. Or so I thought. While I had to come to terms with this difficult truth about my home – I would need to move across the planet alone, away from everything and everyone I’ve ever known to feel fulfilled as the artist I am – I couldn’t run away immediately. It has been years of feeling static here, longing, pining to be on the world’s stage. A $20,000 visa away, 347 auditions away, the same amount of “better luck next time” away. No you see, I had to learn to make magic with what I already had in the meantime. That has meant working 40+ hours a week in a conventional job, teaching another 10 and training for myself with any other time I had, normally in the early hours of the morning while everyone sleeps. I am the exception. And I believe in the power of disadvantage. Be inspired by what you have inside you, look inward, and propel sky high with the motivation that comes from being told you can’t have what you most deeply desire. Nothing is more powerful than a person who bleeds, sweats and cries for the life they’ve always dreamt of. You can achieve anything. I live by the bare maximum and will look back from that world tour, movie set, high pedestal and remember it.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
While I am regarded as a versatile dancer in many styles, I am definitely remembered for my commercial jazz, funk and hip hop movement. My style is heavily influenced by my eclectic persona. I was raised by two incredibly brave, bold young parents in the early 2000s, and I feel a very strong connection to the rise of 90s hip hop and the Gwen Stefani, Blink-182 punk spectacle. In conjunction, I also grew up very close to my grandparents and subsequently have an affinity for refinement and the simple pleasures of life; I adore classical music, folk, and a good book. The four of them constantly tell me I am an amalgam of each person’s best qualities. I am the definition of an extroverted introvert, a 70-year-old 21-year-old. They are all my muse and greatest inspiration in this life. Their impression of me has crafted my dance style more than they know; I love to move in fresh, Avantgarde ways while also paying homage to the culture and history of art before me. In other words, you will find me throwing it back to some Nirvana or Lana Del Rey. I love the unexpected. When something shouldn’t work, but it just does. You can find me featured in music videos for international K-pop artists like Tia Lee, Australia’s own Tones and I, assistant choreographer on The Voice and performing live on national television at big events. The best part, I’m just getting warmed up.
Any big plans?
I intend to leave a grand, authentic impact on the world. Most people don’t spend a lot of time thinking about art or understanding its importance until something shakes their world. Whether it be heartbreak, loss, or the inverse, immense joy and love, creativity helps us to express the unspeakable. ‘Art is not a luxury, it is sustenance’ – Ethan Hawke. My purpose in life is to use art to unite people. Dancing still seems very taboo to the layman. If not for the rise of Hollywood, Astaire, Kelly, Fosse, and Michael Jackson, people would see us even less. I hope to mend the gap; dancing is a universal experience. Some of us are just extra good at it ;). The ultimate dream is to tour the world with an international performing artist as a backup dancer and then shift into my own creative endeavours as a choreographer and director. My move to LA will totally change my life. It is the evolution I have been preparing for since I was a kid. It is crazy to think the last 21 years of life and the taxing visa process is just the starjump and hamstring stretch before the marathon. But it is also what motivates me beyond belief. Believe it or not, you, the anonymous reader, are now a part of my story. I couldn’t do it without you. I am still deep in the immigration process, but it is promising, and I can see the Hollywood sign in sight.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zaradimmock_/
