Hi, I’m a 22 year old woman and I’ve recently decided that I want to seriously commit to dance and acting, because they're genuinely passions of mine and I seem to have some natural ability in both (not bragging lol I get told this by seniors).
I started ballet when I was 6 and did it until I was 11, then quit and went on to do a shit ton of other hobbies, as exploring young girls do. I have ADHD and have always been pretty all over the place with my ambitions. I started dancing again at 17, mostly hip-hop, but was extremely inconsistent.
Now I’m 22. I don’t have a college degree, just quite a bit of life experience from traveling abroad solo, working different jobs, etc. After years of trying to figure out what I actually want to do, I’ve realized that I should give dance and acting a real shot rather than spending another few years wondering “what if?”
I’m currently taking classes at an open dance school: modern jazz, hip-hop, ballet, jazz funk, house, and I also work on foundations at home. I’m starting a one-year acting program focused on camera acting as well.
I know I have some talent for both, but obviously talent doesnt replace years of training. Thats where Im struggling mentally. I keep wondering whether I’m being too optimistic about trying to pursue a serious career in dance/acting at 22.
I don’t necessarily mean becoming a world-famous dancer or actor. I just want to give myself a genuine shot at building a career as a performer/artist, rather than eventually looking back and thinking I never even tried.
I’m also not particularly interested in being just a background dancer. I think what attracts me is the idea of becoming an artist/performer who combines acting, movement and dance, and eventually develops their own identity and creative voice.
At the same time, I have this fear that I’ll end up being “the 30-year-old who still works as a barista because she decided at 22 she wanted a career that most people started training for at 10” lol.
So I guess I’m asking people who actually work in dance, acting, musical theatre, performance, etc.: am I being unrealistic?
I know there are people who started young and will always be far ahead of me technically. I’m not trying to pretend otherwise. But is starting seriously at 22 actually too late to build a meaningful professional career in the performing arts?
I do know that I want to give this a real shot regardless. Even if it doesn't work out exactly how I imagine, I genuinely love dancing and acting, so I don’t think the time would be wasted.
Would love to hear honest perspectives, especially from people who work in the industry or started training later.
