Star dancer Angelin Porter was born on September 11, 2006. Soon after she was born, she was adopted from China. Although she has three older siblings, she often feels like an only child since they each moved away. As often as she can, Angelin tries to visit her older siblings. 

   At the age of 3, Angelin’s mother enrolled her into ballet. She took a short break from dance in order to try gymnastics. Since the age of seven, Angelin has been dancing consecutively, as it has had a tremendous impact on her life. In fact, her favorite childhood memory is when she was able to meet her best friend from ballet at three years old! Dance is an outlet for her, as it allows her to break out of her shell, truly challenge herself and grow as a person. 

   While it may appear that dance is filled with highs, there are also plenty of lows. There have been numerous times where Angelin has wanted to quit. Angelin explained this, saying “I’m a perfectionist and in ballet, everything has to be perfect. I would be very hard on myself whenever I made a mistake.” Fortunately, Angelin has been able to grow from this mindset, as she now realizes that she should take it easy on herself and that not everything has to be perfect. 

   Still, Angelin does have her moments where she’s in her head and shuts down. One person who has really helped her out with this is her mom, as she always remains in her corner to remind her that at the end of the day, dance should be a fun experience, not a stressful one.   Throughout the trials and tribulations dance has brought her, Angelin has tried to stay optimistic. In prioritizing her mental health, and remembering to stay focused on the task at hand. She recalls, “Most importantly, ballet has taught me that if you put your hard work into things you should expect good results, and if you don’t have good results, it’s okay because everyone has room to improve.” With these principles in mind, Angelin has set big goals for her future. Her biggest goal is to move to New York and pursue both academic and ballet classes. But as of now, she feels her biggest priority is to live ‘one day at a time.’