Lauren and Sarah Yoak in 2003 with Sarah, right, wearing a ballet leotard. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Ever since she was a little girl, Sarah Yoak has dreamed of moving to Los Angeles in pursuit of a professional ballet career. As of March 27, that dream officially came true when she was selected out of nearly 50 ballerinas for a contracted spot with the American Contemporary Ballet Company based in L.A.

Before Yoak relocates to the west coast for a professional dance contract beginning in August, she will graduate from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with a bachelor of science in dance and an outside field specialization in English.

“I’m graduating a year early, and this has just been the most incredible experience of my life,” said Yoak. “I’ve gotten to dance so many amazing ballets … and gotten to be part of something that I’ve dreamed of my entire life.”

Yoak, 25, was born in Rochester, Minn. and moved to Huntington, W.Va., at the age of 2. From there, her family moved once more to Williamstown, where she was raised.

She was infatuated with ballet and dance from an early age. At 3, Yoak was introduced to ballet performances which she said she fell in love with and her mom decided it was time for her to join dance.

Sarah Yoak practicing ballet positions in front of a window in August 2023. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

For the majority of her childhood years, Yoak was a member of the Mid-Ohio Valley Ballet Company based in Parkersburg.

“It’s kind of an interesting story because I technically didn’t graduate from Williamstown, because my graduation year would have been 2019,” she said. “But because of moving to Columbus when I was 16 … I did more of an independent study through Williamstown High School.”

At 16, Yoak was invited to attend the BalletMet Columbus ballet training program while participating in BalletMet’s summer camp.

“I actually had planned to go back to school and be a cheerleader, which is so unlike me, but I think it was week five of summer camp and I got called into a meeting with the (BalletMet) director,” she said.

That meeting would open many doors in Yoak’s life once she accepted the position as one of the youngest dancers in the program.

Sarah Yoak poses in a ballet leotard at a dance studio at Indiana University in November 2023. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

Yoak said she was shocked the day the director offered her a position with BalletMet because she was frequented by internal doubts about her abilities.

“Everything that’s happened to me, everywhere I’ve gone, every offer I’ve received has just been completely shocking because ballet is so rooted in … picking out everything that’s wrong with you,” she said.

Yoak said she would spend eight or more hours a day constantly critiquing her form and how she looked in the dance studio mirror. She said ballet requires a critical lens at all times and is “less celebratory” so she’s always shocked when celebratory situations come to fruition.

“That was my first experience with the quote-on-quote ballet world because I had just been in an academic setting at my home studio – which I loved and cherished my time there,” she said.

By the time she was 12 years old, Yoak said, she knew she wanted to take ballet to a professional level.

Sarah Yoak in stage makeup and a ballet leotard at Indiana University in October. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

“I wanted the daily grind, I wanted to be dancing all day and doing school in the evening and devote my life and my heart and soul to this pursuit,” she said.

Yoak was situated in Columbus from 2017-2019 and gained valuable experiences in a big city far, but not too far, from home.

She then moved on to a company in Indianapolis for about a year until 2020 where she relocated to Miami from 2020-2022.

“During my second year at Miami I stepped away from ballet because it was right after COVID and … ballet companies were still getting back on their feet,” she said. “It kind of took a downturn, and I felt really uninspired.”

In pursuit of other career paths, Yoak attended Miami Dade College for journalism and said she really enjoyed writing and publication.

A professional photo by Victoria Bastian Photography taken of Sarah Yoak in a blue ballet skirt at Indiana University in October 2024. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

Yoak worked on various articles about the overexposure of women in the ballet field and found that words came easily to her.

“I realized I didn’t like reporting on things I wasn’t super passionate about, and I wasn’t very good at being neutral,” she joked. Despite her love for the written language, she decided it was time for a change.

Yoak returned to Williamstown during the summer of 2022 when she worked at a restaurant and attended Ohio University and began majoring in English literature. Around this time, she began feeling inspired and returned to ballet by taking classes again.

At the time, she asked herself, “What’s going to make me feel better? How am I going to get back to myself?”

Yoak realized dance was her passion and said she became obsessed with ballet all over again, just like when she was a child.

A black and white professional photo taken by Lucy Sheppard Photography features dancers at Indiana University in October 2024. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

In pursuit of ballet, Yoak decided to apply to Indiana University Jacobs School of Music for a bachelor of science in dance. She said most schools offer BFA’s in dance but the Jacobs School of Music offers a BFS with an outside field.

“I wanted to have a backup option and also pursue ballet at this high of a level with this incredible faculty here at Indiana University,” she said. “I auditioned here in February of 2023 and found out two weeks later.”

She said on the day she was notified of her acceptance at the Jacobs School of Music, she was wearing her mom’s vintage Indiana University sweatshirt.

While at university, Yoak has been auditioning for various ballet companies. The process included traveling to the location of the audition and performing a dance number in front of a panel of judges who are directors of the respective ballet company.

“I have dreamt of moving to Los Angeles since I was 19 years old,” she said. “I’ll always have a soft spot for BalletMet because I love Columbus … it was really the key to unlocking the door to the rest of my life.”

With a specialization in English, Yoak hopes to use her expertise in dance and knowledge with publication to write for a dance or ballet magazine. She said she’d love writing reviews about dances and detailed exposés about the ballet world.

“I feel like there’s a lot that goes on that people don’t know about, and it’s so complex to explain that it would probably take a novel to explain it,” she said.

Yoak said she wanted the position at the American Contemporary Dance Company so badly that when she auditioned at other places, her heart wasn’t in it the way it was when she was in L.A.

“I just had a feeling after it happened … and I remember walking into the building to audition and thought, ‘I’m going to be here,'” she said. “It was this undeniable, weird feeling.”

Yoak said her mom cried from happiness when she told her the news and her dad was excited.

Through her journey with dance and school, determined to achieve dreams she’s had since she was a little girl, Yoak found herself pushing through those challenging times by reminding herself what it was all for.

“My favorite piece of advice that has gotten me through a lot of hard times and is something I always say to myself is, if you weren’t ready, you wouldn’t have the opportunity, and if you weren’t capable, you wouldn’t have the desire,” said Yoak.

Yoak said when it comes to waiting during the lengths of time between auditions and hearing back from companies, she takes it one day at a time.

“It’s just the name of the game, and it’s all worth it when your dreams come true because of the work that you put in,” she said. “I think the work that you put into ballet is directly proportional to the results that you get, and that is something that’s so inspiring because it’s completely within your control.”

Amber Phipps can be reached at aphipps@newsandsentinel.com

A professional photo taken by Maximillian Tortoriello Photography of Sarah Yoak at a studio at Indiana University in September. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

Sarah Yoak, middle, flanked by Taurin Janes, left, and Graham Wissinger, right, during a performance at the Indiana University Ballet Theater. The photo was taken by Victoria Bastian Photography in December. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

Sarah Yoak during a performance at the Indiana University Ballet Theater in December. The photo was taken by Victoria Bastian Photography. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)

Sarah Yoak poses for graduation photos at Indiana University in April. (Photo provided by Sarah Yoak)