Colette Radstone
CFAC Creative Works Contest
2025 Winners
Colette Radstone | Visual Media
1st Place
Dance
Colette Radstone is a senior in American studies, with a minor in ballet, at BYU. She submitted visual media about her experience cataloging dancers from the Joffrey Ballet.
“I knew I was being nudged by the Spirit, and once I acted, everything unfolded in ways far better than I could have planned. God showed me that His plan does not end at BYU. Rather, BYU is a platform that launches me into the next step of learning and service.”
As the Joffrey Ballet began preparations for its Joffrey + Ballet in the U.S. exhibition to be displayed in Lincoln Center, I was brought on to find the names of every person who had ever danced with Joffrey. Most of my work was remote, with a little time spent in New York City.
Working independently under my supervisor, Nicole Duffy, I scoured books, casting documents and programs in search of these dancers. I then organized the data so museum curators could use it. In the end, I uncovered more than 710 names.
I had already learned R (a popular coding language) in my political science classes at BYU, but this internship gave me the chance to use it in a new way. I applied it to solve practical problems, like cleaning duplicate names from my data. I learned to organize large amounts of information into something clear and accessible. Eventually, I decided to sort dancers by the decade they were first hired. When records were missing, I had to get creative and find new ways to track down people who otherwise would have been forgotten.
The biggest lesson I learned was about having the courage to ask. The Arpino Foundation and the Joffrey Ballet do not typically take interns. However, after working with Cameron Basden for three years on Theatre Ballet, I reached out with ideas for how we could collaborate. None of my original proposals were chosen, but my effort and willingness to serve opened the door. Cameron introduced me to the museum team, who created this project specifically for me.
I later learned they had noticed my initiative and professionalism and decided to take a chance on bringing me in despite their history of not using interns.
This internship also reshaped how I see my career. Choosing to pursue ballet in college, instead of joining a company right away, gave me access to experiences like this! I hope to someday conduct a study on the economics of ballet contracts.
The experience was also deeply spiritual. For months, I felt promptings to reach out and kept hesitating. One afternoon in the Harold B. Lee Library, I finally sat down and sent the email to Cameron. I knew I was being nudged by the Spirit, and once I acted, everything unfolded in ways far better than I could have planned. God showed me that His plan does not end at BYU. Rather, BYU is a platform that launches me into the next step of learning and service.
Spending time with mentors like Cameron, Kim Sagami and Nicole Duffy fostered a sense of community. Visiting the exhibition and seeing my work on display was unforgettable. When I told a museum guide that I created the slideshow of names, she gasped and treated me with sudden gratitude. There, I saw that my work had value. I felt the joy of contributing something meaningful to our small but passionate world of ballet.