Joao Silva, 24, believes his career as a ballet dancer has been an act of fate. From a small town in Brazil, Joao began dancing 10 years ago as a hobby to enjoy with friends. He began entering dance competitions for fun, but repeated wins made him realize his undeniable talent. Joao soon began receiving dance scholarships and offers to dance in the United States. “I often say that I never chose to be a ballet dancer, but that ballet chose me,” Joao says. “Within a few years of starting dancing for fun, I was a professional dancer.”

Joao first came to the US for a five-week Summer Intensive Dance Program in Miami. After the program ended and he returned to Brazil, Joao was again selected to return to the US for an American Dance Competition. Soon after, he received a scholarship from the Miami City Ballet and was a student dancer for the next two years. “It was a great learning experience, but I surprisingly had a hard time connecting to Miami,” Joao says. Once he moved to Memphis to dance with Collage Dance in 2021, he remembers feeling right at home. “I will always see these four years with the Memphis dance community as an integral part of his journey.”

In February of 2024, Joao began feeling discomfort in his ankle, but was initially not particularly worried about it. “Feeling pain and soreness as a ballet dancer is somewhat common,” Joao says. He continued to train and push through the pain, culminating in a major performance in April of that year. Unfortunately, Joao could barely walk without pain by the time the performance was complete.

After some months off and physical therapy, Joao eventually consulted with his doctor and discovered a ligament was partially torn and incredibly inflamed. After two surgeries to clear out all of the inflammation, Joao endured months of physical therapy and rest to learn how to walk again, let alone dance. During those months of recovery, Joao turned to modified yoga, Pilates, and upper body work to maintain his fitness. After two surgeries at the end of 2024, and months of physical therapy and recovery, Joao finally returned to the dance studio in February. “Ballet is such a huge part of my life. It is truly magical, inspiring, and emotional to say I made it through such a difficult time,” Joao says.

After his journey and recovery, Joao urges other athletes to always listen to and trust their bodies and not hesitate to seek medical help if something feels wrong. He offers this advice: “Learn from my experiences, take care of yourself, and do not rush recovery.”

 

By Zoe Harrison
Photo by Tindall Stephens