BALLET SAN JOSE DANCERS SHANNON BYNUM & SARAH STEIN ON GROWING UP IN SAN JOSE

BALLETSJ

Mar 19, 2012

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA is an area of such diversity that you may be unsurprised to learn that most of our dancers come from everywhere but San Jose. Whether they trained in Japan, Russia, or Bosnia, Ballet San Jose’s dancers bring to the table a host of different cultural perspectives. And this same multiculturalism is what makes San Jose the heart of the Silicon Valley, a hotbed of innovation and progress. The city itself seems to thrive on its ability to attract people from all over the world.

But what about the dancers who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area? What has it meant for them as people and as artists?

Meet Shannon Bynum and Sarah Stein, the only current Ballet San Jose dancers who were born and raised in the immediate area. While all BSJ dancers seem to have the same easy camaraderie with one another, it is immediately apparent that Shannon and Sarah have known each other for a long time. Last month, I grabbed dinner with them and talked to them about growing up in San Jose.

Reported by the 2010 U.S. Census to be the 10th largest city in the United States, San Jose is much like any other sprawling metropolitan area that blankets a number of smaller, lesser-known cities. “San Jose” could mean a lot of things to a Bay Area native, which is why I started out by asking Shannon and Sarah where they grew up.

It so happens that they are both from South San Jose.

“We actually went to the same high school,” Sarah said. “Santa Teresa High School.”

“I was a senior when she was a freshman!” Shannon added.

And how did they get their respective starts in dancing?