Comm Studies student poised in pursuit of ballet, education

DAILY BRUIN – A mother and her baby stood watching ballet dancers practice behind the closed curtains of a Seattle opera house.The mother, Lauri-Michelle Houk, was still on leave from her career as a company ballet dancer to take care of her 8-month-old baby, Madeline. Their eyes were trained on Lauri-Michelle’s husband Ben, also a dancer with the company.As Houk set her child down to let her crawl around backstage, the baby took her first wobbly steps toward her father.“(Madeline) wanted to perform too,” Houk said. “Even back then, ballet was her world.”After years of barre routines and wearing out countless pairs of pointe shoes, Madeline Houk, a fourth-year communication studies student, now dances professionally with the Los Angeles Ballet. Houk balances full-time dancing with her studies at UCLA, juggling lectures with rehearsals and midterms with shows.Click here to read the full article!