We were lucky to catch up with Perlizbeth De Leon recently and have shared our conversation below.
Perlizbeth, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?
My dad was abusing my mom. When I started school, there was a really bad incident which ended in my mom filing a restraining order and they got divorced shortly after.
My mom has been my hero my whole life. Watching her go through the worst and still stand strong after it all, I could feel her perseverance and hard work.
She raised me to do whatever made me happy as long as I could live my life with the money I made from it. My happiness was the goal. My dream was the goal. She never pushed me towards a high-salary career. My mom understood how creative I was and she supported me the entire time.
We couldn’t afford classes or lessons or anything. I didn’t start dancing until I saw a dance video on YouTube. I learned from the computer, I danced whenever I saw my friends. I didn’t take a dance class until I got to college.
But she supported and still supports every decision I make with words that never leave my mind: as long as you’re happy.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
I am a choreographer and dance based in Atlanta, Georgia. I teach kids and adults, choreograph for shows and music videos, freestyle for commercials and promos, work with artists on their performances, etc.
My dance style derives from the different dance foundations I’ve trained in: hip hop, popping, house, waacking, jazz, contemporary, modern, African, heels. Most people would call my style hip hop but I think it’s truly original to who I am as a mover and my past influences.
When I work with movers, I like to bring out the best in them. Every dancer is different; every performer has various strengths and weaknesses. I prepare beforehand based on what I’ve seen from them but will often make spur of the moment changes and decisions based on what happens during a session.
I try to be extremely flexible and open to change because that’s something this industry has demanded from me. I love getting to walk on the edge and go with the flow. Each experience I have is unique and memorable.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
There are so many things I scrap after I’ve fully developed them. I don’t love everything I do. The hardest part about constantly creating is letting go of perfection and taking a step back from your work.
More often than not, I look at the finished product and still don’t like it. But I allow myself to not like it because I know how picky I can be. So, I ignore that small voice in my head and let the product be. Sometimes, I’ll make a change or two but other times I know I just don’t like it because I’m my own worst critic.
But the interesting thing is, after I spend time away from it and look back at it…I love it. I can actually look at it with a fresh mind instead of one that’s been looking at it every second of every day.
Not everything has to be perfect in the moment. Sometimes you just have to look at it with a fresh set of eyes to love it.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Right now, I’m just creating based on how I feel. I have an intuition about situations and won’t put myself in a place with a bad aura.
The goal driving my journey goes back to what my mom told me. Every time I’m presented with a new opportunity I think, “Will this make me happy?”.
When I first started in the industry, I wanted to do everything and try everything. That lead me to working with a lot of people who took advantage of me.
At this point, I’m just trying to avoid more of that.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/perlizbeth
- Instagram: @plizbethh
Image Credits
Arvin Temkar Yvette Glasco