Glenn Davis grew up in Lewiston and for a time, he held the all-time scoring record in high school soccer.
He’s an agile fellow, is Davis and he has quick feet. So maybe it’s natural that in addition to soccer, he also excels in the realm of dance.
The director of marketing for the Maine State Ballet, Davis talked to us about crossover skills between soccer and ballet, about playing for famed coach Mike McGraw and about the Broadway musical that lured him into dance.
What was it like playing soccer for Mike McGraw? Incredible! I still tell stories to my ballet students about Coach McGraw. He was and is all about the strength of being a team. Life lessons were learned on and off the field as we (mostly) won and lost matches. I love coach – and still send him Christmas cards!
How did you get into ballet? My mom, who retired from the Lewiston school system as a primary school teacher, took me to see the Broadway musical “Annie” in 1977 in New York. I said to her, “I can do that!” Shortly after, she took me to a Community Little Theatre audition in Auburn and that’s how I got into the theater world. I actually went to University of Maine to play baseball for John Winkin years later and ended up quitting ball. But I got into ballet while a senior there in order to be better at musical theater. Then I met my wife, ballerina Janet Davis, and the next 27 years at Maine State Ballet is history!
Are there any shared skills between soccer and dancing? You have to train hard. You have to be a team. And once you get on the field or stage, the coach can’t help anymore. You just have to perform. I loved scoring goals and held the all-time soccer goal scoring record at LHS for many years. When I scored a goal, that thrill you also get on stage in front of thousands of people just filled my heart! There is just no way to explain that feeling.
What is Maine State Ballet all about? We are a nearly 100-year-old dance school and ballet company in Falmouth. We teach dance and put on family-friendly, uplifting ballet and tap/jazz performances. We currently have two alumni dancers starring in New York City Center’s gala performance of “A Chorus Line” – Robyn Hurder is Cassie and Sara Esty is Maggie! Sara’s twin sister, Leigh Ann, just finished a Broadway run in the ensemble of “Carousel.” All of them were former dance partners. So we have a Broadway connection via the Maine ballet world.
Any big upcoming events? We usher in every holiday season with our “Nutcracker” performance. This year we have three weekends and 11 shows, starting on November 23rd at Portland’s Merrill Auditorium.
What do you do when you’re not dancing? I am school director at Maine State Ballet. I perform professionally as an actor/dancer at Maine State Music Theater. In my “spare” time I also serve as a lay (unpaid) minister at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Windham in my role of Bishop Davis. I just finished my 5th year. I also garden, cycle and travel to France annually (I speak French fluently, partly because I grew up in Lewiston!). La vie est belle!
Send questions/comments to the editors.
