Seventeen years after slipping her feet inside a pair of ballet slippers, Caitlin Seals Schwanke has yet to take them off.

Seals Schwanke, a sophomore at Baker, started dancing at the age of three after her parents enrolled her in a dance class.

“I guess I danced in too many of the aisles of the productions my parents took me to,” she said.

Seals Schwanke is part of Premiere Ballet in Riverside, Mo. She works with the ballet company on the weekends.

“Part of the challenge of being a dancer and a student is finding time. Being in a company puts a lot of demand on your time,” she said. “As far as the actual dance itself goes, it’s physically draining.”

Although dance is tough on a person’s body, Seals Schwanke said it’s beautiful, and she loves everything about it.

“The emotion and the feeling that people put into it, it’s just really enjoyable to do, and really enjoyable to watch and teach,” she said.

Seals Schwanke, who has performed in multiple shows, said her favorite was playing Lady Capulet in “Romeo and Juliet.”

She also noted her last two performances of “The Nutcracker,” in which her boyfriend, sophomore Matt Ellis, performed with her.

“It was fun and a little challenging,” Ellis said. “I have no dancing or artsy inclination at all … but after a while I picked it up.”

Ellis, however, did ask for one thing before agreeing to join Seals Schwanke.

“One of my conditions was no tights. I just got to wear pants basically,” he said. “I think I had one of the most comfortable costumes because I didn’t want to wear tights.”

Seals Schwanke’s first Baker performance was in “Godspell.”

“(Seals Schwanke) was very professional about it and when they had to learn the choreography for the few dance scenes, she picked it up very quickly,” cast member Kari Hilmes said.

Although time and distance don’t allow Seals Schwanke to perform as often as she likes, she said dance will always be a part of her life.

“I definitely dance on my own, but it becomes more and more difficult in a formal setting,” she said. “So, whether or not I continue to perform, dancing is something I’ll continue to do.”