Sarah Lin Johnson was 16 years old the first time she saw the Rockettes perform live. After years of watching the women on television, her parents splurged and bought her a VIP ticket to see the “Radio City Christmas Spectacular.”
She still remembers a tap number called the “Ragdoll Dance” the Rockettes performed that day. Their eye-high kicks astounded her.
“That’s when I knew I wanted to be a Rockette,” Johnson said.
Johnson grew up in Unity and attended Winslow High School. Even as a child, dance was the most important part of each day for her. She began dancing at age 2 and a half. By the time she was in high school, she was dancing with four separate companies, including Bossov Ballet Theatre in Pittsfield and Studio One in Oakland, where she danced both ballet and tap.
“I was very serious about dance at that point, I just didn’t know what I wanted to do with it,” Johnson said. The VIP ticket her parents purchased helped her figure that out.
Starting on Nov. 13, Johnson will begin her ninth season as a Rockette with New York City’s “Radio City Christmas Spectacular,” a show that’s seen by more than 2 million people annually and stars the iconic Rockettes, a world famous dance company that has been around for more than 80 years.
“I went to college for dance, and one summer I was interning in New York City at Broadway Dance Center and part of my internship was to be a Rockette assistant at Rockette Summer Intensive,” Johnson said. “At the end of the summer, I auditioned, and I was very fortunate to get the job. Now here I am, nine seasons later.”
Johnson initially auditioned simply for the experience, but found out on the spot at the end of the second day of auditions that she had gotten the job. She still remembers the conversation she had on the phone that day with her mother.
“My mother was driving down from Maine to pick me up and bring me back to college, and I called her and said, ‘Pull over, otherwise you’re going to go off the road. I have big news for you!’” Johnson said. “She was so excited.”
Johnson had been attending Oklahoma City University for dance but ended up moving to New York City to fulfill her dreams of dancing at Radio City Music Hall.
“I knew that had been my goal going into college, and once I achieved it, I was very happy,” Johnson said. “From the get-go I just loved dancing. I’ve always known I would dance forever — hopefully into my 70s or 80s. It’s exciting to get paid to do something you love.”
At 32, Johnson has performed in over 200 shows each season as a Rockette. Her parents, who still live in Maine, come down every year to see her perform.
“They come to my opening night and try to come down a couple times per year,” Johnson said.
And even though it’s been nine seasons since she first stepped on the Radio City stage, she still remembers her first show.
“A few of the veteran Rockettes who had been there for many years had told me at the beginning of the show the Rockettes would flap out of a Christmas tree, turn to the audience and do a big kick. I remember they had all told me, ‘You are going to feel like a rockstar when you do that first kick. The crowd is going to go crazy,” Johnson said.
“That was exactly how I felt,” she said. “From that point on during that whole show I was on cloud nine.”
Her favorite dance has always been “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers,” a number done by every single Rockette who has ever danced across the Radio City Music Hall stage. The Rockettes are decked out in red and white uniform for the number, complete with painted rosy cheeks and a sky high feather atop their hat.
“It’s so exciting to hear the gasps and the awes and knowing that every single Rockette has done it,” Johnson said. “I know when they come to see us they’re excited to see the choreography they did in the 50s or 60s.”
But being a Rockette extends far beyond the stage.
“One of my favorite parts of being a Rockette is doing the meet and greets. We take photos with our audience members in the grand lounge before the show. It’s so exciting to meet them because they’re so excited about the show,” Johnson said. “Some are young children seeing it for the first time, and some are people who have seen the show every single year for the past 20 years. You really get a sense that it’s something special.”
Even though she’s now a resident of New York City, there are still pieces of Maine she tries to carry with her, and she still tries to go home a few times a year to visit family and friends.
“Mainers are the friendliest people. They’re very down to earth. I try to carry that with me because New York can get quite hectic,” she said.
Now that Johnson is part of the tradition of many families in New York City and beyond, her own family’s tradition is to come down to the city to watch her perform. She hopes other Mainers will consider coming as well.
“I’m always excited when I see Mainers. … I know a lot of Mainers have probably seen the Rockettes at the Macy’s Parade, but seeing it in person is so exciting,” Johnson said.
“I’m a small town girl who made it in the big city. It took a lot of hard work but it’s literally a dream come true. I pinch myself every day,” Johnson said. “Trends come and go, but the Rockettes are timeless.”
For more information about the “Radio City Christmas Spectacular” or to purchase tickets, visit radiocitychristmas.com/.
