29, Hit My Dream Job, Now the Fire Is Fading — Stay One More Year or Blow Up My Life?

Hi everyone,

I’m 29 and have been dancing professionally since I was about 23. A couple years ago, when I was seriously considering quitting dance, I got offered what had been my dream job since I was 18. I took it, which meant moving to another country.

The job has been artistically huge for me. I started in the junior company, was promoted to the senior company after a year, and in the last couple seasons I’ve performed almost all the repertory I had dreamed of doing. In a lot of ways, I hit the jackpot artistically.

The harder part is that the move came with financial stress, especially during the junior company period. Now the money is okay enough to live, and the lifestyle is actually pretty good: vibrant city, beach nearby, interesting life, decent work. But the company is going through a big transition. About half the company is leaving before next season, and around 10 new people are coming up from the junior company. That could bring great young energy, but I’m also unsure about the future direction of the company.

So now I’m trying to figure out what’s next.

Part of me thinks the practical choice is to stay one more season, save money, tour, deepen my connections, and potentially use this company’s name/repertory to open doors for teaching, staging, or freelance work later. That seems like the mature, strategic option.

Another part of me feels like the fire is burning out. I don’t know if that’s because I’m almost 30, because the dance industry is changing, or because I’m genuinely burned out after a very intense season with over 100 shows. I worry that if I stay another year, I might end up more exhausted and less able to actually use the opportunities and connections I’ve built.

The alternative would be not signing on for next season, which would probably mean leaving the country and moving back to the U.S. I’d likely stay with my parents for a few months to save money and regroup. I’m also curious about other paths, possibly moving to LA and exploring stunt work or other dance-adjacent opportunities, though I know that would take time, networking, and probably still relying on dance work to pay the bills. I’m also considering going back to school, maybe online, while continuing to work and tour.

There’s also a relationship here, but it’s fairly new, so I’m trying to factor that in without making it the main reason for staying.

I guess the core question is: do I take the stable, strategic route and stay one more season, even if I feel a little burned out and unsure? Or do I take the riskier route and leave now, reset, and explore the unknown before I feel even more stuck?

I’ve had a pretty exciting career so far, lived in multiple places, toured a lot, and done a lot of what I wanted artistically. Now I’m trying to build toward stability while still leaving room for a few more years of adventure before settling down.

Has anyone been in a similar career/life transition, especially in the arts or another unstable field? Did you stay longer to build savings and connections, or did you make the leap before you felt fully ready? What would you do?