Where did you first study ballet?

Jillian Peña: "I grew up in Baptist ballet school. My mom would always shield me whenever they would pray before performances. She’d be like, “Just hide, just hide.” [Laughs] They told us that our bodies were vessels for Jesus. Imagine! I was aware of that from 7 to 18—but thinking of your female body as a vessel for Jesus? It’s like, no wonder I worked at a strip club afterward. Like, duh! Vessels for some guy. The correlation between dance and religion for me has always been in my sphere. That’s how I was trained."