Mark

Aside from Casey, The other best partner for Seth.

5'5" short king named Mark Keenan who's somewhat stocky/burly and quite strong compared to the other men. Mark plays opposite Seth sometimes because of the friction in their professional relationship. It is a somewhat healthy competitive outlet for the two of them LOL — Pays no mind to others' judgment. A real ally: he's a misanthrope to EVERYONE regardless of your gender or sexuality. There's probably a dancer or two he has a soft spot for. He's a redhead, and very broody, and has a rock hard dancer ass like everyone else here and MONSTER thighs.

Mark is 28.

Mark is from Hicksville (probably either eastern WA or Idaho or something) and has a slight Midwest tone to his speech, and that combined with his temper and short stature has led to the nickname "Yosemite Sam" (or just "Sam" which is not his name) which. Unsurprisingly annoys him. In fact it's a great way to get a rise out of him — As you can imagine there is some tension with his family over his pursuit of ballet.

Mark also knows some pointe due to role as step sister and also dedication to the craft and seeking to understand what his usually female dance partners do as part of their job. Again, he's secure in his masculinity and does not give a shit what other guys thing wrt dancing en pointe. He's not "good" at pointe though, definitely lacks the kind of grace required.

He's a very athletic dancer capable of leaping FAR higher than one would expect for his height (and in fact, can jump higher than a good half of the other dancers at the company despite all of them being taller than him). He is a master of the mid-air spins as well as any and all lifts, throws and catches. He often plays villains though, partly for this reason. His roles are the serious and bombastic ones that require a lot of stamina and strength, compared to for example Casey who is much more graceful and lithe and has the versatility that Mark lacks.

Mark's style of dancing is very POWERFUL and intense, very purposeful and clear. it's a very specific kind of athletic elegance where the viewer is constantly aware of the motion of his muscles and the strict control he exerts over his body. Master precision. Whereas Casey for example is a much lighter and more flowing dancer with more fluid movements by comparison.

Despite the friction (and Mark's general bad attitude) Seth and Mark don't particularly hate each other. They don't get along great, obviously, but they have mutual respect and Mark knows that he has… shortcomings (badum tss). There may be a competitive nature to the profession but the two are, ultimately, not enemies, but coworkers who both have a responsibility to the corps and the school etc. to do their best and not waste time on petty drama.

Generally considers himself heterosexual.