Diary of a Dance Mom

Yes I'm still here

2009-05-24T16:54:00.000-07:00

Well, college is over and my daughter moved to New York City last year. She got a great job and nice apartment with roommates, but had to work so hard at her job to pay the outrageous rents that she barely got to dance at all.

About eight weeks ago, she invited me to come and stay in her apartment. So we are now both living here. She is beginning to dance again, but still has a heavy work schedule.

Today's advice is to Dance while you're young.

So you think you can dance Auditions Posted Season 4

2007-12-26T10:46:00.000-08:00

The new audition dates are posted on etchingsdance.com. We will try to make the Washington D.C. auditions. Maybe we'll see you there!

Yes I'm still Here

2007-12-26T10:43:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'm still actively a dance mom. My daughter has one more semester of college left and has been travelling to NYC for dance lessons and auditions. She has been taking voice lessons and has learned a lot in the past couple of years about the audtioning process. It's so important to be there and go through the process, even if you don't land anything right away. I don't get to go to New York with her as much. But I try to go when I can. Summer is always better for travelling in NYC.

So You Think You Can Dance - Season 3

2007-05-21T15:47:00.001-07:00

Well Season 3 is about to start. I can't wait to see what great dancers come on this year.

Finally on Blogger Again

2007-05-21T15:46:00.001-07:00

Was locked out of my account for the longest time! I'm back.

One Semester is Over

2006-12-30T07:49:00.000-08:00

Yes, one semester is over and it has definately taken a toll on her body. Just a few short months of not training every day and I can see a huge decline. Thankfully, she is gaining it back fast over the break. My final conclusion..... dance while your body is young, study when you're older or do an even combination of both.

Dance at College

2006-10-01T08:33:00.000-07:00

Well, the college year has started and my daughter is throwing herself into her studies. Little time to get to New York, but we'll try to get there soon. She, luckily has a very experienced ballet instructor who used to be principal in two great ballet companies and she has a new modern teacher who is giving her a great workout. Only three classes a week, though....so she has to supplement and practice on her own a lot. Luckily, she has some great dance studios right across the street from her dorm building. So, so far she is fitting it all in.

New Dance Forum

2006-09-12T13:18:00.000-07:00

There is a new dance forum at http://etchingsdance.com/forum/ They need new people to sign up. Go there and help out.

Dancing With the Stars, Season 3, Sept 12

2006-09-10T05:15:00.000-07:00

Celebrities Signed on for Season 3:
Tucker Carlson - MSNBC news anchor. Will dance with Elena Grinenko.

Monique Coleman - Teen Actress, star of Disney's High School Musical. Will dance with Louis Van Amstel.

Sara Evans - Country music star. Will dance with Tony Dovolani.

Willa Ford - Singing star. Will dance with Maksim Chmerkovskiy.

Vivica Fox - Stunning television and movie superstar. Will be partnered with Nick Kosovich.

Harry Hamlin - Star of TVs LA Law and husband of Season 2 contestant Lisa Rinna. Will be partnered with Ashly Delgrosso.

Joe "Joey" Lawrence - Teen heartthrob and actor. Will dance with Edyta Sliwinska.

Mario Lopez - Actor and TV Host. Will dance with Karina Smirnoff.

Shanna Moakler - Former Miss USA - Actress, model and reality TV star. Will dance with Jesse DeSoto.

Emmitt Smith - NFL legend. Three-time super bowl champion. Will be partnered with Cheryl Burke.

Jerry Springer - National talk show host and superstar. Will be partnered with Kym Johnson.

Get all the Dancing With the Stars Info - Click Here!

Lots of Dancing in NYC

2006-09-02T18:22:00.000-07:00

Wow, we've been to NYC at least four times in the past month. That's all to update for now. We'll be leaving again for more soon. Will update on anything interesting.

Congratulations Benji !

2006-08-17T00:56:00.000-07:00

Benji, Congratulations on winning So you think you can dance. Everyone did a great job on the show and it was difficult to choose who would win. You did a great job and I love to watch your entertaining dance numbers. Good luck in your future adventure.

So you think you can dance FINALE!!!!

2006-08-07T17:35:00.000-07:00

I would like to wish all the dance contestants good luck! You all are wonderful dancers in your own genres. I'm glad you all had such success. You have all won the title of greatest dancer, the only thing to be determined now is WHO GETS THE MONEY!!!! How much fun.

Dance Moms Know!

2006-07-23T07:15:00.000-07:00

Just got back from a dance week in NYC. It was nice to meet up with other dance moms and hear their evaluations of the SYTYCD dancers. It was funny, but we ALL agreed 100% on our favorites for technique and performance.

I gave and received lots of good tips on choreographers, conventions and events. It was great!

Off to unpack!

A new dance target!!! GRRRRR!

2006-07-08T11:12:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the mean posters are still ranting and raving injustice, even tho their girl is off the show. The board is calming down, but I'm now noticing that people in general have quickly jumped on new targets. Ahhhh, the dance world can be so vicious sometimes! So, I guess, in the end, that every contestant on the show is targeted by ill-wishers up until the last one standing ... or dancing.

Last season, I didn't go on the boards at all, so I didn't really know what was going on. It was a different experience for me. This year, well, my daughter auditioned for the show this season. If she made it to the final 20, I wonder how I would feel about her being a target. Not too good I don't think. I do wonder how the parents and families of the contestants can stand it. Criticisms like, she's too fat, he's a homo, she's got no technique, she's a liar, she makes faces, he thinks he's great, she's full of herself, on and on and on...... So, no matter who you are, what you've accomplished or how you act or dance, someone hates you!

I don't think I'll look at the boards if she ever makes it. She is trained in all the dance styles and does have a good chance ... so says her mommie who loves her (that would be me), and therefore thinks she can do no wrong and is a beautiful dancer. But would I be able to stop myself? I might just end up in an asylum. It is a hard position to be in.

I must say that the picture of a fat, face making, lying homo dancer who is full of him/her self and thinks (s)he is great is an awefully scary combination. Funny how people who never met you can come up with such a caracature.

I think it's great that these 20 dancers get to experience SYTYCD. I have found something great about each and every one of them, even the one with the mean family and friends. I wish them all good luck because one thing is certain: They are all doers. They set a goal and are accomplishing their goals and whether you like them as dancers or not, they should be congratulated for taking action.

Every Dance Genre Has It's Benefits

2006-07-07T04:52:00.000-07:00

Well, I guess getting mean on the boards just doesn't pay off. Who woulda thought?

Anyway, here are my thoughts. Being trained in just one type of dance does not make you a well-rounded dancer, or an all around dancer. It means you are simply limited to your one style. Ninety-nine percent of dance styles have required technique. Most of the technique are difficult to master in a short time, but all dance styles benefit a dancer one way or another. No one dance is better than another.

Hard core ballet must be started from a young age. If a family chooses to put a child in hard core ballet, then they usually commit at least four days a week to ballet classes plus weekends for rehearsal or repetoire. It is difficult on the body for someone young to enter other forms of dance early on.

Ballet for the normal dancer with a desire to be an all around dancer: My advice, as thedancemom, is to get as much hard core training in ballet as possible, but once it becomes impossible to keep up with the schedule, start shifting some hours to other types of dance. IMO There is no substitute for hard core ballet training. Ballet is always stressed as the foundation of dance ... all dance ... and I believe that is true. It strengthens, stretches and controls the legs and arms. Hip hop dancers will find a better control of the legs and arms, tappers, jazz dancers and modern dancers will gain balance and posture.

Looking back on my daughter's training, if my desire was for my daughter to be an all around dancer, I would have started her in hard core ballet in the early years and then started moving her to other styles around the age of 8 or 9 while still trying to maintain the ballet as much as possible. This sometimes isn't possible because hard core ballet instructors don't want to teach someone if they're only going to be in class for two of the four days of training. Everything's a tradeoff! But if you start the all around dance later than 8 or 9, it's my opinion that it will be difficult to catch up with the other kids who have been doing all around training since the age of 5.

Tap helps a child learn rhythm, foot coordination, syncopation and precision. I have seen some ballerinas who could use some tap lessons and definately some tap dancers who could use ballet.

Jazz dance adds style and diverse movement and interesting shapes. Something that I don't often see in classical ballet. Jazz style can be choreographed into both tap and ballet.

Lyrical helps bring out emotional performance. Lycial dancers learn to use their faces and body movements to express emotions (sudden contraction, soft floating arms, hard, soft movement etc). Lyrical encompasses many forms of dance ... ballet, jazz, contemporary.

Hip Hop emits power. I think that hip hop teaches expression of aloof emotion and coolness. It is the complete opposite of "good ship lollipop". It teaches the dancer to take whatever technique they know and just dance. Hip hop does require a lot of technique, but at the end of the day, it must be "danced" .... nothing held back. The technique must be so precise that when the dancer lets loose, the dance does not fall apart.

Modern/Contemporary is said to be close in technique to ballet. Modern definately teaches shapes and body alignment. Controlled emotional performance.

Ballroom Latin/Rhythm teaches some amazing hip movement and also gives the dance world some of the most appealing sensual body shapes in both the ladies and the men. Quick footwork and legwork that is completely opposite of anything you'll find in traditional dance.

Ballroom Smooth/Standard teaches controlled legwork and footwork, posture, balance, breadth of movement. This is a great remedy for traditional dancers who have trouble with footwork.

There are so many other types of dance that I could comment on. But, that's all I have time for this morning. Thanks for visiting!

I hate people who are just WRONG!

2006-07-02T12:28:00.000-07:00

I've been reading the SYTYCD boards and I'm seeing some behavior that is ....well just pretty bad. There are, by my count, two contestants families who are really cut-throat about this competition. I won't tell you who, you can find that out by going to the boards and reading the messages yourself.

Anyway, some are signing up on multiple user names, posing questions and answering themselves back on another user name. Others are doing the same thing, but among friends and family members. They are ganging up on anyone who doesn't agree that thier dancer is not the absolute best in the world. Even worse, those same people are entering the conversations with those who support other dancers and trashing the other dancers in way that makes their dancer look more appealing. If I ever get to that sorry state of being .... well, I hope that I never feel I have to be that type of underhanded, sorry human being to do that to other people.

The dancers should succeed or fail on their dancing ability and/or likability on their own. Families should not enter into a blood war to destroy those competing. How sad and wrong.

Dancers sent home - I'm not surprised.

2006-06-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

Ben and Alek went home tonight. I totally knew that Alek was going home tonight and I'm not surprised. I was surprised about Ben, though. He has some amazing technique and so much potential. I'm not thrilled with his looks, but he could be made over ... haircut and styling, cooler clothes etc. I thought Jaymz was a gonner when he fell out of his turn and did that whimpy leap ... oh yea and when he fell off the stage. I would have sent him home.

Again, I absolutely loved Dmitry! That boy has some body movement goin on! Wow!

Favorite SYTYCD couples

2006-06-28T19:38:00.000-07:00

Wow, I had a lot of favorites tonight. I actually think I liked Heidi and Ryan the best. The dance was hot and full of energy. Primal. I also really loved Benji and Donyelle ... always in my favorites. Then Ivan and Allison. She really smoked and put on a great performance and he really surprised me. Could he have been more in charge and connected, yea sure, but he was hot. Changed my mind about him.

I think it is unfortunate for Dmitry that he is not getting strong partners. Alex does not seem very versatile and is very manic. Dmitry is beautiful to watch. What a talent! Among my daughter's many styles of dance, she dances professional ballroom, so I'll be looking to watch him at competitions.

Travis is my other favorite. He always pulls it off in my eyes, despite any criticism he's gotten so far. I think he is flawless! Love him as the all around dancer so far.

Love Musa, but he just is not as versatile as he needs to be. Steamy and handsome. He has a charisma that I love to watch. Here's hoping for him, but I don't think it's there yet. Maybe some slick chreographer will scoop him up and give him some great training in company. I think he's got the goods, but needs more classes.

As far as girls, my absolute favorite is Donyelle. Could watch her dance for days. She is great! Heidi has a ton of spirit and I like her too. However, she also is lacking in technique in traditional dance. I saw one chine leap that should have just been left out of the choreography all together. Showed her lack of technique right there. Otherwise, I like her energy.

That's it for me today! Have a great evening.

Another Great Video of Polina Seminova!!!

2006-06-21T08:43:00.000-07:00

Check out this great video of Polina Seminova en pointe!!! It's the nineth one down on the page.

My favorite dance video Sting & Alessandra Ferri en Pointe

2006-06-20T08:26:00.000-07:00

I love all styles of dance, but his video is especially great. Check it out: Alessandra Ferri and Sting

Top 20 So you think you can dance!

2006-06-15T09:36:00.000-07:00

Musa Cooper, Travis Wall, Stanislav Savich, Benji Schwimmer, Ivan Koumaev, Jaymz Tuaileva, Dmitry Chaplin, Ben Susak, Ryan Rankine, Jason Williams, Donyelle Jones, Natalie Fotopoulos, Joy Spears, Allison Holker, Ashlee Nino, Jessica Fernandez, Erin Ellis, Martha Nichols, Heidi Groskreutz, Aleksandra Wojda

My favorite couples so far are Benji Schwimmer and Donyelle Jones (Benji, you really brought it! That surprised me - Nice job!) and Travis Wall and Martha Nichols. Both are great dancers individually, but I didn't like them together. Natalie Fotopoulos has a great personality and her dancing was ok, but I'll hold judgement for future shows. She is in my top 5.

Rockette Audition - Important Info

2006-06-02T15:28:00.000-07:00

Rockette Audition - Important Info for Dance Moms!!!!
Bathroom location. Look for this entrance on Rockefeller Plaza, near NBC, enter the doors and take a left, go down the stairs then take a right. The bathrooms are in the corner by UPS! The bathrooms are plenty, basically cleaner than a highway rest stop and they have potty seat covers. How much better can it get?!!! :)

Also, trash! There usually are no trash barrels in Rockefeller Plaza. Sometimes you'll find one in front of NBC, but they take that away often. There are trash cans at the same location as the bathrooms.

There is also an underground shopping area, restaurants and a food plaza through those doors. The shops include Anthropologie, J Crew, Sharper Image, Brookstone, the NBC Shop, and all the great shops on Fifth Avenue and more.

Dirty Dancing - A Reality T.V. competition!

2006-06-02T07:48:00.000-07:00

Dirty Dancing - A Reality T.V. competition!

Women's Entertainment (WE T.V.) is taping Dirty Dancing, an original new series, this weekend, June 2nd-4th!

Dirty Dancing is an all new dance competition that combines Dancing with the Stars and the storyline of the hit movie Dirty Dancing! Six amateur female dancers are paired with six professional male dancers in a dance camp/ dinner theater based on the hit movie starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey. This weekend we are taping the semi-finals and finale as we crown the Dirty Dancing champion... More at Women's Entertainment (WE T.V.)

Note: There is a rumor that Artem Chigvinsev from So You Think You Can Dance Season 1 is one of the six professionals on this show.

Everybody's in the Act JLo Chris Judd Dance Show

2006-05-31T11:34:00.000-07:00

Jennifer Lopez & Ex-Husband To Launch Dance Shows
Jennifer Lopez and ex-husband Cris Judd will go head-to-head when they both launch television dancing shows later this year. Lopez is working with MTV on her reality series "Moves" where she will select and audition dancers, as well as act as an executive producer.

The hitmaker will use her dance training and experience to assist aspiring dancers in their careers in the fly-on-the-wall show.

Meanwhile, former dancer and choreographer Judd will host "Dirty Dancing: Living The Dream," a small-screen version of the 1987 Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey movie with a reality TV twist. The series will pair novice female dancers with experienced professionals who will train and compete for a featured role in the national cast of the upcoming Dirty Dancing musical.

Judd's series will air on Women's Entertainment (WE).

Star Pulse Blog

EtchingsDance.com So you think you can dance info.

2006-05-29T14:24:00.000-07:00

You can follow the contestants and judges on Fox's So you think you can dance at Etchings Dance. So you think you can dance www.etchingsdance.com .
You can get biographies, what the prizes are, songs that they use. Check it out.

New B-Boy Dance Show by Bad Boy

2006-05-28T07:02:00.000-07:00

MTV and Bad Boy Entertainment, Sean “Diddy” Combs’ production company, are teaming up as dance partners for an as-yet-untitled series that will center on street dance troupes across the country. Combs will executive-produce the pilot episode.

Broadcasting Cable

It seems that Sean Combs is joining the dance crowd with this new dance show focusing on street dancers. Actually, I think it's a good idea because street dancers can be AMAZING, but they often don't have the training to compete against dancers that will make the top ten on shows such as So you think you can dance. Those street dancers often don't have the money to take weekly dance classes at a studio, so good for Diddy for making that move.

America's top choreographers

2006-05-19T09:52:00.000-07:00

America's top choreographers: Brian Friedman, Mia Michaels, Shane Sparks, Mary Murphy and Ron Montez. So you think you can dance.

Mary Murphy So you think you can dance judge - blog

2006-05-12T08:59:00.000-07:00

http://www.marymurphy.tv/ Here is the blog address for Mary Murphy's blog. She is one of the judges and choreographers on the So you think you can dance show on fox. The link is the official website
of Mary Murphy, ballroom dance champion, choreographer, accredited judge, and TV personality. I have also included this ballroom dancing link in the dance link list on the bottom left of this blog! Also, here is her MySpace.com profile.

Ballroom Bootcamp? Is it returning?

2006-05-08T05:37:00.000-07:00

Ballroom Bootcamp on TLC Discovery -

Does anyone know if Ballroom Bootcamp is returning. I had a lot of fun with that show too! Check it out.

....Top ballroom dance professionals Susannah Cuesta, Gocha Chertkoev and Christian Perry will attempt to give the participants the physical, mental and social tools necessary for success, and stop at nothing to transform the participants from ordinary to extraordinary.

The Ballroom Bootcamp participants will learn one of five dance styles — the cha cha, waltz, tango, jive or rhumba — and then face off against one another in an authentic, professionally adjudicated competition.

It's the ultimate fish-out-of-water story. Think plumbers, couch potatoes, football players, moms and more unusual suspects. It's a chance to test regular people in a way they've NEVER been tested before....

So you think you can dance Updated Website

2006-05-08T05:08:00.000-07:00

The website for So you think you can dance has finally been updated. Keep watching! So You Think You Can Dance.

Also, the New York Daily News reports "Executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, who also will return as a judge, said there will be some tweaks, including a half-hour results show." So, we know at least one judge.

Annoyed at missing Hip Hop Dance Festival

2006-04-24T05:29:00.000-07:00

If there is one huge thing that most dancers lack, it's marketing sense. Less than 20 minutes from my house an international hip hop festival was planned and executed over this past weekend. Did I know about it? Nope. It was a huge, groundbreaking event, yet I didn't see anything on the TV news, in the newspapers, on posters or anywhere else. Needless to say, we didn't attend the event ... which we would have attended if we had known it existed.

Ok. Here it is. For those of you who don't know .... there is something called a press release. You send it to all media organizations, TV, radio, newpapers, etc. They, in turn, print the press release (or follow up by putting a reporter on the idea), then they print the information about your event for free. Sometimes, yes, you have to do follow up calls after sending a press release, but making sure enough news organization receive it is the first step. A groundbreaking event is sure to make the news ... somewhere.

Take the Lead Movie Review

2006-04-20T17:01:00.000-07:00

I loved it, but there was little traditional dancing in the movie. It reminded me of Dangerous Minds with Michelle Pfeiffer. Skilled civilian goes into ghetto school, teaches kids skills, saves the day and everyone lives happily ever after. However, Take the Lead is based on a true story.

It is a truely inspiring movie and I loved every minute of it! I thought that Antonio Banderas was amazing and danced very well. He is, afterall, a passionate latin man! I surprisingly loved the dancing too! It was a movie "about" dancing and what dancing can do for a person. The mix of hip hop and ballroom was great!

I travel to New York City often and when watching this movie, I felt as if I was actually in the city. Very good for atmosphere.

If you hate hip hop, less fortunate people and/or any type of dancing that strays from traditional ballroom, you may not like this movie. However, if you have an open mind and love dance, you'll have a great time. Go and see this movie!

Happy Birthday Dance Girl!

2006-04-20T06:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Dance Girl! You are the greatest!!!!

New Season So You Think You Can Dance 2006

2006-04-15T17:04:00.000-07:00

New Season So You Think You Can Dance 2006 starts on May 25th 8/7c! Thursday on FOX!!!!! Can't wait! New host: ....Cat Deeley, one of the leading television hosts in the UK, has been named to host the second season of the hit series. Deeley has won many awards for her work on "CD: UK Live," on which she has appeared for the last six years; her three years on "SMTV: Live"; and many shows for the MTV UK, BBC and ITV networks.....

Ballroom Dance

2006-04-13T17:05:00.000-07:00

Dancing With the Stars will return for another season. Now I know for sure.

One Last Dance

2006-04-08T17:04:00.000-07:00

Just watched One Last Dance. Loved the dancing. Much of the choreography was done by Alonzo King and included dancers from his Lines Ballet Company (Contemporary Ballet). Lovely dancing which is worth watching the movie for. My favorite, however, is that the movie included Rasta Thomas ... a great male dancer. My daughter and I have followed his career and were really thrilled to see him in this movie. If you get the chance, check out his web site. http://www.rastathomas.com/ On the negative side, the movie had way too much arguing for my taste. It was a little sad to watch because it was about older dancers at the ends of their careers. Will we buy it for the dance movie collection, absolutely. Simply for the small clips of great dancing.

.......One Last Dance - Description: Husband and wife Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi team up for the dramatic tale of redemption ONE LAST DANCE. Travis (Swayze), Chrissa (Niemi) and Max (George De La Pena) were three students of master choreographer Alex McGrath, but had a falling out many years ago over a particularly difficult piece that Alex created just for them. But upon Alex's death, the three are reunited and agree to attempt the dance piece once more to save his company, in the process reopening old emotional wounds that were never properly healed. Featuring acclaimed choreography and dance scenes, ONE LAST DANCE allows Swayze and professional dancer Niemi to showcase their skills in a film written from the experiences and struggles of performing artists.......

So You Think You Can Dance Season 2

2006-04-04T06:27:00.000-07:00

The SYTYCD show is rumoured to be starting up around May 2006. Look out for it! It should have ballroom, hip hop, ballet and other dance types. There is a new host this year.

Take the Lead Ballroom Dance Hip Hop Movie

2006-04-03T12:04:00.000-07:00

Here is the background story of Take the Lead:

Antonio Banderas stars in Take the Lead, a drama inspired by the true story of Pierre Dulaine, an inspirational Manhattan dance teacher and competitor who volunteers his time to teach ballroom dancing to a diverse group of New York inner-city high school students serving detention.

The students are initially skeptical of Dulaine, especially when they learn what he's there to teach them, but his unwavering commitment and dedication slowly inspire them to embrace his program. In fact, they even take it one step further and combine Dulaine's classical dance with their unique hip-hop style and music to create a high-energy, unique fusion. As Dulaine becomes a mentor for his students, many of whom haven't had much to strive towards in their lives, he inpires them to hone their craft for a prestigious city ballroom competition, and in return they share with each other valuable lessons about pride, respect and honor.

Comments from TheDanceMom: I will review this movie later. It hasn't been released yet, but I am excited to see it. I do like Antonio Banderas very much, but I am always disappointed when they cast stars in dance rolls, unless, of course, the star has years of dance training. For instance, in the movie Center Stage, Maureen, was not really a trained dancer. Why? Who knows what the thinking was! The cast was mostly trained dancers with years of performance experience, yet she was cast for star power? Doesn't make sense. She did a nice job, but dancers should be cast to play dancers in dance movies! Although the general public won't know if the star is performing the moves correctly, there are thousands of trained dancers who will know.

I have to comment on American Idol

2006-03-31T05:54:00.000-08:00

There is no shame on being voted off of American Idol. I keep seeing these newspaper reports that say "despite being voted off ...." "even though she was voted off ...." America, please note, only a select few even made it on American Idol .... out of thousands of people who auditioned only a small number made it to the show. That is a HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT and honor to be chosen. They should all be congratulated for 1. Getting off the couch to audition in the first place, 2. Keeping it cool enough to make it through the rounds of auditions, and 3. Having the poise and presence to get up on stage in front of millions of viewers, sing, then have their singing critqued in front of the nation! Shame on anyone who trys to put down anyone who has made it that far.... it's a lot farther than most people would make it!

New Links for Dancers

2006-03-30T04:46:00.000-08:00

I've added some new links for dancers at the lower left of this page. If you know of any great dance sites, let me know. I'll check them out!

A little dancer who really loves dance.

2006-03-26T15:54:00.000-08:00

I was watching a class with many levels of dancers in it, all ages. One girl, however, stood out. She was about 8 years old and had a good body for dance. But even better, you could tell that some day she was going to be a great dancer! She listened to the instructor intently and carefully watched the movements of the person demonstrating, mimicking every move as the instructor did it. Then she went out onto the floor, put a smile on her face and enthusiastically performed the piece. She was pretty good too! I'll be watching to see how she does in coming years. Nice job!

She's just doing it for fun!

2006-03-24T04:25:00.000-08:00

Stop! Stop right now! I guess this month I'm just about to tear my hair out listening to people. Was sitting with this mother the other day. Her daughter was 9 years old. "Is she competitive?" I asked. "No, she just dances for fun. Nothing serious." Arrrrrrgh Can you see my face start to mutate? Ok, here's why I have such an attitude.

If competition is not for you, then ok, it's not for you. Not everyone has to compete to be successful. I haven't seen many noncompetitive dancers who have great skills, but there are a few. NYC has a lot of 'already professional' noncompetitive dancers who are amazing, but I haven't really seen it in the suburbs.

But saying she dances "just for fun" is like saying "Don't blame her if she sucks, we're just paying out all this money and wasting the classes time because we're not really serious." "She doesn't really have to pay attention, because it's just for fun." "She doesn't really have to learn safe dancing because it's just for fun." "It's ok if she goes on stage at the end of the year and embarrasses the hell out of herself because it's just for fun." "It's ok to be mediocre because it's just for fun." If it's just for fun then take her to the YMCA! Let me put it more simply. The people I hear saying "It's just for fun." usually have kids who are fat or lazy or kids who have real potential, but because they can't throw a triple pirouette in the first class their parents think they have no skill. Um .... that's why kids take lessons .... to gain skill.

Question: If you are making the effort to pay a qualified teacher to learn dance and you are making the time commitment to show up to class and purchase dance clothes and costumes and practice, why wouldn't you want to gain some skill out of the whole process? Give your kid a chance! Having skill is fun, dancing skillfully is great fun. So why not learn the skill correctly and learn what real fun is all about instead of giving the kid a great excuse to slack off and be less than great!

A child's road to success will always run into a wall. As a parent you will either be a road block or help your child climb over the wall. Making excuses for a child when a child is that young equals "road block". Encourage them to do their best and learn the skill correctly from the start. Please!

Here's a Clue for Beginner Competition Moms

2006-03-22T05:34:00.000-08:00

I sat in the room with a bunch of moms last weekend. This was the first year their studio had entered competition. OK, so my daughter has competed for a long time and her day is over. She's moving into the professional world now. However, I engaged in conversation anyways. I asked what studios were at the competition ... they didn't know. I asked who the judges were ... they didn't know. They did know, however, that whatever studios were there were being given an unfair advantage. ARGH! Ok, it happens. However, I am very familiar with the competition they went to and very familiar with the studios that attend that competition every year. Studios that have excellent dancers, strong technique and work exceptionally hard to win what they do. I could imagine nothing unfair about those studios winning ... but wait ... maybe this studio (which I was unfamiliar with) would bring out a stellar performance ... maybe they were better than these other studios that I was familiar with .... Then I went into the classroom and watched their competitive students ........................ I have one thing to say ......

Just shut up until you know what you're talking about. Your students were not anywhere ready to compete and were sloppy, off the music, no smiles, dead arms with no enthusiasm for dance. Unfair? What IS unfair is bringing kids to competition who are not prepared. Judges look for technique (your students had none), neatness (some were neat, others not), musicality (the ability to place dance moves to the music where they belong), style (um, not even close), smiles (none), performance quality (....), oh yes, and how about an effort?

So here is what you need to do to fix it. Stop complaining about how unfair it was that they other studios got all the good medals. Learn who those studios are and what type of routine they do weekly. You'll be humbled. Start doing proper warmups and teaching the kids proper body alighnment from the beginning. Build and stretch muscles, muscle memory ... properly to avoid injuries. Start at the basics again and repeat until students have a good base from which to start. Bring the music tempo down so that students can complete their moves, gradually increasing it as they gain more skill. Stop changing choreography every two seconds for the younger students until they have a base. Prepare before class and know what you're going teach before you walk into class.

I know one of the teachers you have at that studio. She competed for years and is, not only and exceptional dancer, but she knows how to prepare for competion. Those students do not show even a small amount of the excellence that teacher is capable of sharing with your studio. Your studio needs to ask her advice before you enter competition again.

Thank God for Frank!

2006-03-20T16:41:00.000-08:00

He's sometimes harsh, blunt, scary to some, but Frank Hatchett tells it like it is. If you can't dance, you'll know it after attending one of his classes. How? He'll tell you so and then he'll help you do it right! As my daugher puts it ..."You have to be a special kind of person to take Frank's criticism and put it to good use." In other words, if you want it bad, you'll fix yourself! I think we are both greatful for his bluntness because there are just some people who others don't want to offend for one reason or another ... and that dancer just moves through life thinking he or she really has what it takes. Bluntness lets that dancer know they have to improve themselves because the are not up to standards or it kindly pushes them to get a new day job! In the end, Frank is really a very sweet guy .... who tells it like it is. :)

One of most humbling experiences for a dancer or dance studio is to venture out into the wide world of competitive dancing where they're not faced with the best and worst of their hometown, they're faced with the best and worst of the region or nation. You learn very quickly that you and yours are NOT the best dancers in the land! For those who don't get that message .... well that's where Frank comes in ... telling it like it is. After all, he's seen a lot and has been in the dance business since before time began. I don't often get to talk with him because whenever we're in New York, other mothers swarm him for advice about their little darlings. He's always polite and often very helpful in his advice which I'm sure by now he has repeated the same advice and enormous number of times.

The dancers who he has trained are really good. Of course they must be you say ... Well not all dance teachers produce good students. Some great dancers just don't know how to teach. Every dancer that I know danced with Frank has style and can really dance.

Dance is filled with a variety of personalities!

2006-03-19T03:41:00.000-08:00

When we were at the SYTYCD auditions, there was this guy behind us in line who came to audition. He'd never taken a dance class in his life. Yet, this guy stood nervously in line with dancers who had been training since the age of three and whose parents had stood by them all the way, pushing them to be better and better dancers. This guys parents didn't like the fact that he wasted his time on dancing, and he was auditioning without their knowledge. When the time came to audition, I hear he was amazing (heard from a good source that is a very hard critic). He made the first cut! A great accomplishment for someone who never took a dance class. He didn't make the second cut, but neither did many experienced dancers. It amazes me that he chose to jump into one of the most competitive auditions for his first try. I do hope he enters his first dance class and doesn't give up on his dreams. I'll probably never know what happened to him, but I hope I'll find out that he continued.

I met another guy while I was waiting. He was the oldest guy there and had loads of experience. Dance just dripped off of this guy. I didn't see him dance, but I could tell he was good .... you know .... the stance, slightly turned out when casually walking, super posture, body lifted and tall, bright and enthusiastic attitude, confident. I didn't find out if this guy made it, so I can't wait to see the show so I can find out. He said it was his last chance before the age requirement would prevent him from entering. I thought that was great! Go for it until you can't go for it anymore!

Then there was this other guy who I know to have national and world titles. What a sad case .... very self-important and feeling special about himself. Is he really that good? Yes, I have to say he is very good, but it kills me to say it! I don't like to see people succeed and then smush it in everyone elses faces. It's one thing to be proud of your success, but really .... winning should not give one license to be pompous.

Everyone there had one thing it common. They were all out to take a chance. They were living! They weren't waiting until they were perfect dancers, they weren't sitting on the couch waiting for life to lift them up, they were taking charge of what might be.... inspiring! So if you were at that audition, whether you made it or not, congratulations for trying, for dreaming, for wishing. Don't give up! Keep on trying until something better comes along!

So you think you can dance auditions

2006-03-05T04:31:00.000-08:00

Well, we've been to New York twice since my last post and I'm just exhausted. My daughter went to the SYTYCD auditions and we got there at around 6 a.m. the first morning. It was FREEZING. I mean we're all lucky to still have toes. A few crazy people brought tents and camped out in the cold. They didn't start letting people in until 9 a.m. They let people in a few at a time, so my D didn't get in until 9:30. She got out of that days audition at around 2 p.m. She made it through the first day of audtions and was told to come back the next day at 8:00. We arrived at 7 a.m. and, again, they didn't let us in until 9 - 9:30. This day, parents and friends were allowed to enter the building. It was twice as cold that morning and the wind was blowing. The day was filled with excitement. People smiling and rejoicing and others, of course, feeling sad, rejected and mad. You don't really get the true atmosphere of the situation when watching it on T.V. There are cameras everywhere and multiple people conducting interviews in various parts of the building and a ton of security. We knew a good number of people in line from various competition, audition, workshops, classes, etc. The auditions were different from the norm, so it will be really interesting to see who makes it and who doesn't. I didn't sign anything stopping me from discussing what I know about the auditions, but I'm choosing not to divulge the equalities and inequalities of the process. If you're going to audition, have a great time. We met some really great and talented people. It was a lot of fun! The picture below is the line in back of us.

and this is the picture in front of us. The long sign in the middle of the picture is the front of the line:

Off to New York City Again for Auditions

2006-02-22T08:35:00.000-08:00

Well our next couple of weeks are full of audition travelling to New York City. Finally, some good auditions have come up. Took a long time after the holidays for us to get back in the swing of things. Can't wait to go. One day trips, mostly, but it will be fun!

America's Ballroom Challenge

2006-02-02T14:45:00.000-08:00

I'm having a great time learning about ballroom dance. D will go to NYC to audition for some dance shows in March, but, for now, it's all about ballroom. I watched America's Ballroom Challenge on PBS last night. It was amazing. I think I really like things that sparkle. Those dresses were amazing. The dancers were exceptionally fit and gorgeous. Yes, I think my daughter will like this type of dancing a lot.

Finally gone!

2006-01-28T07:33:00.000-08:00

So glad that Master P has finally been voted off! Where he did have moments of looking like a good person, he definately squashed those when he started calling everyone 'haters'. Pleassssse. Just goes to show that I should not have second guessed that dance judge for being so harsh. He knew exactly what he was doing and is obviously more experienced than I. All I can say is poooor Ashley.

I am excited to see how everyone is progessing in the ballroom dancing. Jerry Rice (Who is getting a lot of exposure i.e. Miss America Judge), is actually doing a great job and has an outstanding attitude! Tia Carrere .... wow, girl that extra baby weight just dripped off you. You look great. Unfortunaly, it will take tons more training for her to get comfortable with dance, but it helped her out and that works for me. My fav is still is Drew and Cheryl. He really puts the performance into the dance and works really hard to dance technically right.

I like the mix of dance

2006-01-23T15:35:00.000-08:00

I think it's great that Dancing With the Stars is mixing it up by including an exhibition of break dancing. CAN'T believe that Master P made it this far AGAIN!!! Well, good for him. Actually, Master P seems like a really nice guy. But, O.K. Master P, It's time to bring it! Let's see what you got! Drew and Cheryl are adorable together, but who knows who will win this season. George Hamilton is fun to watch simply because he's such a legend. Love the wrestling chic .... what long legs .... beautiful for dance. I really liked the news lady too. She was hot latin and has a great attitude! The soap star is good too, great legs and is beginning to move really well. These old ladies are inspiring me to kick it up! Haha. Actually, I did do about 30 seconds of the New York City Ballet Workout this morning. Go me!

Harsh Dance Judge

2006-01-20T06:04:00.000-08:00

OK, the Dancing With the Stars judge was right about Master P's performance. He does need to leave the show. But, ouch! What a way to say it! ... a little harsh, if you ask me. Master P is the underdog and now I'm finding myself seeing his efforts and feeling sorry for him. He is starting to try ... a bit late ... but at least he's starting. He needs to leave the show, keep practicing with Ashley Delgrosso, who is so full of spirit and has a great attitude after getting stuck with such a problem (that would be Master P). Then they need to surprise everyone at the end of the show with a stellar performace by Master P (reentering him to the compeition, of course). That would be a good show! "Hey, Master P .... You owe it to Ashley to try harder! Oh, and you don't need a reason to be on the show. How about dancing for yourself instead of your 'people' or your 'sisters, brothers, uncles, deceased brother-in-law..... dance for yourself! Don't make excuses as to why you're on the show!" Enough already!

Dancing with the stars no longer about dance!

2006-01-13T18:07:00.000-08:00

Wow, I'm shocked that Master P is still on the show. Good for him, however, in all honesty, he didn't pull the dance off. The show has just moved from a program showcasing what beginners can do in dance, to a social statement. Not good. All I can say is that I hope he really puts in the effort this week because I think that Tatum was putting in tons more effort and it's just not fair to kick someone off who is making effort because the other person, who isn't making a great effort simply has more "people" on his side. Wrong format for me. Don't get me wrong .... I'm glad Master P has a third chance .... I really hope he shows his "people" how to make a really good effort and tries harder than ever. While doing so ... please remember the title of the show "DANCING with the stars". Not, "Gansta show and tell." ... Not, "Dancing for Flood Victims". While we all feel for the tragedies that have happened, I think that "Dancing with the stars" is an escape that we watch to relieve ourselves from the constant bombardment of death, loss, and tragedy. Not every moment needs, or should be a reminder of depression and tragedy. Sometimes our minds just need to rest and think about happy things for .... gee, mayone one hour while watching a show about ..... hmmmm, let me think ......Dance? Give it a rest Master P and let everyone escape for an hour or two!

Dancing With the Stars 2

2006-01-13T03:43:00.000-08:00

I have to say I was pretty disgusted last week when Master P didn't even try to dance. I was delighted this week, however, when he stepped it up and actually did half way decent at the Quickstep, which I am told, is one of the hardest dances in Ballroom. Master P gave a great effort and I was very pleased to see him try "for his people" (whatever that's all about)! It was great he tried, anyway. Unfortunately, he'll have to get voted off. There isn't anyone else who was worse. Although, I recognize his effort, I'd have to vote him off too!

My other problem with him is that he won't wear ballroom shoes. The first thing that great Hip Hop Masters tell people when they ask "How can I get better at hip hop?" is "Don't dress in ballet clothes when coming to hip hop class, wear hip hop clothes. You don't wear hip hop clothes to ballet do you?" Other tips do follow ... however, you get my point. It's like playing tennis with a baseball bat. Anyway, the guy should put a pair of ballroom shoes.

Ballroom Dancing

2005-12-30T18:21:00.000-08:00

Ballroom Dancing is the newest dance form on my daughter's list. She took Argentine Tango a while back, but now has been taking lessons daily since August. Loves it! She has learned the foxtrot, waltz, viennese waltz (however it's spelled) and the Tango. She is also learning the latin dances. It's interesting to note that after fifteen years or so of ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical and modern that ballroom dancing uses entirely different dance muscles. Isn't that strange?! Anyway, the technique is entirely different and she just loves it! She enters her first competition in January. Can't wait to learn all about this new endeavor! We won't return to NYC for a couple of months. Taking a break to prepare for ballroom competition.

Work, Stretch and Dance CAREFULLY!

2005-12-21T08:50:00.000-08:00

Dancers: The colder months are upon us. Many of the dance injuries that occur happen in January, February and March .... when the cold is bitter and dance studios keep the studios at subzero temperatures. Be sure to warm up your bodies properly.

Try taking a hot bath before class, bring extra socks so you can change wet socks and keep your feet warm, bring some cushy slippers to class so you can warm your feet during off times!

Eat! If your energy is down and your body is cold, you will be more prone to injury. So, bring little snacks and nibble between classes. Also, drink lots of water.

You can also heat up one of those corn filled heating pads that you microwave and stick it in your dance bag to heat your feet up on or to warm your shoes.

Broadway Dance Center Needs Your Help! Read Please!

2005-12-19T10:09:00.000-08:00

After reading this blog, please link it to your blog or sent it via e-mail to people who may be interested in this topic. Speading the word is the best help I can provide to this cause. Thanks. Here is an article from Backstage and other links.

Dancers Rally for NYC Center
December 01, 2005

Dancers rallied Thursday morning in support of the Broadway Dance Center, which is in the midst of a legal battle to retain its space on West 57th Street in Manhattan.

About 150 people gathered at the facility, said Bruce Cohen, press representative for the center, on Thursday afternoon.

For two decades the center has served the rehearsal, training, and conditioning needs of thousands of dancers, according to Cohen.

"More [than] 40,000 members, including Rockettes and Broadway chorus line dancers, consider the Broadway Dance Center their professional home and the place to stay in shape," said a press release announcing the rally.

The New York Times reported on Nov. 23 that the dance center might lose its home, a victim of Manhattan's "heated real estate market," which "is squeezing arts groups in the city."

The center is involved in a legal battle with its landlord, the Extell Development Company, to keep its space at 221 West 57th St.

Extell purchased the building and an adjacent site in June for a reported $67.5 million, according to the Times story, which added that the Broadway Dance Center's lease expires in 2012. Allison Ellner, chief executive officer and director of the center, told the Times that Extell had offered her $1 million to leave the space but that she had declined and that she had estimated the relocation cost at $3.4 million.

Franklyn Snitow, an attorney for Extell, told the Times that the company was prepared to operate the building "while there are existing valid leases for the premises." He would not comment on negotiations for relocating the dance center, except to say, "We were not willing to accept the dollar figure they presented."

-- Roger Armbrust

http://www.backstage.com/bso/news_reviews/stage/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001613074

Also visit the new BDC Support site: http://www.supportbdc.org/

Great Suggestion from Julia

2005-12-18T14:59:00.000-08:00

Fellow Blogger Julia Wrote .........
She can still do her breathing excercizes and do gentle humming excercizes and other voice related practise that doesn't make a lot of noise. Perhaps her teacher can show her some for the next time, a soundless workout for the voice! ........

Thanks! What a great suggestion! We'll do that at her next session.

The Holiday Struggle

2005-12-01T20:01:00.000-08:00

We went visiting this Thanksgiving. It was tough for my daughter to keep in shape with all the food and lack of dance classes. She went to the exercise room daily and rode the stationary bike, elipical rider, roman chair and lifed weights. She recently got the New York City Ballet Workout I and loves it! She remembered the exercises and did them in the apartment we were visiting. It all worked and she is in great shape, but, wow, it took a lot of dedication to keep going every day!

The singing practice just stopped for seven days. We were visiting out relatives in an apartment building and no noise was allowed. So practicing sing was just OUT!!!! We both became very aware of the struggles of people who don't live in neightborhood housing. Very difficult to be a singing or musical instrument artist if you live in an apartment building where you have to be quiet!

Nicest Dance Teachers on Earth

2005-11-16T05:25:00.000-08:00

There are two sisters who run a dance school. They are both extremely talented and actaully the sweetest people on earth! No, really, they are incredibly sincere and would literally give you the shirts off their backs if you were in need. You don't meet many people like that and when you do, you are obligated, under the rules of the human race, to acknowledge that sincere, nonmalicious, kind and giving people actually exist. I didn't really believe it, at first, and then I watched them interact with people for a year. Unbelievably giving. Never two-faced or insincere. Never .... can you believe that? It's true.

We stopped by to see them yesterday to let them know about my daughter's latest adventures in dance. It was great to see them both and hear what their school and kids were up to. This was the school that my daughter attended in her last year of dance before turning 18. And, guess what ...... they just hired a voice teacher so they could add voice to their regular weekly dance classes ..... these ladies really know the business of dance!

Another dance pic

2005-11-11T18:01:00.000-08:00

This is a pic from her jazz solo. Although you can't really see it clearly, I made both of these costumes and I'm very proud!

My daughter dancing

2005-11-11T17:57:00.000-08:00

This is my daughter one year ago, doing a layout in her modern solo.

I'm really impressed with the voice teacher!

2005-11-11T14:57:00.000-08:00

She had her second lesson in voice. The voice teacher records each class so she can take the tape home and repeat the lesson and practice for the next week. I don't stay for the class, but I did hear her practice today. Wow, what a great class!!!! The entire class is packed full of vocal excercises to build the voice. I do hear a lot of improvement, even in one week. The last 15 minutes is devoted to a audition song. They haven't chosen a song yet, but he has some really intelligent choices for next week. I like what I hear!!!

You know what this is about.

2005-11-10T16:50:00.000-08:00

Yes, another dance school, another rant. I shouldn't even have to title the topics anymore because each paragraph seems to be the same thing. My complaining about, yet another, teacher or school. This time we tried out a new place. This school is a 'professional' ballet school located in a nearby city. It runs the dance program for a local university and has a VERY good reputation. With that said ..... we will never attend classes at this reputable school again! What a let down. Granted, it was a 7:30 pm class for ages 15 and up to adult. Not one student was stretched, not one student could extend past a 90 degrees (and 90 is a generous description). Every student fell out of turns.... all of them. The teacher did not know how to choreograph safe moves (no linking steps). I was in fear for my daughter's legs and ankles. Leaping .... well, lets say hopping .... didn't go well for them either. Techno music from the seventies ..... enough said.

Singing Lessons - Books for Vocals

2005-11-07T15:43:00.000-08:00

The vocal coach gave my daughter some great tips. He said that when you audition for musical theater (which he has performed in on Broadway and off), you will have to sing your audition piece in the key that the musical is in and that plain old piano music isn't always in the key that you need it to be in. He recommended the series of books The Singer's Musical Theatre Anthology which comes in different singing styles such as Tenor, soprano, etc. We haven't purchased the specific book yet, but when we do, I'll write about it.

Rude, Rude Dance Teachers!

2005-11-06T04:35:00.000-08:00

O.K. I'm going to rant, yet again, about dance teachers .... believe me, there are plenty of dance teachers I adore. It's just that those teachers run a class as it should be .... there's nothing to rant about, because the are simply exceptional people and teachers. But, after my story, I'm sure you'll agree...... My daughter had to hit a ballet class with real people. She's been doing David Howard video classes and just needed to take a class with a real teacher and real dancers. So, we went to the professional ballet school she attended last year. Well the place was shook up last year and the ballet mistress left and, well, new people have taken over. Still, exceptional instructors ...... except for one....... Get this, in the middle of ballet barre, the instructor who choreographs the Nutcracker for the weekend rehearsals comes in ..... with her three year old. We all know that three year olds are full of energy and run everywhere and get into everything we don't want them to get into. This three year old was no different.... full of energy. So, the ballet instructor, is giving this incredible sophisticated and packed with knowledge class and ..... the visiting ballet instructor .... gives her kid a TAMBORINE!!!!!!!!! A three year old with a tamborine in the middle of the classroom, during ballet barre..... (feeling my rant yet?). She made the stupid little comments that most horrible parents make when they know their kid is disturbing other people "now play quietly little, Johnny." and she also pulled him into the hallway, every once in a while so he could continue his tamborine playing in the hallway .... as if the teacher and dancers couldn't hear him play by the door. hmmmmm. Then she just left him...... all alone. And of course, being the typical three year old, he wandered back in with all the dancers and sat in the middle of the classroom for .... about ten minutes as she sat in the lobby (where I was sitting watching this horror) talking with the members of the board and who appeared to be her father. I could hear that the boy was in the classroom and that he was, indeed, becoming very skilled on the tamborine. After a while she finally went in and took the tambroine away..... well he cried.... so she gave it back to him and GRABBED A TAMBORINE HERSELF .... SO THAT SHE COULD JOIN HIM IN PLAYING!!!!!!!!!! (FEELING MY RANT YET???????) At this point, I got up and walked out into the hallway and stayed there. You may be saying "Why didn't you say something?" Well, the answer is simple. I have spent my daughter's entire life clearly saying something and she asked me to let her handle everything herself now. So I let her handle it. How rude some people can be. If you have kids, please don't be this rude.

Cover Up Fat Dancers

2005-11-06T04:18:00.000-08:00

I think it's fine that fat girls want to dance recreationally. If you're going to dance and you have a choice of what to wear, please (and I'm pleading with you here), please don't wear two piece dance costumes and costumes with no back. I attended a competition yesterday and there was a good combination of dancers, thin, fat, short, tall. The thin girls had long sleeves and closed front and back dresses....the fat girls wore short, backless and two piece costumes. Now come on ladies! I don't want to see your four inches hanging over your pants and jiggling when you dance. Really....I don't. Save the skin dresses for those who can wear them.

First Private Voice Lesson Today

2005-11-03T15:15:00.000-08:00

Just got back from her first private voice lesson. Excellent teachers. Husband and wife team who actually perform in theater ... often. Learned a lot. Can't wait until next week!

Kareoke Backing Response Question

2005-11-02T05:19:00.000-08:00

We did look at the Kareoke Backing option. However, do you know if the backing instrumentals are instruments or techno music. If I were to purchase something like that, I'd want the instrumentals to be good enough to use on stage eventually, if needed. I know some performers who buy performance tracks of their song.

Thanks for your helpful comments!

2005-10-30T10:26:00.000-08:00

Yes, musical theater is much different than regular dance! We were actually given the impression for many years that musical theater was a "lesser" form of dance that only loser dancers did. WRONG! Musical theater is absolutely technique driven with the addition of actually using the face and body to "act"! Then add the voice on top of that. It is, in my opinion, the most complete form of dance. Although, all forms of dance have a place. We finally saw musical theater done the right way once we started going to NYC and were just floored at the training necessary to pull it all together! Both of our impressions about musical theater (from what some unnamed dance teacher implied!) changed immediately. It is now my daughter's favorite type of dance.

Choir is a great idea, but not an option for us. However, we do have a great selection of CD's and piano sheet music at a library near us. Still, there can never be enough music to choose from.

Thanks for your helpful comments! Good luck!

Holding Back Dancers - Learn to sing!

2005-10-24T08:13:00.000-07:00

Who would have imagined after all these years of tirelessly training in dance, that singing would hold back a dancer! Well more and more dancers are finding that to be the case. No singing ability, no job!

Does my daughter sing? Not a note! Now, however, we have hired a voice teacher, read the "Singing for Dummies" books, purchased mulitple "how to sing" dvd, vhs or whatever is available so she can catch up. Gee, this would be another instance where her "teacher", and I use the term lightly here, might have clued her in to needing to sing in the professional dance world. I am the type of parent that says "If you need it, we'll get it." However, if I am not a professional dancer and I was not involved in the performance profession, how am I supposed to know what training is needed or not needed. Oh yea, that's the part where I hire a "professional" to give my daughter and I "guidance". Nope, well it didn't happen here (except at the last school she attended the year before she turned 18 -- too late!).

However, singing is like ballet. You have to learn the foundation technique before moving onto the more advanced techniques. It is not simply something you "catch up on" as I said earlier. But once you're over 18 and you need a job, "catch up" is what you have do! So parents, if your kids are young. Get them voice lessons before it's too late! If you can't do voice, do band, play the piano ... anything to give them a foundation in music so that they can later take voice. Luckily, my daughter played the tenor saxophone in band and also had piano lessons and ear training. So she isn't entirely in the dark. The music background has helped a lot!

Expensive? Yes. We purchased sheet music, then purchased the cd to listen to the song, dvd if it came from a movie, background music to practice the song with the instramental. That would be "per song". Voice lessons are $25 for one half hour and $45 for an hour. New York City BDC lessons are $20 per hour, but it costs a lot for us to drive two hours, take the train and eat for the day. Then, as all dance parents know, you add that cost onto the cost of dance training and equipment and you have to mortgage your house!

It sure would have been nicer to know about this years earlier!

Lazy Dance Teachers

2005-10-20T15:18:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying that we have been very lucky in that the dance teachers that my daughter has taken with were very attentive and professional. However, there have been some, as the commenting blogger pointed out, that are lazy. Laziness seems to take shape in "Recreational" classes. In EVERY recreational class I've heard the teacher say "Well the students take this class because they want to get a little exercise and have fun doing an activity." I think that's fine, however, these teachers follow this statement up with less effort in the Rec classes. They don't correct technique and, from what I've witnessed, get downright sloven in class. Sloppy, sloppy work, appearance and attitudes.

I'm a bit angry about this subject! My daughter was in rec classes for years. When she was young I could not pay for competition classes or more than two classes a month. Most of the little kids took 4 or 5 classes. Ballet, tap, jazz, acro and lyrical. Naturally, those who took 5 classes gained lots of skill and became little "naturals". The teacher would say "See, there's a natural." Not understanding that little Suzie had already been in over 260 hours of class since the age of three! Of course Suzie's a natural! Those 4-5 hour a week kids were also streamlined into the competition classes which are always more intense with lots of focus on technique. I saw this opportunity slipping by because I could only afford two rec classes for her. It was frustrating!

Eventually, after about seven years of dance, I began to make more money and she began to take 5 plus hours of dance a week, sometimes reaching 10 plus hours. She also began to compete in all the major dance areas, but was far behind the others technically. To get back to my rant on Rec Classes .... if the lazy teachers took the attitude that they were being PAID to teach kids dance .... CORRECTLY!!!!! My daughter wouldn't have been sooooo far behind. She might have been a little behind because she wouldn't have been in as intense of a class, but at least she would have a basic GOOD foundation in technique.

Now, she has EXCELLENT technique..... all credit to her hard work and sucking the information out of the brains of dance teachers whether they liked it or not! Credit also to some very caring dance teachers who did corrective dance surgery on her technique! But wouldn't it have been nice if she was just taught correctly in the first place?

Follow-up on Stage Moms from a fellow blogger

2005-10-20T15:07:00.000-07:00

A fellow blogger wrote this in my comments section:
##########################
Drama Mom said...
I totally agree and would like to add that it has been my experience that most of the time dance instructors want to work with the most "naturally" talented students because it is much easier to teach someone that is natural. It is laziness. Like a teacher who only wants to work with the smartest children.... lazy....

Also, to me, a stage mom is someone that is doing it for themselves and not the child. Performing should be the desire of the child not the mom. If she is pushing her terrified child out on the stage or reprimanding her for not winning. That is my definition of a stage mom.
#########################
We both are obviously like minded on this subject. It is really silly to me when I hear teachers talk about "natural" talent or people saying that Olympians are born. Well my daughter also does figure skating and gymnastics. Those kids are at the skating rink or at the gym DAILY ...... FOR HOURS! That is NOT natural talent. That talent is earned and learned. Where she skates many National and World Gold Medal winners also skate. They practice hard every day. It's true that genetics may help bring an olympian along, but even a "born" olymic champion won't become that champion without hard work.

For the kids who people see as not having natural talent, they most often have not been introduced to the dance or sport until they were older and simply won't have as much practice as those who are percieved to have natural talent. I've seen plenty of nontalented kids study for a few years and blow right by natural talents! So there!

Full Day in NYC

2005-10-19T04:18:00.000-07:00

We did visit the LaDuca dance shoe store. Wow! We could have purchased every shoe in the place. Beautiful dance shoes. The softest leather! The MOST flexible shoe! Really top rate stuff. The store was located in the garment district and I couldn't have been happier walking by all those cloth stores! We had to buzz the door to get inside and the woman who helped us was incredibly professional. She laid velvet cloth on the floor so that the shoes wouldn't be damaged from the floor when my daughter tried them on. Clearly, the shoe is superior.

Off to NYC again this morning.

2005-10-18T04:38:00.000-07:00

Here we go again. Into the city! In the rain. This will be a new experience. We're going to check out LaDuca Shoes today. About $250.00 for their cheapest shoe. How exciting (sarcasm). It really is in a way, to learn new things about the dance world and how we'll never buy Capezio again. Goodbye cheap dance shoes! It really was interesting, however, to learn that LaDuca is one of the only shoes that allows dancers to point the toes completely. I also learned that the heel of the character shoe is much wider and helps to support the dancer for leaps and turns. It all makes so much sense I wonder what all these other dance shoe manufacturers were thinking. Anyway, gotta go.

Don't Bash Competition Dancers!

2005-10-16T06:46:00.000-07:00

My daughter has attended several dance conventions. At one convention, the owner of the event took a good 20 minutes to bash competition dance saying that it was just big business and that the wrong focus is put on dance. Also, emphasizing that dance is about performance and competition is not performance. Less experienced dance parents nodded their heads agreeingly and joined in to the grand competition bashing. I disagree. I think that dance competition is extremely helpful to dance and dancers! Here's why: 1. Competition gives students the opportunity to get up on stage MANY times a year. Most "performance based" noncompetition studios that we've attended don't give a lot of "performance" opportunities (no the mall doesn't count). 2. Preparing for competition gives students practice with organization skills - getting costumes, makeup, dance shoes, directions ready (but only if parents don't do the entire thing for them - which they shouldn't). 3. Competition is vital to networking. My daughter has competed nationally. She sees dancers from all over the country again and again at different conventions. She now sees many of those dancers at professional auditions. They talk about other dance opportunities within the professional world. Students from studios that only "perform" often don't leave their geographic area and won't have anywhere near the networking opportunites that competition kids do. 4. Students getting to know other competition students, get to see the personality of one another and can later, evaluate whether the personalities can work together in a professional environment. 5. In addition to networking, most professsional dancers go off to NYC or LA to dance. No one can afford apartments and most dancers have to room with someone. It is much easier to find a dance roomie if you already know someone. 6. I would like to also note that three of the four finalists on "So you think you can dance" were competition dancers. They all rose to the challenge because they had been practicing being challenged for years. They all did an excellent job!

New Mirrors ....FINALLY!

2005-10-12T07:38:00.000-07:00

The mirrors were finally installed! If you have a young child who might want to go into dance, buy mirrors NOW! What a difference it has made in my daughter's dancing! Much different from using mirrors in the studio. I think it must have to do with the private time of experimenting in front of the mirror without ten thousand students watching and/or interrupting. Great time for perfecting body placement. We bought two 5X6 foot mirrors. So the whole wall is covered. It's great! The good and bad news is that now I am faced with a full-body image of MYSELF!!! Hahaha.... Well it's inspiring me to exercise more...:)

Only in New York Part II

2005-10-07T03:21:00.000-07:00

The audition took about five hours, so I was on that concrete slab a very long time. I was sitting adjacent to a fire hydrant. I looked up and saw this blind guy walking his dog. He took off the harness so that the dog could do his business and the dog promtly got busy. Now, I'm from the country, so I'm no stranger to deficating dogs, but we don't clean up after the dogs way out here in the wilderness..... so I wondered to myself ..... does New York make blind guys pick up poop? What if he can't see the poop? .... must be an icky situation....

Anyway, the maintenance guys that took care of the block buildings were just coming out the door for their lunch breaks .... this was right before the dog got busy.... It became apparent to me that this was not the first time they saw this particular blind man and his dog. I watched them as they watched the blind guy and glared down his deficating dog. They walked three quarters of a block and kept turning around and laughing to eachother. Interesting, I thought ... and wondered what the whole story really was...... Then my previous question was finally answered. New York, does, indeed, make blind men pick up poop.

The guy pulled out his bag and began the process.... I found myself increasingly interested in the process of picking up poop without being able to see the poop. I laughed at myself as I wondered ... "I wonder if he heard where the poop dropped ..." Then, of course, immediately discounted the idea of blind mans poop sonar. It's strange how your mind works when you're bored. Well, he was very good at locating the poop, but did miss a plop .... He left and the next part of the story continued ...

In New York, there are street sweepers everywhere.... Just guys hired to sweep up cigarette butts and bits of trash. Well, one such street sweeper entered the poop zone..... I found myself wondering, as he daintily swept up cigarette butts around the poop, if he would, in fact, sweep the poop into his little sweeper container.... the final answer is no .... and that is the end of my odd day of waiting.

Only in New York! Part I

2005-10-07T03:11:00.000-07:00

New York City is the one place you can sit on the sidewalk for hours and be entirely entertained! I was waiting for my daughter to finish an audition the other day and grabbed a slab of concrete. The police drove by a few times, one on a motorcycle driving down the sidewalk, a couple of cruisers and a tow truck ..... About an hour later I saw the bike cop and the tow truck trying to draw this parked, little white car out from its parking spot where it was wedged tightly between a truck and another car to the front. Quite skillfully, the police officer grabbed the front tires of the car with a chain, drove a bit with the towtruck and the front of the little white car ripped away from its spot and was ready to the towed.

Just at that moment. A skinny man ran out from a building and started pleading with the police officers. (I noticed that the car had Michigan plates) The poor guy was crying and pleading with them not to tow his car. The car, from my view, was still "all four tires on the ground" and the officers could have just recognized that they guy was from out of town and just didn't get the parking sitch in New York..... but nope, after 15 minutes of pleading and tears, they lifted the car onto the tow and drove away .... leaving the guy standing in the street watching after his car. Only in New York!

Who Steals Ruby Slippers from Children?

2005-08-30T15:47:00.000-07:00

"GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. - A pair of ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz" and insured for $1 million is missing from a Grand Rapids museum.....The children's museum houses the Judy Garland museum, which displayed the same pair of slippers last year. Garland was born in Grand Rapids in 1922...."The slippers are a major attraction at our museum," Kelsch said in a news release Monday. "It is our hope that the slippers can be recovered immediately." -ET, Yahoo News

OK, so the slippers were insured for $1 million. But, taking away the main attraction of a children's museum? I don't know. Sounds fishy, but whoever stole them will surely burn in hell for disrupting entertainment education for kids! GIVE BACK THE SLIPPERS!

New York City - I met a guy named Joe!

2005-08-22T13:37:00.000-07:00

We go to NYC all the time now.... for dance, of course. I love everything about it! Since L dances for 8+ hours every day, every trip, I have a lot of waiting to do and I'm having a great time meeting all types of people. People who are on the go, getting things done and going places. Even the "little people" seem to be motivated!

I met a guy named Joe who sold tickets for the Improv Comedy Club while I was sitting in front of Virgin Records. That guy must have been rejected in a hundred different ways by a hundred different people. It was quite funny to watch, but impressive too. Each time that Joe was rejected, he'd just smile and move on to the next potential tourist. As we talked, I learned that he usually sells about 8 tickets a day and that he was on ... something like his 54th job in the city. He'd originally moved to NY to make films. During the hour or so that I was waiting, I saw Joe put on at least seven different accents ... how impressed I was with his acting abilities. I'll definately go back and buy some tickets from him ... simply because he really worked hard to earn a buck .... plus I really do like comedy.

I also met a guy named Mo et. Not sure if I spelled it right, but he was there trying to sell the Hip Hop CDs that he made on his computer. I think I shocked him. I was standing there talking with Joe, the comedy guy and mo et was looking at me saying "do you like hip hop?" ... well, at least I though he was talking to me ... hahaha. When I said "yea", his eyes widened and said "YOU!! like hip hop?" Understand that I'm 43 and a bit rotund and, well, I'm momish. hahahaha. Well, he did let me listen to a bit of cd that he tried to sell me for $10 out of his bag. I really liked it ... a lot! I will go back and buy one from him one of these days when I have an extra $10 ... if I can find him. If you hear of him, give his music a try!

Here is pic of L on one of our long walks back to 42nd Street! Love Time Square!

Get out of my way!!!!!!!

2005-08-18T12:34:00.000-07:00

Rude dance parents drive me nuts! Recently I was watching my daughter in a dance class. Just sitting there minding my own business, quietly sitting next to the other dance parents who were watching their kids too. Then these two mothers come into the room and stand RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!!!! Of course, they were blocking my entire view. I waited a minute to see if they were just temporarily looking into the class and then moving on. When it became clear that they had chosen their viewing spot, I nicely asked the mother blocking my view if she could move over a foot because she had blocked my view. She threw me the most annoyed look as if I had a lot of nerve to ask her to move. She did end up moving... Now, I'm confused.... she was ruder than rude, but she was annoyed with me? First, I want to know why people think they are the only ones that exist in society, that they are the more special than everyone else. Why did this woman feel that she was more entitled to see into the class than I was? Or was she that oblivious that she just didn't think that her wide posterior might have hindered someone's viewing pleasure! But this is not the first, nor the last viewing situation I've found myself in ....

I was sitting in another classroom with lots of space around the sides of the room and these two male dance students, approx 20 years old, walked into the room and stood right in front of me. They were literally five inches from my face.... butts five inches from my face!!!! The didn't even turn to notice that I was there. They just stood there, closely enough so that I couldn't see anything. They never moved and this time I was just too tired to say anything and the class was almost over, so it wasn't worth it. But, I ask again, why don't people pay attention? In this case, how does one hold one's butt five inches from someone elses face and not notice it? I could've bitten you! .... a thought I'll keep for next time! Argh!

Reality - So you think you can dance!

2005-08-13T15:40:00.000-07:00

Not going to NYC this Sunday, as planned. Instead, we're saving the money for mirrors in the dance studio. $400.00!!!! Hope we can get them by October. Our mailman must be on vacation because our issue of Backstage hasn't come yet. I'm kind of pissed off since it cost $150.00 for the subscription and we didn't get this weeks copy. But who do you get mad at? The girl who substitutes for our mailman doesn't really pay attention... on a regualr basis ... and if I complain, she'll just fall apart. Can't wait till he gets back ... best mailman we've ever had. Ha! I'm watching Trading Places with Eddy Murphy and Dan Akroid. I think it's true ... people really do adapt to their environments... or at least they try to. My daughter and I have had a lot of fun watching "I want to be a Hilton"... Brainless fun and escapism! I enjoy 'reality' tv. Yes, we are watching 'So you think you can dance' L, my daughter, studied with one of the choreographers in NYC, so we're watching to support him. The dance world is very small, so we know of a few of the contestants too. It's been fun to watch, although mostly not up to the caliber of dance we're used to.

Stage Mom My Ass!

2005-08-13T04:52:00.000-07:00

Stage Mom My Ass! One of the most frequently used terms in show business and young performers is 'Stage Mom.' I've known a lot of dance and performer moms throughout the years. I've never met a stage mom ... at least not one that fits the standard definition. Seems to me that the term is now used for ANY parent who speaks up about wanting to get his or her child more training or solo training or more into the spotlite. And what is wrong with putting your child into the spotlite? If no one knows you're there, no one will hire you. If no one knows you're there, no one will see you. If no one knows you're there, no one will call you to do anything!!! Talent or no talent!

I once knew this woman and her daughter. The daughter was good at some things and absolutely horrible at most everything else. Everyone labeled her as a girl with very little talent. There was NO chance she would be selected to solo. Her mother practically camped out in the dance studio office constantly asking about solo opportunities, private lessons, auditions, etc. She drove her daughter to NYC at least once a week for auditions (which she got sometimes) and demanded that she be given special attention by asking for private lessons so her daughter could improve on the areas where she was lacking. Well in this studio, private lessons were reserved for kids who demonstrated natural talent. When the mother got upset because the dance teachers would not give private lessons to the girl, they labeled her as a stage mother ... and the worst kind. The mother left the studio ... and rightly so ... as I heard the 'after hours' gossip and her daughter would never have had a chance there. The girl ended up at a studio with a lesser reputation where they were not too proud to give the girl a solo and she grew into a beautiful dancer who started winning lots of dance awards. I saw this girls mother as a good mother who stood up for her child and fought for the good of her child ... not a stage mother. If that's what a stage mom is, then anyone who is not a stage mom should be ashamed.

I find the term stage mom is most often used by studio owners and instructors who ... after closer investigation, aren't giving that child what they need and the parents say something about it. Sure, there are some kids who clearly lack talent ... but where do these instructors think that the talent comes from? ... That is, after all, what kids take lessons for. I'm so sick of hearing that a child is hopeless if they don't have "natural talent" ... like these people know talent when they see it. In fact, I've seen many kids who "lacked talent" leave one studio, only to flourish in another studio. It is true, that sometimes parents see more talent than really exists, but many times when a parent points out the potential for talent, they are labeled as a stage parent.

I should have spoken up more for my daughter. I should have tried to earn the stage mom label a little sooner. I should have been loud and requested more than she got. Fact is, that because I was quiet and followed the rules of the studio, my daughter suffered. Only after I realized that my complacency was hurting her, did I begin to speak up and get her what she needed. It took her a lot of work to catch up and thankfully, she did. So, if you ever run into anyone who is labeling another parent a stage mom, they probably have some kind of motive behind calling them that. It's probably because they don't want to do what the parent knows is best for their child. It's probably because the parent wants to be in control of their own kid ... which is kind of their job as a parent, isn't it!

My life as a dance mom! The Journey Begins!

2005-08-12T01:48:00.000-07:00

"When I grow up, I either want to be a baseball player or a ballerina!" How was I supposed to know, nineteen years ago, that she was serious?! By the way, the baseball thing . . . . didn't work out. That's her on the left in her first ballet studio.

My name is .... well, let's just call me Dannielle. That's the name I chose for myself when we were forced to choose a name for College French when I was twenty. It's pronounced with a bit of a flare 'Don Yellll e' with the tongue held against the back of teeth a moment longer than any normal person would feel comfortable holding it and then add a whispering little grunting noise when expressing the 'e' at the end. Don Yelll e. Makes me sound sexily foreign and intriguing . . . . o.k., maybe it makes me sound a little dramatic, but I like it that way!

Back to my story. It all began, like I said, about nineteen years ago. I was a young mother charged with the seemingly simple task of finding a place for my little princess to take some dance classes. Sounds easy, right? WRONG!!!! It was to be the beginning of my journey to the guilt ridden world of making wrong choices in dance. If I only knew then what I know now....

If you're an experienced dancer, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Silly things like turnout and the bones fusing together at the hip before a poor dance mom has a clue that turnout has to be developed before age twelve ... or else! Argh!!! That's where my guilt begins, I didn't even know what turnout was until she turned fourteen.... just when she decided to become a professional dancer. I'd unwittingly ruined my three year old daughter's wish to become a professional ballerina ... even before her first audition! O.K., I hear you all "Don't be so hard on yourself. How were you to know?" Well I agree. How was I to know... THAT, after all, is why I hired a professional dance teacher!!!!! #@!%$# $#^@^% #$#$@ #$@%$!!!

In case you're all wondering, she is a wonderful dancer and is on the professional dance track. We travel to New York City two to three times a week for auditions and training. However, I often wonder if it's too late for her to start in baseball .....