Company Woes

My dance studio can be kind of confusing if you don't know how it works, so I'm going to break it down for you and then talk about it. Ready for this? Okay. 

1st, we have the Conservatory. This is the actual leveled classes. There is levels 1-7, and I'm in 4. There is a Spring Recital every year, and that's about it. Jazz and Tap is offered for students 1-3, modern is offered for 4-7.

Then there is the Company. The Company is divided into the Jr. and Senior Company. The Jr. Company is levels 4-5, and some people in 6, and the Sr. Corps is levels 6-7. You must try out for the company. You can go to the conservatory and not be in the company (like me!) but you can't be in the Company and not the conservatory. The company has class every Saturday, and they rehearse on the weekends. Nutcracker is put on by the Company, as well as the Spring Gala Performance. They also perform in the Parade, the yearly Jazz Festival, Regional Dance of America, ect., and for a few students, YAGP.

To be in the company, there is a mandatory 3 week 8 hour a day intensive. Teachers from all over come to teach variations, character, seminars on makeup and nutrition, technique, and modern. This costs $1000. That is a lot of money. I auditioned for the Company, and was accepted, but couldn't pay this hefty fee. 

I recently have been applying to jobs in hopes of being able to afford the intensive, but I haven't had luck. I asked my teacher about auditions just incase, and she sent my dad an email saying I wouldn't have to audition and it would be good for me, and we'll talk more tomorrow. I think I'm going to explain that I'd love to, but I can't afford it, and maybe ask if there's a discounted option. Who knows, maybe I'll be given a discount, maybe not. 

You guys might notice that I do have ads on my blog. Those aren't spam or anything, every time someone clicks one I get a little bit of money. I set the account so it doesn't send me the cash until I get $100, and as of now I've only raised about $13. So if you see something that interests you, feel free to click ;). No, but I just wanted to clear that up so people don't think I use this just for money. I only get about a dollar a month, and once I do eventually get the money from it, I'll use it to pay for dance supplies and I'll tell you guys about it so you know I'm not just buying a new pair of jeans or whatever.

Recital Dance!

Hey Everyone! For our Spring Recital, the Conservatory theme is Sleeping Beauty. The Sr. Corps are doing actual variations, and everyone else (including my class) is just doing dance routines to the music. We started our dance last week, and are about 40 seconds into it. I and the other 16 year old girl in my class walk on stage and begin the dance, and soon the other girls join. I'm so nervous! I've never been on stage with less than 5 other people, let alone being the only person on my half of the stage. Yikes! Here's our music:

Quick summery (I'm paraphrasing here): Carabosse (Maleficent if you only know the Disney version) the fairy gets a little angry because everyone's having this big party to celebrate the christening of the Princess Aurora, and she didn't get invited. So she just shows up and is like, "C'mon guys, what the heck? Why wasn't I invited?" and the parents are all, "I dunno, blame that guy." So she casts this curse that on Aurora's 16th Birthday she will prick her finger on a spindle and die. Ouch, pretty harsh, right? The parents are all, "Nooooo, please!!" and Carabosse shows no mercy. But, all hope isn't lost! The most powerful fairy, The Lilac Fairy (her variation is pretty common), still hasn't given her gift to the Princess. She can't undo the curse, so instead she changes it so that instead of dying Aurora will just fall asleep for 100 years and then be kissed by a prince to wake up. Phew, really dodged a bullet there, right?

So then, fast forward to her 16th party. This is the clip above. Aurora's having a ball, literally and figuratively, and all of a sudden this creeper comes out of the shadows and gives her a spindle. She takes it, and even though her parents know what's coming, they're kind of just like, "Hang on...wait...oh whatever." She pricks her finger (the end of our dance) and wobbles around a little and falls into a deep sleep. The Lilac Fairy casts a spell that the rest of the kingdom would fall asleep with Aurora, so that when she wakes up everyone isn't dead.

100 years later this prince is going hunting with his friends. He leaves them, and the Lilac Fairy shows him an image of Aurora, and he's like, "Woah, I want to meet her!". (Seriously, what would they do without the Lilac Fairy?) Anyway, the prince is smitten with this sleeping 116 year old princess, kisses her, everyone wakes up. Boom, easy as pie, right? They get married and all is well.

Moral of the story: Always invite the envious fairy to the party or she'll cast a spell to kill your daughter.

100th Post!

Hey everyone! Sorry for the break, I wanted my 100th post to be a little special and decided to try my first video! Here it is, a look at my dance bag! Sorry it's so quiet, and my head got cut off at some parts, but hopefully you enjoy it!

Here's a list of things in the video

Bag: Sorry I couldn't find the actual link! I think it's discontinued or something, the brand is Recollections.
Leotard: Capezio Bratek in Burgandy
Pointe shoes: Capezio Arias
Toe Caps: Bunheads ClearStretch Tips
Toe Spacers: Bunheads Spacemakers
Toe Pads: Gellows by Pillows for Pointe
Old Pointes: Bloch Serenades (I almost forgot!)
Shoes: Capezio Dasiy

Tell me if you'd like to see more (hopefully better!) videos, or if I should stick with blog posts for now!

My Dance Schedule

So, I've realized that looking through my blog it might be super confusing to how much and what dance classes I'm taking. So here's my schedule:

Monday- Ballet for 90 minutes
Tuesday- Ballet/pointe for 2 hours
Wednesday-Sleep!
Thursday- 20-30 minutes of Yoga or pilates, and stretching
Friday- Attempt to have a social life
Saturday and Sunday- 1 hour stretching and yoga, some pointe exercises

So, as you can see, I'm currently only taking 2 dance classes a week. TWO. It's driving me crazy. I technically can be taking 4 ballet classes and 1 modern class and my level, but the thing about dance is it can be so expensive!

Hopefully, my summer is a little different. This summer I'm doing a week long 2.5 hour daily summer intensive at my studio for beginner pointe, and also taking some open classes. At my old studio, I also want to try some lyrical classes, assuming I can find a stinking job. Anyway, there you have it!

Flexibility Problems?

Hey guys! How are you all doing? (That is not a rhetorical question, feel free to answer!) I don't have school today (yay for in-service days, right?) so I decided to work on my flexibility. Here are some of my tips.

1. Get warmed up! I put on some nice warm pants; fuzzy pj's, sweat pants, leg warmers, ect, and do some warm ups. Sometimes it's a few rounds of Just Dance with my sister (I win every time, #danceradvantages), jumping jacks, yoga or pilates, or some barre routines. 

2. Start off easy. Don't rush into your splits right away! That can cause pulled muscles, tiny tears which cause soreness, and it won't even improve your flexibility. Your goal is to stretch the muscles, not break them!

3. Find a routine that works for you! Stretching is the most beneficial when you do it often right? So put together a fun routine, add some music, and do it as often as you can! Right now I'm in a yoga kick, so I've been trying out some different yoga routines. Sometimes, I just do my favorite stretches from dance class to some pop music. So make a music playlist, and a list of your stretches! It doesn't need to be long, 5 stretches for each side (10 total), holding for 30 seconds each is just 5 minutes. In addition to a warm up, you've only spent 10 or 15 minutes, out of 24 hours!

Here are some different videos and stretching guides:

Videos:
Yoga for Flexibility
Yoga for Core Strength
Pilates for Core and Flexibility

Web Pages:
Dance.net Guide to 120 Stretches
Gymnastics Stretches for Splits
Gymnastics Stretches for Center Splits
Improving Extensions

If you have trouble getting settled into a routine, try this method with me, it's called Don't Break the Chain. Basically, draw up a calander, or print one out, set a minimum goal (ex, 20 minutes of stretching, 5 days a week), and every day you do it, give yourself an X. Since my goal is just once a week, I made 4 colomuns of 5 boxes, with the labels, Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4. See how long you can go before starting over, and remember, don't break the chain!