Tuesday, July 14, 2015

Post Dance Competition Reflections

It's been about a week and a half since my first dance competition at Indy Dance Explosion.  I have had time to recover, reflect, and ponder over my mistakes and successes at my first major dance event.

Initial takeaways from the event were overwhelmingly positive.  No, it was not as scary as I thought it was going to be.  Even though I forgot my Night Club routine during warm-ups and sped through it during the comp to the point where Brian had to tell me to "Slow down!" through clenched teeth, I did not forget it.  And miraculously, I did not forget any of my other routines either.  Could I have done the Waltz a little better and made my Two Step tighter? Sure.  But overall, I had no major glitches.

I had fun getting dressed up and putting on makeup (besides eyeliner) for the first time in 8 years. Yes, 8 years.  And that in itself was a good experience because it gave me confidence and reminded me what fun it was to dress up a bit.

Even though there is MUCH room for me to improve in all the dances I took away a few Golds for several of my dances which Brian tells me is good.  I also got a bunch of great technique tips from Brian that I can work on at my own leisure.  I love those solo turn drills and footwork techniques that I can do by myself.  That way I can dance on my own for an hour every day and really prepare for my dance lessons.  Luckily I have recently found a secret, mirror-lined room at my gym where I can practice!

So my overall feelings and reflections are positive.  I think the only hard part of attending a dance event is watching everyone else perform-not just in the compeitions but also socially.  Some of the dancers have been dancing for so long and they make it look incredibly easy.  But I always force myself not to get discouraged because you can't compare your dance career to someone else's beginning, middle, or end.  My main goal right now is to look more "natural" which just means more time drilling the basic footwork so I can force my body into the muscle memory it needs to MAKE it look natural.  And apart from that I don't take it to seriously.  Dance is my hobby, not my job and I want to keep it that way!

Getting into position for the Waltz routine.

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