The Experience and All the Little Details - Part 2

... (continued)

First things first, I'm just a tad bit tired, to be honest.  I'm relying on my adrenaline to perk me up, which I know will.  Man, am I going to sleep hard tonight though.  It's a little shocking that I have to dance again, at 8:30 p.m.... it's just not sinking in yet.  But I'm almost finished with make-up, then will head over to compete and get über warmed up.  I forgot to mention the open-stage earlier, which is a short amount time we get on stage before we compete to test out the stage and practice parts of our dance.  There isn't much room with all the others, but this is very important, especially for my variation, to see how well I'm on my leg and how my pointe shoes do on the floor.  As my family and I make our way to the car, I'm start to think of what I need to practice most during that time... I need all the time I get.

...

They are running slightly early, so I didn't have time to get my costume on for open stage, but it's not too big of a deal.  Things happen...especially at competitions (*reminiscing over all my "oh-no!" moments in the past).  Right now, waiting in the dressing room before I need to go backstage is when I get really stretched out and focused.  Then when I go backstage, I do jumps and relevés en pointe to warm my muscles up, as well as stay completely calm.  I almost want to be sweaty when I go onstage.  I sort of wish I was more towards the beginning of my time slot... this waiting is beginning to take a toll on me.  Just have to stay focused!

...

Both done!  Woohoo, but also (sad) aww!  I can't believe all that hard work was just wrapped up like that of a snap.  I didn't feel as great about this performance, but know it could have been worse.  I think with a huge time gap in between my dance, and having to perform to late at night (not that that's an excuse for anything) changed my mojo.  Also, the fact that someone did the exact same variation as me and did it so well, just a few before me didn't help.  This competition is truly so inspiring, watching all the talent.  Even though there was some stumbles, and I know I could have been more prepared, it will still be a moment I will cherish.  Time to sleep... a very, very, very deep sleep.

After the Awards Ceremony!

Saturday, January 31 - Last day on the stage....

Today I watched all my other teammates compete, and they all did beautifully.  Not only did I love watching them, but I loved watching the other competitors.  I looked at it like - I could try to apply what they were great at to my own dancing.  Shocker that I made it an educational thing. But later I will be doing my ensemble piece, which won't be as nerve racking because I won't be the only one up there!  I really just want to enjoy being on stage once more... plus I have awards later, which will be fun too (a chance for me to get all fancied up)!

...

In the end, all that matters is the progress I have made throughout the year.  Unfortunately, I won't be competing in New York, but got invited to go and do their week long intensive through my contemporary piece, which I may or may not attend. But now I have another year to look back on, and continue to grow from! Not sure what to do with all the free time when I return home where I would normally have rehearsals.. but now time for bed, and then a full day of master classes tomorrow.

~Hayden

The Experience and All the Little Details

Another two-part post... there's just too much to talk about with these things!

This past weekend was the longest weekend of my life, but probably one of the most memorable. Twelve of us from our studio made our way down to Las Vegas to compete in YAGP (check out my last post for preparation details), for our second year. To be honest, I didn't do as well as I'd hoped, but I still had a blast and gained a lot from this experience in positive ways. I'm going to format it kind of like my Nutcracker post to explain how each day went... hopefully you will want to go to this competition after reading this, and I highly suggest you do sometime in the future! Alright, now down to business.

Thursday, January 29 - And we're offff *airplane lifts off*

I think I'm physically and mentally challenged when it comes to packing... my brain gets stuck and I find myself laying on my floor, picking at the carpet with a bobby pin.  That's why it's crucial for me to make a list, and so I did last night.  And now I am double checking over that list, and probably will a few more times in final hours before my flight. TIP: If you are flying somewhere for a performance of some type, do not risk checking anything you will be needing onstage (costumes, pointe shoes, tights, etc.)... that would not be good if your expensive costume ended up on the wrong side of the country.   I love style, and this is Vegas, so I spent a lot of time, a little too much time, debating which outfits to bring last night at midnight.  Now we are about to leave for the airport (so much better than driving) and will be there by 6:00 tonight!

We just arrived at our hotel, which is 5 minutes away from the theatre (bonus #1), our room is like a little apartment with a bed room, bathroom, and living room/kitchen (bonus #2), and the pool meets the (high) expectations of my eight-year-old sister (bonus #3)!  Time to go to one of the many cool restaurants in this town, tour it a bit, and then get rested for my big day coming up!

Photo Courtesy of blog.dancedirect.com

Friday, January 30 - The day we've been training for...

I thought I would be more nervous, but I was wrong.  I just finished getting ready for my contemporary, which I am competing first, then followed by many hours to return late tonight for my classical *sigh*.  That is the one thing about YAGP competitions - with my experience so far, the schedule has been slightly wacky.  Anyways, back to reality.  We are almost to the dressing room, where my teacher will warm me up and I will stretch until a few before me.  At that I point, I will go back stage with my music and headphones, and run my dance multiple times.  Every time I am about to go onstage, I always get butterflies and excited about the number before me... I can't believe that will be happening so soon, once again!

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One done, one to go!  I feel really good about how I did with my contemporary, which I think is the most important thing with this competition.  Of course, being my critical self, there were parts that I could have done better, but it's enough to just be able to perform on stage.  I'm feeling a little shaky from the adrenaline, which means I should probably eat soon.  We have a team dinner tonight, but until then, I'm going to go take a nap in my amazing hotel bed.  I've got to have enough energy, not only to get me through the rest of the day, but to perform again!  See you in a few.

To be continued....

Youth American Grand Prix - Final Countdown

As I've said before, I have been dancing for about ten years... studying multiple dance styles.  Those dance styles have consisted of tap, jazz, and ballet, which is usually required of you if you compete, or are in "academy" at my studio.  Now let me tell a little bit about competitions.  From the point of view of the ballerina critic I am, you see a diverse range of dancers.  My studio may not go to the super "high end" competitions, but they are one thing I don't like as much.  Sometimes, I dread them.  Being on stage, and hanging with friends is fun, but there is too much in-between time with all the other dancers there.  It's also entertaining to pick out all the "Dance Moms".   It's always nice to receive critiques from the judges, but when I performed my variation at one of the competitions, they said "Nice Choreography".... you might want to tell that to Petipa.  A classical ballet variation is just that "classic"  it is not new or unknown choreography.

Youth American Grand Prix is a whole other type of competition, though.  It is one, if not the, world's largest ballet competition, providing opportunities and scholarships for dancers in multiple countries.  The whole process is very professional:  judges who are part of the ballet world, committed dancers of all ages, and strict guidelines that allow no goofin'.

This is my studio's second year participating in this competition.  We took seven girls last year, but now are taking 12... so, only a small group of the top levels.  We start in the summer, and aim to work every week leading up to the competition. We do a contemporary piece, as well as learn a classical variation, both to compete at the three day competition.  There isn't one rehearsal where I come out energized, and ready to continue dancing.  I come out exhausted, using what little energy I have left to walk out to the car.  The program isn't cheap and you want to work hard to present yourself well, so I push myself harder than usual during rehearsals. The most valuable thing from this whole process is the improvement, not only as a dancer, but emotionally.  You improve, learn about yourself, problem solve, and are inspired by all the other dedicated dancers... and of course, it's super fun!  It's also really great team bonding, getting to travel and going to get fit for stunning costumes (thanks to Ballet West for letting us rent the prettiest costumes).

The group (minus one) that went for the first year.

Now it's January 15th, which means 14 days until I leave for Vegas to compete, which means extra hard work... which also means panic attacks.  I'm trying to fit in any last minute fixes, but also just focusing on ways to perform.  "Acting" is often forgotten as a big part of dance, especially ballet, and it's a lot harder than it looks.  You are portraying a role, just like Jennifer Lawrence did in The Hunger Games.  Being able to do that allows you to bring the audience in, being more effective. 

I'm looking forward to competing, once again, and just taking in all the hard work and excitement.  Bring on the blisters!

~Hayden