Dance Practice and Prep for Anniversary Dance Party
Performers Prepare for Bella Ballroom’s Anniversary Party!
This Friday September 11th from 7:00pm to 10:00pm, Bella Ballroom dance studio will host its second annual anniversary celebrating two years at our new beautiful location. The night will feature live music, open floor dancing, hors d’oeuvres, cocktails, and student and professional dance performances. The night will feature salsa, waltz, cha cha, swing, line dancing, and so much more! It will be an evening to be enjoyed by all that attend! Part of what will make the night so special will be the premiere of several live performances showcasing the talents of both our dance instructors and our dance students. While our professional dancers have had experience performing, our student performers will be experiencing a very exciting experience, many of which who will be dancing for an audience for their very first time! In anticipation of our new entertainers getting ready for their dance pieces, I’ve provided a few tips to help them prepare for their dancing debuts!
Practice
They say practice makes perfect. While perfection is a great goal, it may not be the actual result for a first go round at performing. What is achievable is to practice the way you want to perform. On top of remembering the choreography, try to rehearse the small details like looking up and smiling. Practice in front of other instructors and people so you can get used to others watching you dance. Practice without the use of mirrors and get used to connecting to your dance partner. When you are unable to physically rehearse your dance, go through it mentally in your head. While physical dance practice is necessary, going through and imagining all the parts of your dance can be very helpful.
Know Your Music
Knowing your music inside and out will keep you on track. Being on stage, it’s easy to let the audience or nervousness distract you. Becoming familiar with the music you are dancing to will help you know exactly where you should be in the dance in the case you start to feel lost. Furthermore, I feel that the ultimate goal of a performer is to actually dance. Often times performers get so caught up with doing the choreography correctly that they forget the original intention of the piece. Remember to be moved by the music as much if not more as you are moving to it.
Fake It Till You Make It and Exude Confidence
While you may not feel very confident jumping into your first performance, pretend! Trust in yourself and your dance partner and all the hours you’ve spent into preparing. Master your self-talk, or the dialogue you have with yourself. If you tell yourself you can do it, well, you can! Remember that your subconscious is always listening and what you tell yourself time after time will come true. If you want to feel more confident, act more confident. Some dancers will even create a stage name or alternate ego to help them exude confidence. Even pop sensation Beyonce Knowles gave herself the alternate stage name “Sasha Fierce” when she started experimenting as a performer and releasing her solo albums. Eventually she dropped Sasha Fierce and titled her last solo album after her birth name “Beyonce” when she felt she didn’t need the cover of the stage name anymore. Fake your confidence and eventually you will make your confidence
Have Fun and Soak It Up!
When your time comes to shine, remember to enjoy it! Your performance will be over before you know it, so remember to have fun and soak up the experience. If you make a mistake, don’t panic. When I perform, I like to accept the fact I may mess up and give myself permission to move on when it happens. Keep in mind that the audience doesn’t know what your routine is supposed to be and most of the time they won’t know that you made a mistake unless you let them know by showing it with your facial expressions. Keep in mind that by performing dance you get to do something that most people may never experience. Often time performers will feel more “alive” on stage. Relish in the experience, enjoy the spotlight and soak in the applause after your show. After all your hard work, you deserve it!
Article by Ziva
