WWTBAM Bored

Princess Peanut was pretty nervous yesterday morning. It helped that her dance "big sister" gave her a stuffed animal bunny before the competition, as well as some stickers. Still . . . .

Me: "Honey, don't be nervous."

PP: "Daddy, this is to see who is the best dancer."

I think that she was worried about messing up and making her friends sad.

I have to admit that I was a tad bit nervous, as well. Mainly, it was because she has worked so hard, and I wanted this to be a fun yet rewarding experience.

My heart sank during the third dance of the morning. Some poor 9 year-old girl was dancing a solo to "Getcha Head in the Game" (from High School Musical), and she forgot where she was in the dance. There was this awkward pause for a few seconds until she started dancing again.

As for PP:

Spoiler

The Bored vibes may have helped. Along with her six 8-year old teammates, she nailed their Broadway routine to "Don't Go Hollywood". The result was a 1st place gold medal for Junior Character Small Group. It was not totally unexpected. However, it was a surprise when they also won the overall junior division, beating out jazz duets/trios, lyric dances, pom routines, and the like.

Her only other dance was the Company's production number. She seemed to do fine. I did not see much of the dance, as I work tech crew for it. There are three boys who are stilt walkers, and I have to help get them on and off the stilts. Plus, get props like snake cages out of the way when they come off of the stage. However, I have heard that it seemed to be very well-received by the crowd and 2 of 3 judges. It will be interesting to see the video and judges' comments. It also received a gold medal (one stinkin' point from earning a very rare platinum award. )

Based on these gold medals, the dances qualified for a summer national competition aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise either out of Los Angeles or Miami. However, our studio will not participate, as we are planning for national competitions to be held in Branson, MO.

PP also got asked to audition in the Fall for the Lincoln Ballet Company's production of "The Nutcracker", as they are looking for a young girl for a tumbling/ballet role.

One overall thing that I noted from the competition is that several of the routines featured way too little costume and somewhat "suggestive" dancing by young dancers (and I am not talking about teen girls, which were bad, but girls of 8, 9, and 10 years-old.)

Appa23 wrote:One overall thing that I noted from the competition is that several of the routines featured way too little costume and somewhat "suggestive" dancing by young dancers (and I am not talking about teen girls, which were bad, but girls of 8, 9, and 10 years-old.)

This has become all too common. BD's studio was fairly stodgy, with reasonable (to old Dad) costumes. I recall one competition where the group involved performed the intro to "Chicago". With the revealing costumes that you see (and see through) in the musical. GW and I were a bit scandalized. We're just old fogies, I guess.

Congratulations to PP and her group!

A couple of questions (which are not those that I sometimes ask to slam you, but ones I am asking to pick your brain and maybe see something I haven't seen yet):

- Does saying "Don't be nervous" to someone who has told you they are nervous have a positive impact on their nervousness? What is your experience? Does (did) she become not nervous?

- How do you rationailze paying a dance studio to teach your children dance and teach them that such costumes and suggestive moves are okay?

- What is your opinion about the whole competition thing when it comes to dance at her age?

Woo hoo, Princess Peanut!

Appa23 wrote: Based on these gold medals, the dances qualified for a summer national competition aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise either out of Los Angeles or Miami. However, our studio will not participate, as we are planning for national competitions to be held in Branson, MO.

Does Royal Caribbean cover the cost of the cruise for the families that go?

Appa23 wrote:PP also got asked to audition in the Fall for the Lincoln Ballet Company's production of "The Nutcracker", as they are looking for a young girl for a tumbling/ballet role.

I'm sure PP will be fantastic in the role.

Congrats to Princess Peanut. I'm delighted that your daughter and the other kids from her school did so well.

Are you going to let her audition for The Nutcracker? I can well imagine that the ballet company would find her irresistable, but the long drive to rehearsals might get old for you and your wife before it was all over.

Is there any chance you could post a photo of your daughter in her dance costume? For one, and I bet I'm not the only one, I would love to see it. (If you didn't want to put it on the board, you could put it in your "gallery" for a limited time.)

peacock2121 wrote:Congratulations to PP and her group!

A couple of questions (which are not those that I sometimes ask to slam you, but ones I am asking to pick your brain and maybe see something I haven't seen yet):

- Does saying "Don't be nervous" to someone who has told you they are nervous have a positive impact on their nervousness? What is your experience? Does (did) she become not nervous?

- How do you rationailze paying a dance studio to teach your children dance and teach them that such costumes and suggestive moves are okay?

- What is your opinion about the whole competition thing when it comes to dance at her age?

I think I'll get another cup of coffee get comfy. My chores can wait.

Big-time congrats to PP!!

Appa23 wrote:
One overall thing that I noted from the competition is that several of the routines featured way too little costume and somewhat "suggestive" dancing by young dancers (and I am not talking about teen girls, which were bad, but girls of 8, 9, and 10 years-old.)

I have a disturbing mental image here involving the closing scenes of "Little Miss Sunshine". Please tell me it ain't so.

AlphaDummy wrote:Big-time congrats to PP!!

Appa23 wrote:
One overall thing that I noted from the competition is that several of the routines featured way too little costume and somewhat "suggestive" dancing by young dancers (and I am not talking about teen girls, which were bad, but girls of 8, 9, and 10 years-old.)

I have a disturbing mental image here involving the closing scenes of "Little Miss Sunshine". Please tell me it ain't so.

\

Never saw the movie, so can't help you there.

silvercamaro wrote:Congrats to Princess Peanut. I'm delighted that your daughter and the other kids from her school did so well.

Are you going to let her audition for The Nutcracker? I can well imagine that the ballet company would find her irresistable, but the long drive to rehearsals might get old for you and your wife before it was all over.

Is there any chance you could post a photo of your daughter in her dance costume? For one, and I bet I'm not the only one, I would love to see it. (If you didn't want to put it on the board, you could put it in your "gallery" for a limited time.)

When the time comes, we will investigate the time commitment. Since we live on the edge of Omaha, the drive to Lincoln takes less than 40 minutes.

I will investigate if my wife took photos of her backstage. It was verboten to take photos or videos during the competition. The competition organization make their money off of selling overpriced photos and videos mainly, plus program sales, t-shirt and apparel sales, and maybe some off of entry fees.

peacock2121 wrote:Congratulations to PP and her group!

A couple of questions (which are not those that I sometimes ask to slam you, but ones I am asking to pick your brain and maybe see something I haven't seen yet):

- Does saying "Don't be nervous" to someone who has told you they are nervous have a positive impact on their nervousness? What is your experience? Does (did) she become not nervous?

- How do you rationailze paying a dance studio to teach your children dance and teach them that such costumes and suggestive moves are okay?

- What is your opinion about the whole competition thing when it comes to dance at her age?

1) I was not giving an exact retelling of an actual exchange. I was posting more about the general thoguths of my wife and I this morning (Don't worry; you'll be great; you did fine in rehearsals) and of PP (nervous because she likes trophies and medals, and she looks up to the other girls). If you have ever coached or been a paent, you know that there is an incredibly powerful impact of telling kids "No matter what, I always will love you." Plus, PP is much like me, in that she channels nervousness into her performance/play (takes "negative energy" and turns it into "positive energy").

2) If you closely read my post, or can remember my posts from when PP started this journey, you will note that I never said that our dance studio did any of that stuff. The main reason that we let PP join the dance company was because of the postive, family-oriented outlook of the studio owners and teachers. There is very little yelling and no berating. They focus on teaching dace basics and solid moves, and less of the "pelvic thrusts" and the like. I would not pay for it, and I would not let my daugher dance that way. As she gets older, the standards do have to change a bit. (There are moves that are fine for a 15 year-old to do that a 10 year-old should not, just as there are outfits. The more of a foundation that has been laid of "right/wrong", the less of an impact it will have.)

3) Obviously, I do not have an issue with her doing dance competitions at her age. There is very minimal pressure, and it is giving valuable confidence to her. I love the fact that PP is so outgoing, self-assertive, and independent. (Even more than her brother) If you can stand in the spotlight, before a thousand people, and not freeze, especially at the age of 5, then there is very little that you can not do.

We regularly check with PP to see if she still is having fun and wants to continue. The first time that she says, "I just want to do a dance class", then we will stop. However, we also are big believers that God gives gifts to people, and he expects them to utilize those gifts. PP apparently has some ability in the area of gymnastics and dance, so she needs to explore it.