So Very Flexible (Part 2)

Hello fellow strangers and friends I have pestered to read my blog,
So Nutcracker ended and is officially over and done with, sadly. I realise I probably should have posted about this earlier, but I was in Sweden and my computer was in the United States, therefore, now is the time that I shall speak about the Nutcracker. It was amazing, it was beautiful and I loved every single part of it. Why? Well first of all, I got to perform for small children, and I enjoy small children a lot. There's a reason I'm a babysitter. Second of all, I got to be with people I love, doing things I love.

School Shows

Me and Savannah, picture credits to my mom.

So the first big thing that happened after auditions was school shows. The teachers choose a few groups to go to schools and perform for children and it was great. Though I was often stressed, I got to high five a lot of people and got to know some of the jesters and other young kids. They are so cute and they reminded me of my days, back when I was prancing around in school, thinking what I was doing then was hard.

We went to four different elementary schools, including the one that I went to, so because we had a little extra time, me and my friend went to see if we could find our old teachers and say hi to them and I did, but only to my kindergarten teacher because I couldn't find any of my other teachers. It was exhilarating, sweaty and amazing.

Dress Rehearsal

About two weeks later, we enter the Eccles Center, wearing enough makeup to survive a month. Our hopes are high and our brains awakening, we get dressed and warm up, it was fun because we were with friends. Then, we get dressed and I figure out a friend who can help me change out of Waltz and into Arabians for the finale, with a 1 and 1/2 minute dance in between the two, and we space our dances for so long that everyone managed to get hangry. My favorite quote was one by Taylor.

"Don't talk to me until the food has touched my blood." And then, after taking artsy pictures with Savannah, we come back and do Secret Santa where I got enough food to feed Luxembourg for a day. 

The Two Shows

Finally, after four months of practice, rehearsing, bonding and bickering, we were performing. (For those of you who don't dance, I'm sorry. Basically, the performance is a jittery day of fun and excitement, plus a lot of stress that causes people to snap.) It went by in a wonderful blur of blue, brown and tan, aka the colors of our costumes. Every performance, I learn something about myself. This one was that I am actually pretty good with children and staying calm. 

Over and Done

It's over now and everything has changed since then, even though it's pretty much exactly the same other than the fact that at any point in time, no matter how warm I am, I can do my splits. I also have a deeper appreciation of dance and I know that I won't stop.

So Very Flexible (Part 1)

Hello fellow strangers and people I've pestered to read my blog,

Thank you for voting on my poll. As most of you are dancers, there was a tie between Nutcracker and sleep or lack thereof. Those of you who aren't dancers, sorry, you'll have to wait approximately three business days for your package to arrive.

As many of you probably know, each year, Park City Dance does a performance of Nutcracker. We do variations of some of the dances and let the magic come to small children and grown adults on stage. If you want to witness this, free your schedule for December 19. It is located at the Eccles Center and I don't know how to get tickets other than at Park City Dance. Anyway, back to the actual subject. As Nutcracker hasn't occurred yet, I can't say how it went, so I am instead going to talk about auditions.

Okay, so auditions are extremely challenging, just so you know and most likely, you won't get a part, or a callback. I had never gotten either of those until this year. You get one part by default, but you can audition for more parts. I did that every year including this year and guess what? I got a part! Here's how it happened, and here are some tips in the mean time

The old arabian costume (Pictures from Park City Dance)

• Dress and act as you would for the part. I was auditioning for Arabians and they have a really intense gaze, so to intensify it, I chose a judge to look at every time we were to look at the audience. I also did a thicker eyeliner than I normally do. This was the first year I dressed the part.
• Practice as much as you can on the sideline, even after your group performed. People might notice this and appreciate the fact that you continue trying to improve, even after you finish. I kind of did this, I marked it, but couldn't do it full out because of all the people there.
Be confident. Even if you are the most self conscious little child, you must give off the air of confidence and people will believe you know what you are doing, even if you don't. 
• Read the requirements like they're your bible. This is extremely important if you want a specific part. 
• Audition for more than one thing, there are plenty of amazing roles to go around, and you're allowed to audition for as much as you want, and the more you audition for, the more experience you get and the more likely you are to get a role. 
• Have fun. Trust me, we're all nervous, but it's dance and if you're auditioning, dance should be fun for you, so enjoy the extra time you get dancing. 
• Lastly, if you don't get a role, don't fret it. Maybe this wasn't your year, or four years in a row, or maybe you just weren't ideal for that role, either by being too tall or too short. No matter what, it's not because you're a bad dancer. 

~Alicia

PS: Congrats to Taylor and Mikelle for elephants! You guys so deserve it and are amazing and beautiful. 

Pictures from Park City Dance

Also to Ali for Mother Buffoon! You are going to be such an amazing mother buffoon!!!