Latest / Making The Impact - A Dance Competition Podcast / Q&A with Courtney LIVE - October Edition

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Q&A with Courtney LIVE - October Edition · Making The Impact - A Dance Competition Podcast

0:07
SPEAKER_00: Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the table at a dance competition?
0:10
SPEAKER_00: Exactly what are the judges looking for anyway?
0:13
SPEAKER_00: This is Making the Impact, a dance competition podcast.
0:15
SPEAKER_00: Each week we'll cover a different topic related to the world of competitive dance from the perspective of the judges behind the table.
0:25
SPEAKER_02: Hi everybody! Oh my gosh, welcome to our live stream event.
0:32
SPEAKER_02: I'm super excited to be here, and I'm excited to be streaming live directly into our Facebook group this time around.
0:39
SPEAKER_02: So yay for that.
0:41
SPEAKER_02: Thank you to everyone who's already here and joining us for this afternoon session.
0:46
SPEAKER_02: I'm so excited.
0:47
SPEAKER_02: And this is our very first QA with Courtney live episode of season three.
0:54
SPEAKER_02: So if you have been tuning into season three, thank you so much, everybody, for listening.
0:59
SPEAKER_02: We are so grateful for your support.
1:02
SPEAKER_02: And I love these QA episodes.
1:05
SPEAKER_02: I think it's super fun to be able to interact with our community and to answer your questions live on the air.
1:12
SPEAKER_02: So welcome to Making the Impact of Dance Competition podcast.
1:16
SPEAKER_02: I'm Courtney Ortiz, I'm your host, and I want to give a shout out to my co-host Leslie, who is not here today.
1:22
SPEAKER_02: Usually I fly solo on these QA episodes, but Leslie just got surgery yesterday.
1:28
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if she's tuning in today while she's recovering right now, but shout out and quick recovery to Leslie Mailer out there.
1:35
SPEAKER_02: Love your girl.
1:36
SPEAKER_02: And usually she helps out on the back end with QA, but I'm flying solo today.
1:40
SPEAKER_02: And I do have a special guest joining me soon.
1:42
SPEAKER_02: But I will I'll keep you posted on when I will be introducing my special guest very shortly.
1:48
SPEAKER_02: Don't forget to subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcast, wherever you listen to podcasts, make sure you're subscribing.
1:58
SPEAKER_02: Every Thursday we release new episodes, and season three has been a hit so far, y'all.
2:04
SPEAKER_02: Which by the way, I want to just brag for a split second and let everybody know that we are very, very, very close to hitting a hundred thousand listens on the podcast.
2:15
SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh, that is wild.
2:18
SPEAKER_02: I can't believe it.
2:19
SPEAKER_02: Thank you to everyone who has been listening through all of our seasons since two years ago.
2:25
SPEAKER_02: We started this journey, this podcast journey, and we're so close to hitting 100,000 downloads.
2:30
SPEAKER_02: So feel free to continue to spread the word.
2:32
SPEAKER_02: Feel free to share it with all of your dance friends.
2:34
SPEAKER_02: And we're grateful for everyone who has and invite people to join this Facebook community.
2:39
SPEAKER_02: We love, we have over a thousand people in the group now, and we love chatting with you all there.
2:44
SPEAKER_02: So keep spreading the word, invite your friends, tell everybody about our podcast.
2:48
SPEAKER_02: If you've heard on the podcast this season that we are, we started a Kofi account, which is a way for you to show your support on Making the Impact a Dance Competition podcast.
2:59
SPEAKER_02: So if you love what we're doing here at the podcast, you love the quality content that we're bringing your way each week.
3:07
SPEAKER_02: If you love this free resource to listen to, then show your support and show your love to us by donating to us on Kofi.
3:16
SPEAKER_02: You can buy us a coffee, which means you can donate as little as$3, or you can donate any amount you would like.
3:23
SPEAKER_02: And all of the funds that are donated to our Kofi account go directly into producing this podcast.
3:30
SPEAKER_02: So please feel free to show your support.
3:33
SPEAKER_02: If you donate to us on Kofi, we will send you Making the Impact stickers straight to you.
3:38
SPEAKER_02: And if you donate to us on Kofi during this live stream, you will be able to see your donation pop up on the screen once my guest arrives.
3:46
SPEAKER_02: So get those donations ready.
3:48
SPEAKER_02: We are so grateful for everyone's support.
3:50
SPEAKER_02: All right, before we get to meet our special guests, I have to tell you a little bit about our sponsors because we couldn't make the podcast possible without them.
3:59
SPEAKER_02: We're so, so grateful for their support.
4:02
SPEAKER_02: And our very first sponsor of this episode is Level Up Dance Supplies.
4:07
SPEAKER_02: Level Up Dance Supplies was founded in 2010 by a dance mom with the goal of being your one-stop shop for all dance gear and accessory needs.
4:15
SPEAKER_02: They really do have everything from backpacks, flooring, privacy tents, stretching and travel gear, plus all types of bags and rolling racks.
4:23
SPEAKER_02: They carry the top name brands, including Glamour Gear, Rack and Roll, and so many more.
4:28
SPEAKER_02: And because quality and affordability matter, you can rest assured that you are getting what you need at the price you can afford.
4:35
SPEAKER_02: Be sure to follow them on Facebook for new product updates and sales.
4:39
SPEAKER_02: Plus, we have an exclusive promo code for podcast listeners that you can see on your screen now.
4:44
SPEAKER_02: Use the code Impact21 in all caps at checkout to receive$10 off your next purchase at levelupdanceaplies.com.
4:54
SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much to Level Up for sponsoring us since season one of the podcast.
4:58
SPEAKER_02: And our next sponsor of this episode is Dance Costumes by Urzua.
5:03
SPEAKER_02: Dance Costumes by Urzua and Urzua Dancewear provide custom costumes and dancewear for everybody.
5:09
SPEAKER_02: If you are on the hunt for a costume this season, Dance Costumes by Urzua will create the custom costume of your dreams.
5:16
SPEAKER_02: Each custom piece by Dance Costumes by Urzua features five variations in size: slim, narrow, medium, curvy, and wide for a completely customized fit.
5:25
SPEAKER_02: Stand out on stage and in class with a totally unique piece made just for you.
5:30
SPEAKER_02: Use our exclusive promo code Impact15 to receive 15% off all dancewear and custom costumes.
5:37
SPEAKER_02: And if you spend$150, you will receive free Making the Impact dancewear.
5:43
SPEAKER_02: You can learn more and view all of their designs on dancecostumes by Erzua.com.
5:48
SPEAKER_02: Thank you to both of our sponsors for this episode.
5:51
SPEAKER_02: Alright, y'all.
5:52
SPEAKER_02: It is finally time to meet our special guest.
5:56
SPEAKER_02: I'm so excited to welcome one of my closest friends.
6:00
SPEAKER_02: I've known him for forever.
6:02
SPEAKER_02: And we danced together back in the day, y'all.
6:05
SPEAKER_02: It's been a minute.
6:06
SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh, it's been a minute since we met.
6:08
SPEAKER_02: We've partnered all over all on the stage, and he's thrown me around.
6:14
SPEAKER_02: He's best partner.
6:15
SPEAKER_02: And we've stayed such close friends since we met so long ago.
6:19
SPEAKER_02: I'm so, so grateful to have Mr.
6:22
SPEAKER_02: Joey Ordellani to the podcast.
6:26
SPEAKER_02: Hey Joey.
6:27
SPEAKER_01: Hi, it's been 11 years in case you were wondering.
6:30
SPEAKER_01: Next week it'll be 11 years since we met.
6:33
SPEAKER_02: Since last next week?
6:35
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, because we were going to Myrtle Beach to rehearse for the Spirit of Christmas.
6:39
SPEAKER_01: And if we would always rehearse like around Halloween time.
6:43
SPEAKER_01: And yeah, it'll be 11 years.
6:45
SPEAKER_01: If not next week, like in a couple of weeks.
6:47
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
6:48
SPEAKER_01: 2010.
6:49
SPEAKER_02: One of my oldest friends in New York City.
6:51
SPEAKER_01: You're one of my oldest friends, and you're one of my oldest friends in my life.
6:54
SPEAKER_01: I don't keep people around that.
6:55
SPEAKER_01: I don't really care for it.
6:56
SPEAKER_01: You're one of them.
6:58
SPEAKER_02: Oh my God.
6:59
SPEAKER_02: That's too good.
7:00
SPEAKER_02: That is so funny.
7:00
SPEAKER_02: Well, everybody who's tuning in and all of our podcast listeners may remember Joey from some fantastic episodes.
7:08
SPEAKER_02: He was on our choreography episode in season one, and he was in our perfecting your presentation episode in season two.
7:17
SPEAKER_02: So I'm excited to have you here this time, Joey, to live with me, live on the air.
7:22
SPEAKER_01: And the original COVID-19 episode after right after lockdown started.
7:27
SPEAKER_01: We did it like I think like a week or two after lockdown started.
7:31
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we jumped on that real quick.
7:32
SPEAKER_02: We were like, we need to talk about COVID and dance world.
7:36
SPEAKER_01: I need to keep my crown as the my title as the frequent podcast guest.
7:41
SPEAKER_02: You are actually because of that one, and I forgot about that one.
7:44
SPEAKER_02: You're the guest that has been on the pod the most.
7:48
SPEAKER_02: So thank you for joining us every season.
7:52
SPEAKER_02: And now you're live and everybody can see your beautiful face.
7:55
SPEAKER_02: Yay! So, Joey, if you don't mind telling some of our new listeners who maybe haven't listened to all three of your other episodes, a little quick little rundown of who you are, and then we're gonna get jumping in to answering some questions.
8:08
SPEAKER_01: Awesome.
8:09
SPEAKER_01: My name's Joey Ortolani.
8:11
SPEAKER_01: I am a professional dancer.
8:12
SPEAKER_01: As me and Courtney said, uh, we met doing a show together in Atlantic City.
8:16
SPEAKER_01: But uh some of my credits are Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, which was my first job ever, regional theater, uh, Canada, the US, South America, the Mediterranean with Royal Caribbean.
8:27
SPEAKER_01: In Theater World, I did the Broadway First National Tour of a show called Bullets Over Broadway, which was super exciting.
8:32
SPEAKER_01: And then in more recent career credits are television, Saturday Night Live, Good Morning America, and then just before COVID landed in the fall of 2019, I did a, I was a featured dancer on an episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.
8:46
SPEAKER_01: And then more recently, actually, pretty much since that fall to now, I am the competition director for a studio on Long Island called Jan Martin Dance Studio.
8:56
SPEAKER_01: I run all of their competition operations and logistics, and as well as I we talked about this on the choreography episode, I choreograph, I think, around like 45 pieces a year between my work at my studio, and then I also teach for another incredible studio on Long Island called Techniques Dance Center, which is another wonderful place for me to have a creative outlet.
9:17
SPEAKER_01: So I'm very blessed that especially in Long Island's dancing, I'm very welcomed at many dance studios around here, and I have a lot of very positive relationships with studio directors on Long Island, as well as being a competition judge wherever the Queen Bee Courtney Ortiz decides to send me when I have availability in between all the events that I go to with my students.
9:37
SPEAKER_01: And which is rare because I go to 10 of I think I go to 10 events every season between the two studios, and then I'm like, do I want to judge on my weekend off?
9:46
SPEAKER_01: All right, where's Diva?
9:47
SPEAKER_01: Diva, so it's I'm really lucky that all of my work and my life is devoted to really the dance competition industry, whether it's being a professional or judging, I build costumes for my students and embellish them and teach and run the logistics of a studio.
10:05
SPEAKER_01: So I feel like I really have a very well-rounded perspective on really everything the competition industry has to offer.
10:12
SPEAKER_01: Second only to you, the Queen Bean, because guys, you cannot underestimate Courtney, it is the central figure to which we all revolve around.
10:21
SPEAKER_01: It's Courtney's world.
10:22
SPEAKER_01: We're just living in it and trying to keep up with her.
10:24
SPEAKER_01: And she's Oh my god.
10:28
SPEAKER_02: You are crazy.
10:29
SPEAKER_01: It's true, you are.
10:30
SPEAKER_02: You are crazy, first of all.
10:32
SPEAKER_02: And I'm so glad you said all of the things that you said because your life has been so devoted to competitive dance that you're the perfect person to kick off season three for this QA because we have a lot of great questions that were already submitted.
10:45
SPEAKER_02: And I know you're gonna have an opinion, and I know it's gonna be a great one.
10:48
SPEAKER_01: So I can't wait to an opinion?
10:50
SPEAKER_01: I've never had an opinion in my life.
10:51
SPEAKER_01: I don't know what you're implying.
10:54
SPEAKER_02: I can't wait to hear it.
10:56
SPEAKER_02: So thank you so much for joining us before we have to go teach tonight.
11:01
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for having me.
11:02
SPEAKER_02: So let's kick it off, y'all.
11:05
SPEAKER_02: First question of the day.
11:07
SPEAKER_02: This one is actually it's like a double question because two people kind of ask the same thing.
11:12
SPEAKER_02: So we have a question from Jessica from the Facebook group, and she said, What do you wish parents of young competitive dancers or parents of new competitive dancers knew?
11:25
SPEAKER_02: And then we also have a similar question from Erica that said, What is the number one thing you wish parents understood about competitions and conventions?
11:36
SPEAKER_02: So that is the gist of it.
11:40
SPEAKER_01: That is the question.
11:42
SPEAKER_01: I think the number one thing that I always want to tell parents, especially when they're coming to me with students that want to compete or that have never competed before or that want to find their way into being more successful in competition dance, I think the biggest thing that you can know is that really with any activity that kids do, every kid pr every kid is different and progresses at a really different rate.
12:03
SPEAKER_01: So for example, uh I've had plenty of parents over the years say, I paid this much money for privates, and this dancer who doesn't pay as much money for privates did better with their solo.
12:13
SPEAKER_01: Why is this happening?
12:14
SPEAKER_01: kind of a thing.
12:15
SPEAKER_01: And it's really important that parents understand that like any activity, whether it's soccer or dance or gymnastics, some kids are going to lean into it more naturally than others, and other kids are going to take a little bit longer to blossom.
12:29
SPEAKER_01: And every kid is going to have different strengths.
12:31
SPEAKER_01: Some kids will have more of a rhythmic brain, so they'll be better tappers and hip hoppers.
12:35
SPEAKER_01: Some kids will have a more naturally flexible and strong facility, so they'll lean into contemporary or ballet a little bit more easily.
12:42
SPEAKER_01: Uh-huh.
12:43
SPEAKER_01: And uh that especially as dance educators, if you're a good dance educator, you're always rooting for your kids to succeed, your your students to succeed as best they can.
12:53
SPEAKER_01: So uh we're always fighting to give them the best tools to succeed at everything that we're trying to teach them, but every kid is just every kid is different, and uh it might not matter, you know, uh in life.
13:04
SPEAKER_01: Uh some people have to work twice as hard to get half as far.
13:07
SPEAKER_01: So it's about the journey and enjoying dance and enjoying your experience with your teachers, and uh, you know, I've had a number of students over the years that it kind of seemed like they don't look back favorably on their dance education because they didn't succeed at competition, but I always try to remind them when they get into that headspace how often did we laugh together in the classroom?
13:29
SPEAKER_01: How many life lessons did I have for you in the classroom?
13:31
SPEAKER_01: How many times were we at competition sitting there for you know 17 hours?
13:36
SPEAKER_01: And the most fun part was we had a box of munchkins and we were like trying to like basketball shoot them into each other's mouths because we were bored and trying to, you know, stay occupied while we were waiting for awards.
13:46
SPEAKER_01: You know what I mean?
13:47
SPEAKER_01: Like it's things like that that you those are the bigger takeaways that I hope that people get out of the dance competition world, and that you know every kid progresses at a different rate and to focus on the right things as you go through it.
13:58
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
13:58
SPEAKER_01: What about you?
13:59
SPEAKER_02: Fantastic advice, Joey.
14:01
SPEAKER_02: Like always.
14:02
SPEAKER_02: I mean, it's it's it's a lot.
14:04
SPEAKER_02: I think that like competitive dance is a lot.
14:07
SPEAKER_02: I think that's a lot.
14:09
SPEAKER_02: It's a lot.
14:10
SPEAKER_02: I feel like even from our dance moms episode from last year, not the TV show, we actually like sat down with two real current dance moms, and one of the dance moms is newer to the scene.
14:23
SPEAKER_02: And you know, it it's a learning curve, I think, at first for a lot of dance moms kind of getting thrown into this because you see it on T you've seen it on TV, you've seen dance moms on TV, you every kid wants to dance, and you really don't realize I think the investment that it takes to be a competitive dancer, and especially like at the level of what so many kids are at now, you know.
14:45
SPEAKER_02: All level dancers are dancing in a studio now, but now when it comes to competition, there is a lot of competition, you know what I mean?
14:55
SPEAKER_02: And it's a huge investment.
14:57
SPEAKER_02: It's it's essentially like our sport.
15:00
SPEAKER_02: And I think that there will be a time when dancers will have to make that choice, young dancers.
15:06
SPEAKER_02: Like, do I want to keep doing sports too on the side with dance, or do I want to take dance seriously?
15:12
SPEAKER_02: So I think that's another thing for for dancers for parents to remember is that like this, if they love it, this is gonna be a pretty significant investment, as even financially time commitment financially.
15:25
SPEAKER_02: You're gonna be devoting your weekends to competitions, you're gonna be devoting your spare time to private, you're gonna be at the studio in your required amount of classes to be on the competition team.
15:34
SPEAKER_02: You're gonna learn how to face rejection, you're gonna learn how to achieve a goal that you've been pushing towards.
15:41
SPEAKER_02: You're gonna make lifelong friends that will stay with you forever.
15:45
SPEAKER_02: Dance family is the best family, no offense to everybody.
15:48
SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's the best family.
15:50
SPEAKER_02: Like, I mean, I my friends from dance are my best friends.
15:54
SPEAKER_02: My high school friends, I talk to one, two, that's it.
15:59
SPEAKER_02: And my dance friends I talk to all the time.
16:02
SPEAKER_02: And it's like time never passed.
16:04
SPEAKER_01: So I think just the sheer number of hours that you spend together and the common goal that you have together.
16:10
SPEAKER_01: It's almost like a common ancestry when you come from the same dance teacher.
16:14
SPEAKER_01: You know, I come from a studio on Long Island, and whenever I meet another dancer, or I'm I mean, actually, I'm friends with a lot of the dancers that we come from the same studio and we all have just a common language, a common we teach similarly, we dance similarly, we approach the world similarly by coincidence.
16:31
SPEAKER_01: It's just you're right, it's it really is building a family and an energy, and it's such a unique thing that you don't get.
16:38
SPEAKER_01: I mean, when you play soccer, you might have a soccer tournament, so you play it the whole day, but like I don't know, it's just we all know what it's like to be at a dance competition from Friday night until Sunday night, and you went home and slept for four hours and came back because you know, especially as teachers, we go for such a long time and we spend time with these kids that sometimes they're at the studio longer than they have time to have conversations with their parents at home.
16:59
SPEAKER_01: That's it's just there's so many things to tell new or currently existing dance moms about what they should know, or dance parents about what they should know about getting their kids into competitive dance.
17:10
SPEAKER_01: It's there's so many aspects to it that they just they don't see.
17:14
SPEAKER_01: Like I try to like impart to the parents, if I'm like chatting with them, about the way things are going in the classroom, but they just can't see the little like I just I recently started doing this really silly thing during my technique classes where like if we're masked in class, like it's hard to sort of register like who I'm looking at, if I'm grouchy, if I'm like correcting them or whatever.
17:33
SPEAKER_01: And if I make eye contact with a kid, like very briefly, I just I pull my mask down and I just go and I stick my tongue out at them.
17:40
SPEAKER_01: And it just it makes them laugh, it smiles, it makes them feel like they got some like a little positive attention.
17:46
SPEAKER_01: Like it's just it's things like that that like parents don't know that we're like joking around or laughing throughout the class.
17:51
SPEAKER_01: Like there's so much positive energy and they're working out while they're having fun and learning a skill.
17:57
SPEAKER_01: And yeah, I just I mean I'm pontificating now, but there's just there's so many things that I wish that I could we could always tell them that are good things, that are wonderful things.
18:07
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah.
18:08
SPEAKER_02: I think the main thing is the life lessons it'll teach you.
18:11
SPEAKER_02: I think that's the most important.
18:13
SPEAKER_02: And I think that if anyone else wants to hear even more on this specific question topic, definitely check out our our episode from last season, our dance mom's episode.
18:23
SPEAKER_02: It was really informative for a lot of new dance parents, and it was probably really relatable and familiar to uh all of the dance parents listening to that episode that are like, I've totally been there, I've totally done that, I made that mistake, like, you know, type of thing.
18:38
SPEAKER_01: So Emily, I'm also don't be the d also don't be the dance parent that's like it's so many times I get a parent that comes to me and they say, like, now you know I'm not like a dance mom, but and then I'm like, uh, uh, but uh, but here you here we sit and here you are, and you're about to say it.
18:56
SPEAKER_01: I can feel it coming.
18:58
SPEAKER_02: That just made me think of Nick Slaverio on TikTok.
19:01
SPEAKER_02: Oh my god, I love him.
19:02
SPEAKER_02: I love him.
19:03
SPEAKER_02: He's so funny.
19:04
SPEAKER_02: Impersonations of the dance moms, which we just had him on the podcast, y'all.
19:07
SPEAKER_01: Go listen to it and Nick, me and me and Nick did Dance Lab New York together.
19:11
SPEAKER_01: I love him.
19:12
SPEAKER_01: He's the sweetest on the face of the earth.
19:15
SPEAKER_01: He's so funny.
19:16
SPEAKER_02: I love that.
19:16
SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna just throw this up here because Emily wrote this and she said it's those in-between moments that the kids will remember, playing heads up before awards, getting milkshakes, getting ready.
19:26
SPEAKER_02: All those moments are so special and undervalued.
19:29
SPEAKER_02: It's not just about what you do on stage, it's the whole experience of the day and the weekend.
19:34
SPEAKER_02: And that is so true.
19:36
SPEAKER_02: Thank you, Emily.
19:37
SPEAKER_02: So true.
19:38
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
19:39
SPEAKER_02: I love it.
19:40
SPEAKER_02: All right, I'm reading our another question, but actually, Danette, I if I'm saying your name right, you submitted a previous question that I was gonna pull up next.
19:49
SPEAKER_02: And I can't put it on the screen since it was previously previously submitted, but this is Danette's question from before in the giveaway, and I kind of liked it, so I wanted to jump in with this.
20:01
SPEAKER_02: So she said, What are judges looking at when they see groups from the same studio do some generic movement that is kind of the studio's style?
20:12
SPEAKER_02: Is it style or is it annoying?
20:15
SPEAKER_02: Is the first question.
20:16
SPEAKER_02: Also, how do I get my dancers to understand movement quality?
20:21
SPEAKER_02: We are a beginner-level studio that is geared towards bringing the art of dance to low-income families, so most of them have never set foot in a ballet class.
20:29
SPEAKER_02: So let's go to the part one of this question.
20:33
SPEAKER_02: Is it style or is it annoying?
20:37
SPEAKER_01: Um It depends where we fall in the weekend.
20:41
SPEAKER_01: You and I have definitely been sitting together on panels where we were like, yep, there they are again.
20:46
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
20:46
SPEAKER_01: As far as what we're looking for, I remember judging an event once, and this group came out, and they were, it was like, oh my gosh, staggering.
20:57
SPEAKER_01: The music, the way the choreography blended, and the steps that they were doing, and whatever.
21:02
SPEAKER_01: And it was so interesting.
21:04
SPEAKER_01: And I scored it really high because it deserved to be scored super high.
21:07
SPEAKER_01: Let's say it was a large group.
21:09
SPEAKER_01: I think it was, if I remember correctly, I think they were wearing white and it was a large group, whatever.
21:13
SPEAKER_01: And a little while later, dancers from that same number came out, and it was very clearly choreographed by the same person who had choreographed the number before.
21:23
SPEAKER_01: And I felt like I was, I was like, Oh, I remember that step because it stuck out so strong in the last dance, and here it is again.
21:31
SPEAKER_01: Oh, and the like it kind of felt like that first number rearranged to a different song, but it was the same step.
21:38
SPEAKER_01: So I was kind of like, so it had less impact the second time around.
21:41
SPEAKER_01: Keep going, another group came out, more dancer.
21:45
SPEAKER_01: And it was kind of like once I saw Studio Code B or C coming out, whatever it was, with a lyrical or a contemporary number, I kind of was like, and here's the skirt throw, and here's the running moment, and here's the head thrash, and here's I could kind of I started.
22:00
SPEAKER_01: To anticipate their movement.
22:01
SPEAKER_01: So then the choreography started to have less of an impact on me than it did before.
22:06
SPEAKER_01: Did I score them lower?
22:07
SPEAKER_01: Was their technique any worse or better than it had been before?
22:10
SPEAKER_01: No.
22:10
SPEAKER_01: But if choreography, especially at competitions where we have a specific slot for choreography scoring, it might have taken a dip.
22:18
SPEAKER_01: It had less impact.
22:19
SPEAKER_01: It made me feel less of a response.
22:21
SPEAKER_01: Now, as somebody who choreographs a lot of numbers, do I have fan kicks in more than one number?
22:26
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
22:27
SPEAKER_01: Do I have some sort of arm that like reaches over in more than one number?
22:32
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
22:32
SPEAKER_01: Because there's a finite number of movement and our brains are not, our brains are limited at any given time.
22:38
SPEAKER_01: So is it hurting a routine?
22:40
SPEAKER_01: No.
22:41
SPEAKER_01: If I can predict what your next step is, because I've seen other numbers from your studio or whatever happen already, it's just gonna, it's just gonna have less impact.
22:51
SPEAKER_01: So then it really comes down to the dancers delivering technical perfection and making, and I say this to my students all the time: if there's like a, let's just say a rendezam in a routine, how it's the dancer's job to make me feel differently about the second one than the first one or the third one.
23:08
SPEAKER_01: And how is this one different or delivered differently based on where we are in the song?
23:12
SPEAKER_01: So I would say it doesn't hurt, but if your studio has a signature, sometimes I call them isms, it might help to be a little more self-aware of that.
23:22
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
23:23
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
23:24
SPEAKER_02: I totally agree.
23:25
SPEAKER_02: I think we might have discussed this on the choreography episode in season one.
23:30
SPEAKER_02: And I think that while you were talking and I was thinking of like studio isms that I've seen.
23:37
SPEAKER_02: One of the ones that I've seen at a studio, and I couldn't tell you what studio, so you're lucky.
23:43
SPEAKER_02: No, I'm not gonna call out a studio.
23:45
SPEAKER_02: But the knee borets, do you know what I'm talking about?
23:48
SPEAKER_02: When dancers are on their knees and they like reach forward and they're scurrying on their knees, little boré on their knees.
23:55
SPEAKER_02: That I'm like, why would you do that?
23:56
SPEAKER_02: That looks painful, first of all, which I definitely have seen Maddie Ziggler do.
24:01
SPEAKER_02: So, like maybe it came from dance moms, but regardless, like every single dance from the studio, and I call them then the knee Boray studio.
24:09
SPEAKER_02: Like, unfortunately, they became the knee Boray studio.
24:13
SPEAKER_02: And I was like, I don't know if that's like as a teacher, I think the most important as a choreographer and a studio, I think the most important thing is to like run all your dances, have a mini recital, and let tell me, even the solos, and tell me if everything feels different or feels the same.
24:31
SPEAKER_02: If you see the same steps over and over and over again, maybe we have to tweak it just lately.
24:37
SPEAKER_02: And I think what you said is so smart and so true about where the dance falls in the day.
24:43
SPEAKER_02: You know, the dance that's been taking the wins everywhere else might not take the win at the next competition just like solely based on where it fell in the schedule.
24:55
SPEAKER_02: And that's it's crazy to think, but it's true because, like you said, the first time we see the same dance we're gonna see five more times is gonna be more impactful than the fifth time I saw the same dance, you know?
25:08
SPEAKER_01: And it that's just I think you and I were I think you and I were judging a nationals together.
25:13
SPEAKER_01: I won't say which one because it would give it away, but you and I were judging a nationals once, and it was in their really their junior numbers that we were like, Oh, there's that step again, oh, there's that step again.
25:26
SPEAKER_01: And especially for juniors, they're kind of just going off of whatever the whatever the teacher is giving them at that point for younger dancers.
25:35
SPEAKER_01: So what you're saying about keeping it fresh and keeping it like just making don't be afraid to make I changed my dances all year.
25:43
SPEAKER_01: Like just because I finished it around Thanksgiving or Christmas and we went to competition in January, it's not done.
25:48
SPEAKER_01: You know, we have the luxury of having weeks of rehearsal in between competitions.
25:51
SPEAKER_01: If something's landing differently or not landing well or not landing the way that we think it should, it's you have to be willing to sort of accommodate.
25:59
SPEAKER_01: I mean, when you're a teacher and you're bringing your stuff to competition, you're we say this all the time, you're really just subjecting yourself to somebody's opinion.
26:07
SPEAKER_01: There it's not a math equation that will work out the same way every single time just because the same pieces are in play.
26:13
SPEAKER_01: So I there have been plenty of pieces across the board where, you know, from at least if two competitions in a row, more than two judges give me the same feedback on style, step, the way a dancer's executing something, I kind of wouldn't be doing my job as a teacher if I wasn't relaying that and helping the danters course correct.
26:33
SPEAKER_02: Right.
26:34
SPEAKER_02: As you were saying that last statement, it it reminded me of another question that someone previously submitted that I think kind of goes hand in hand with what you were saying.
26:43
SPEAKER_02: And Ashley asked, What ingredients does a winning number have to have?
26:50
SPEAKER_02: And I think that's an interesting question.
26:53
SPEAKER_02: I'd love to hear what you think about it.
26:55
SPEAKER_02: I have my thoughts.
26:56
SPEAKER_01: I think that's going to be different based on whatever judge you're talking to, because as with life, we all have very different values.
27:03
SPEAKER_01: For me, it's different based on whether it's a solo or a duet or a trio or a group or a large group.
27:09
SPEAKER_01: I think that the dynamics that play into a winning routine are just different based on your size dynamics.
27:16
SPEAKER_01: Like what makes a great solo is also not going to make a great group dance.
27:20
SPEAKER_01: Right.
27:20
SPEAKER_01: You know, just I can choreograph a solo in four hours, but group dances, there's like group dynamics and visuals and heights and formation changes and different abilities and stuff.
27:29
SPEAKER_01: But a solo, you just have to work with one dancer, and basically, if you hit multiple points on the stage, you've used the space, and then it's just the steps in between.
27:36
SPEAKER_01: What makes a winning dance for me?
27:37
SPEAKER_01: I mean, and it's it varies based on the genre.
27:40
SPEAKER_01: I'll never forget there's a studio in Long Island.
27:42
SPEAKER_01: They did Waving Through the Window by Dear Evan Hansen, which we've seen a million times at competition.
27:47
SPEAKER_01: They did a gigantic tap production number.
27:51
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
27:52
SPEAKER_01: To Ben Platt, like the original version that sounds like a lyrical number, but they did a tap routine.
27:58
SPEAKER_01: And but the way that it was delivered was just so innovative and compelling and interesting.
28:02
SPEAKER_01: And, you know, pieces for me that have been successful where I find my niche as a choreographer is I go for the grand effect.
28:12
SPEAKER_01: You know, I go for, you know, I thrive the more bodies that I have.
28:16
SPEAKER_01: So a couple in 2019, I did a production number and I created the setting of a 2000, it was the year 2019, so we were looking forward to the 2020s.
28:27
SPEAKER_01: If we knew.
28:29
SPEAKER_01: If we knew where we were headed, I wouldn't have done it.
28:31
SPEAKER_01: But I created the setting of a 21st century speakeasy where instead of alcohol being the age of prohibition, it was dance was banned because it was bad.
28:41
SPEAKER_01: So I tried to think into how would a speakeasy in the year 2020 be different than a speakeasy in the year 1920.
28:48
SPEAKER_01: And I was like, oh, they would have cell phones.
28:50
SPEAKER_01: So in my production number, they were seated at tables and they all had cell phones, but I had turned the flashlights on on the backs of the phones.
28:57
SPEAKER_01: So it had this whole section of them like swerving their cell phone lights in different directions.
29:04
SPEAKER_01: And it was just, I go for the grand effect, and you I had 40 people in this number and 40 lit up cell phones on stage.
29:10
SPEAKER_01: And it was just, you can all steal the idea.
29:11
SPEAKER_01: It's fine.
29:11
SPEAKER_01: I already got my big trophies for it.
29:13
SPEAKER_01: Um so, but it was just, I go for the grand effect when it's lyrical.
29:20
SPEAKER_01: You know, last year I did a number to we were talking about this in the comment section recently.
29:24
SPEAKER_01: I think it was a few days ago, I did My Heart Will Go On.
29:27
SPEAKER_01: Like, have we seen My Heart Will Go On before?
29:28
SPEAKER_01: Yes, is classic lyrical and the grandness of Celine Dion's voice and the impact of that song and the fact that any judging panel that is probably around our age, maybe slightly older, maybe a little younger, if when they hear My Heart Will Go On, they're gonna go, Oh, I love that song.
29:43
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
29:43
SPEAKER_01: And then they're already on your team.
29:44
SPEAKER_01: So if you all you have to do, all you have to do then is deliver once you get on stage.
29:48
SPEAKER_01: So I go for the grand effect.
29:50
SPEAKER_01: I love things that play into the grand effect.
29:52
SPEAKER_01: There are, there is a, I think there's a very special kind of choreographer that can do what I call like rainy day numbers, where it's music that kind of, and this is not a disc towards it.
30:01
SPEAKER_01: I respect people who can create a compelling number with this style of music.
30:05
SPEAKER_01: You know, those music, it's like a mid-tempo ballad, or it's something that kind of just like I always think of, I think it's Nora Jones, Run Away with Me.
30:11
SPEAKER_01: And it's just like, it's literally just a rainy day song that stays at a five the entire time, maybe even like a three the entire time.
30:18
SPEAKER_01: But if you can create something that still moves me and is still impactful to watch, then I think that that's also a huge uh player.
30:27
SPEAKER_01: Solos, you literally, I always tell my kids, I'm like, you have to own the stage, but I'm like, wait a second, let's think into this for a second.
30:34
SPEAKER_01: You've paid your entry fee, you literally paid for the stage for your two and a half minutes.
30:39
SPEAKER_01: You literally purchased the stage for three minutes.
30:43
SPEAKER_02: Right.
30:43
SPEAKER_01: So it's yours, baby.
30:45
SPEAKER_01: Like use the space, use the time, command that energy, and especially it's hardest in jazz solos, but also other things that take up a lot of stamina.
30:55
SPEAKER_01: You got to be paced.
30:56
SPEAKER_01: You have to pace yourself in that your energy can't dip, and all of a sudden, with 30 seconds to go or you know, 10 seconds to go, right, you know, you peter out on your energy.
31:05
SPEAKER_01: The key to that, branching off slightly, is solos.
31:08
SPEAKER_01: I unless there's like a lot of like slow lag time of standing still in the number, really shouldn't.
31:14
SPEAKER_01: There's time limits, usually 245, 3 minutes.
31:17
SPEAKER_01: I love a solo that's 215, 210.
31:20
SPEAKER_03: Yep.
31:20
SPEAKER_01: And the dancer the dancer loves a solo that's 215, 210, because then they're not like dying.
31:26
SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
31:26
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, I think that's huge advice.
31:30
SPEAKER_02: Do not do a three-minute solo.
31:32
SPEAKER_02: Like the end, you're making it harder for yourself.
31:34
SPEAKER_02: But yeah, I mean, a winning piece, ingredients.
31:37
SPEAKER_02: I've said it a lot on the podcast.
31:39
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I'm a I'm a big one for musicality.
31:41
SPEAKER_02: I feel like that sometimes it's lost, and more oftentimes than not, we are dancing to music, which means that you have to have musicality if you're gonna win for me.
31:54
SPEAKER_02: If you don't understand what your music is, or you don't understand how to count your music, or you're not hitting, even if the choreography isn't musical for me.
32:05
SPEAKER_02: Like, I need musical choreography.
32:07
SPEAKER_02: That's what I'm looking for.
32:09
SPEAKER_01: So, like, I think if you can turn off the music and just put on a different one and do the same steps to a different song, did you really choreograph to that song?
32:15
SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
32:16
SPEAKER_02: And I can't tell you how many times I've said that as a judge before, where I'm like, I could put on any song right now, and this would be the exact same dance, and that's not a compliment.
32:26
SPEAKER_02: Like, that is is feedback to let's connect to the song a little bit more.
32:30
SPEAKER_02: So I think musicality is important, style from the dancer's dancer that relates to the submitted genre.
32:38
SPEAKER_02: I want it to make sense to what if this choreographer or this teacher says that this is a modern dance, I better see modern and not acrobatics.
32:48
SPEAKER_02: Like I just, you know, and and we have another question talking about acro, which is a is a huge one.
32:55
SPEAKER_02: Go listen to our acro episode that we did in season one.
32:59
SPEAKER_02: But I think that musicality, style, technique, and performance are like the biggest ingredients for me.
33:05
SPEAKER_02: And then, like you said, Joey, different things apply for solo versus group and like visuals, presentation that I think visuals are the main element, the added layer to a group routine because you have formations, I need use of levels, I need use of the stage transitions.
33:23
SPEAKER_02: Like a solo just is gonna need to be able to command the stage on their own.
33:27
SPEAKER_02: And like you said, it's your that's your moment.
33:30
SPEAKER_02: You you paid for that space and do it.
33:33
SPEAKER_01: And honestly, we do this.
33:34
SPEAKER_01: I mean, you know, you know all about this, but when you're a director or a choreographer, sometimes we do this thing where if the dancers are right in front of us, I kind of tilt my head back and I look at the back wall to see how my visual is landing with all of the bodies and stuff like that.
33:50
SPEAKER_01: And it's things like that where from the choreographer's perspective, that is kind of where the choreographer has to also lead, where it's like if you can create the space, like visuals is what you were saying.
34:01
SPEAKER_01: And that's what made me think of this is that if you're creating a visual, it's important that that visual land and that the dancers understand why this visual is important.
34:09
SPEAKER_01: Like I've been choreographing something and I record it from the back of the room so that the kids have a video to study.
34:13
SPEAKER_01: And I love when they come to me and they're like, oh my God, this looks so cool.
34:16
SPEAKER_01: It feels really weird while I'm doing it.
34:18
SPEAKER_01: And I had no idea that the combination of all these bodies put together created what that looks like.
34:23
SPEAKER_01: So that's something that's super important too, is the visual aspect of it too, and realizing that we're sitting up close.
34:29
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we have a front row seat, but we're also I feel like you and me always do that thing where it's like we like tilt our head down.
34:36
SPEAKER_01: We're like looking through the feet of the dancers in the front to see what that back line is doing back there.
34:41
SPEAKER_02: I I always watch the back line.
34:43
SPEAKER_02: Especially if like the front line is the same stars of the studio that do the same skills every single time.
34:49
SPEAKER_02: I'm like, meh, I don't feel like watching you anymore.
34:51
SPEAKER_02: I want to see what's going on in the back.
34:53
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
34:54
SPEAKER_01: What are you hiding back there?
34:56
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I think I really think dancers don't think we can see them and we can see everyone.
35:00
SPEAKER_02: Although I personally wish that as judges, they would put us not at the front of the stage or like at least put us like in the middle of the auditorium halfway back.
35:12
SPEAKER_02: Because I want to see the whole picture.
35:14
SPEAKER_02: And sometimes I feel like I'm like, you know, on top of them, or I'm like looking up at them.
35:18
SPEAKER_02: Like I have sat in a theater where my eyes were at the level of the stage, and then I had to see I feel like that's hard for the competitions because they're always at a different venue.
35:27
SPEAKER_01: So they're like, how do I plan for this venue?
35:29
SPEAKER_01: That I don't know.
35:30
SPEAKER_01: Like we're going to random middle school in the middle of Iowa.
35:33
SPEAKER_01: Like, right, how do I know how high the stage is?
35:36
SPEAKER_01: Or you know what I mean?
35:37
SPEAKER_01: And then once you get there, they're like rolling up with two hours to set up there, with two hours before they have to start the event, and they can't help but, you know, they'd have to you have to sit here.
35:46
SPEAKER_01: And then some venues, it's like if you sit too far back.
35:49
SPEAKER_01: That's the other thing, is that you're never gonna if the judges want to sit further back, the parents are gonna be like, well, they're sitting really far away.
35:54
SPEAKER_01: How can they see properly what they're doing technique?
35:57
SPEAKER_01: They can't see my That's gotta be why little Betty Sue lost.
36:02
SPEAKER_02: Little Betty Sue.
36:04
SPEAKER_01: We love Betty.
36:05
SPEAKER_02: We love little Betty Sue.
36:06
SPEAKER_02: She'll join us on the podcast.
36:07
SPEAKER_01: We love little Betty Sue.
36:08
SPEAKER_01: She she'll join us on the pod, yes.
36:11
SPEAKER_02: We have an anonymous question that just came in.
36:14
SPEAKER_02: So I wanna I wanna let the anonymous person have their question answered.
36:18
SPEAKER_02: I also think it's a kind of interesting question.
36:21
SPEAKER_02: There's a lot of context to it, so I'll read that all.
36:25
SPEAKER_02: But the gist of the question for everyone is how do you know when it is time to change studios?
36:32
SPEAKER_02: So that is the question.
36:35
SPEAKER_02: But then do you want the context, Joey?
36:37
SPEAKER_02: Do you want the context?
36:38
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
36:40
SPEAKER_02: Alright, so for context, my 11-year-old is in her fourth competition year.
36:45
SPEAKER_02: RStudio is new in the comp game, and while she loves her dance friends, the complaints I have are mostly scheduling and communication issues.
36:54
SPEAKER_02: She takes dance seriously, and there are many on her team that do it for fun.
36:58
SPEAKER_02: Another point for this year is there's a huge mix of levels in the groups, so they seem to be geared towards the newer dancers, and she feels like she's not being challenged.
37:08
SPEAKER_02: She's just now starting to think about dancing in her future, so I'm wondering if she should change to another more competitive studio.
37:16
SPEAKER_02: I feel like she is still young, so maybe we should give it another year before she decides.
37:20
SPEAKER_02: I don't want her to feel stunted or bored, but she truly loves her coaches and her friends.
37:25
SPEAKER_02: So that's the contest.
37:27
SPEAKER_02: When do you when do you know?
37:28
SPEAKER_01: That's loaded because I I would never want to encourage a student to uh I have like a I want what's best for students, but I also like I run a studio, so I don't ever want to be like, yeah, dump them.
37:40
SPEAKER_01: You're not happy, leave.
37:42
SPEAKER_01: The biggest thing that I always say to parents is we can't, as teachers and directors of studios, we can't be sensitive to something that we don't know about for starters.
37:52
SPEAKER_01: So I would say, I don't know if this particular anonymous question has shared that with their studio director that they currently with, like what the student is looking for and how they're kind of feeling about the direction of the team.
38:04
SPEAKER_01: But I think that is the best place to start.
38:07
SPEAKER_01: I think that the other concept, this is just a life principle.
38:12
SPEAKER_01: Again, one of those life lessons you learn from the dance competition world that seems to apply to everything, is the grass is not always greener on the other side.
38:19
SPEAKER_01: And so it's not always just the answer to up and leave as soon as something isn't kind of either going your way or the way that you feel about it or whatever.
38:28
SPEAKER_01: If that may, I don't know if that makes any sense.
38:30
SPEAKER_01: Like the grass is not always greener wherever you go.
38:32
SPEAKER_01: But if you're looking, if your dancer is 11, they're looking to become more serious and they're thinking of approaching dance from a professional perspective, there's a lot of avenues to take with that as far as like you can seek out privates.
38:44
SPEAKER_01: I don't know where this dancer is located.
38:46
SPEAKER_01: So resources can kind of come into play if they're in the middle of a rural area.
38:50
SPEAKER_01: There's less options available.
38:52
SPEAKER_01: If you're in a place like Long Island where there's a dance studio on every corner and you can get private lessons from a myriad of people or just take a half-hour train ride into the city to get private lessons or go to BDC or find a pre-professional program, you have a lot more options.
39:05
SPEAKER_01: So there can be a lot of mitigating factors.
39:07
SPEAKER_01: I would never say your first stop is to up and leave that studio.
39:11
SPEAKER_01: How do you know when that time is?
39:12
SPEAKER_01: I think if you've communicated with the studio what you're looking for, if they're having communication issues, always express that you feel like you're having a hard time communicating with the teacher.
39:22
SPEAKER_01: I've seen that happen before.
39:23
SPEAKER_01: And I all but I also know that, you know, I think a lot of studio owners would appreciate this.
39:28
SPEAKER_01: Well, we have a very, we have a very 24-7 job when you're running any business, but especially a dance studio, because we're not selling carpets, we're not running a CVS, we're not anything.
39:40
SPEAKER_01: We are in the business of teaching children a skill as an art form.
39:45
SPEAKER_01: It comes with a lot of personal and creative investment.
39:48
SPEAKER_01: We bond with these kids, and there's a lot of love that goes into that, and there's a lot of personal feelings and emotions.
39:55
SPEAKER_01: It's not just, it's not transactional, it's not clinical.
39:58
SPEAKER_01: It's not you show up, drop your kid off, pay for dance, and then they go home.
40:01
SPEAKER_01: It's it encompasses a lot of their life.
40:03
SPEAKER_01: So I feel for if you're happy somewhere, loves their friends, actually loves their teachers as people, but feeling like they want a little bit more out of their dance education is so I say it starts with communication.
40:16
SPEAKER_01: It starts with telling the people that you currently are being trained by what you're looking for and what you're hoping for and how you're kind of feeling about the direction of the team without putting anybody else down, of course, because everybody's journeys are different.
40:30
SPEAKER_01: You don't have to, not everybody has to want to be a professional dancer to be a competitive dancer while they're in high school.
40:36
SPEAKER_01: So I think I think that communication is the best way to go.
40:39
SPEAKER_01: And again, depending on where you are, seeking out additional resources to either if your dancer wants to stay where they are because they love their friends and their teachers, but also supplement and create more opportunities for them is another way to go as well.
40:51
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
40:52
SPEAKER_02: A hundred percent completely agree.
40:54
SPEAKER_02: I think yep, communication is the first step in this situation.
40:59
SPEAKER_02: I agree with you in a sense that it is hard.
41:02
SPEAKER_02: Uh, especially I love your perspective because, like you said, you you run a studio and there's a lot more to it that the teachers put in to each and every kid that's on a competition team or at the studio in general.
41:14
SPEAKER_02: And I think that first step is chatting with the studio directors, chatting with the teachers scheduling a meeting and saying this is what my dancer wants.
41:26
SPEAKER_02: This is the path that I see my dancer going.
41:29
SPEAKER_02: How can we get here?
41:30
SPEAKER_02: Are you able to provide these things to me?
41:34
SPEAKER_01: And not in the heat of an emotion through a text message on a Sunday night at 10 p.m.
41:40
SPEAKER_01: You know what I'm saying?
41:41
SPEAKER_01: Like that was one of the things that I was gonna say before is that, you know, what we do is very 24-7, and people assume that because we're a sort of an emotional business and we love them and we develop relationships with parents and with kids, that we're kind of more friendly.
41:53
SPEAKER_01: And while we are friends with our parents and I get very close with my students and stuff like that, we are still human beings and sometimes we want to put work down.
42:01
SPEAKER_01: So the key to that communication is not sending a text message when maybe the kid comes home a little upset from dance at 10 o'clock or nine o'clock on a Thursday, but sending an email asking for a meeting in person so that you can communicate all of those things to them in person.
42:16
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, exactly.
42:17
SPEAKER_02: Being professional and, you know, it's it's it's true that like parents need to make sure they're setting the proper example for their kids as well.
42:28
SPEAKER_02: So making sure they, you know, approach these types of conversations in a civil way and in a professional way.
42:35
SPEAKER_02: But I think that having this feeling, I think a lot of dance parents have felt similar feelings.
42:43
SPEAKER_02: And I think that the other thing that you mentioned, Joey, about well, is there even another option of a studio to go to in your area?
42:51
SPEAKER_02: That is a big one to think about.
42:53
SPEAKER_02: Depending on where you live, you might not have un tons of studios nearby.
42:58
SPEAKER_02: But at the end of the day, if you're even considering switching studios, you have to really do your research.
43:04
SPEAKER_02: I think is the most important thing.
43:05
SPEAKER_02: Everything's on the internet now.
43:07
SPEAKER_02: You can go on Instagram and see who's winning what competitions.
43:10
SPEAKER_02: And if that matters to you, great.
43:12
SPEAKER_02: You can go look and see what who their faculty is, what their credentials are.
43:15
SPEAKER_02: And if you want to have a stronger focus on this, then that's important to you.
43:20
SPEAKER_02: Like back when we were selecting studios, there wasn't really that.
43:24
SPEAKER_02: It was just like word of mouth/slash what's the closest dance studio near me.
43:29
SPEAKER_02: And every time I think about that, I feel so lucky that I got grew up in an area where you had could have success with that.
43:35
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
43:36
SPEAKER_02: Same thing on level of like where and we both grew up at reputable, well-known studios just by the luck of the draw.
43:42
SPEAKER_02: You know what I mean?
43:43
SPEAKER_02: Like I think there's so many new there's so many studios now around the country that just popped up that wanted to jump into this competitive dance world, and some are at different levels than others.
43:54
SPEAKER_02: So it is important to do your research even before you put your kid into dance because.
44:00
SPEAKER_02: They are gonna make friends, you know.
44:02
SPEAKER_02: If you have a three-year-old that wants to start dancing, do you want them to just do it for fun?
44:06
SPEAKER_02: Or are you thinking they might love this and I want a studio that they can grow with that I know is providing the level of training that I want to invest into my dancer?
44:16
SPEAKER_02: Because then it is hard, you know, when you if the kids make friends and you feel like it's time for them to move on to another training, then they're gonna have to lose their friends, and that's sad.
44:25
SPEAKER_02: They don't want to leave their friends.
44:27
SPEAKER_02: But I think the other thing that's important to think about in this scenario is yes, the dancer is only 11 and she is young, but there's so many more options for training now, like not just from your studio.
44:38
SPEAKER_02: I mean, you could talk to the teachers and say, I want to make sure that she's going to every dance convention that comes through town every weekend.
44:45
SPEAKER_02: How can we make this possible?
44:46
SPEAKER_02: Because I want to make sure they're training at this level.
44:49
SPEAKER_02: Or what other opportunities are there that I can continue my training?
44:52
SPEAKER_02: How many extra privates can I do?
44:54
SPEAKER_02: What about online resources?
44:55
SPEAKER_02: I mean, it's endless now.
44:57
SPEAKER_02: So, like, yes, it costs money, obviously.
45:00
SPEAKER_02: Uh, but yeah, I I think that it is a heated question.
45:03
SPEAKER_02: It is a heated question, but I definitely think a lot of people have felt this before.
45:08
SPEAKER_02: So that's kind of why I wanted to throw it in.
45:10
SPEAKER_02: So thank you to It's an important topic.
45:12
SPEAKER_02: It is.
45:13
SPEAKER_02: Thank you to Anonymous for submitting.
45:16
SPEAKER_02: And if anyone has an anonymous question that they would like to not have their name shared on the podcast or on the live, then you can shoot me a personal DM on Facebook and I will read it anonymously for you.
45:28
SPEAKER_02: We have a question from Carmen in the comments.
45:31
SPEAKER_01: I saw that one.
45:33
SPEAKER_02: Let's pop it on up a Carmen says question: How do you help kids learn to stay organized backstage?
45:44
SPEAKER_02: We are always looking for a lawsuit or a piece of a costume when it's over.
45:49
SPEAKER_02: I'm sure everyone has the same issue.
45:54
SPEAKER_01: Yep.
45:55
SPEAKER_02: What about like a laundry bin that you bring into competition that you can just sh throw cost, you know, costume pieces in?
46:02
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
46:03
SPEAKER_01: I mean, my answer to that, I'm a little bit of I'm a you know me, I'm a little bit of a drill sergeant when it comes to things like presentation and organization with my kids.
46:12
SPEAKER_01: This is again a moment where it's really helpful that I I direct a studio.
46:17
SPEAKER_01: In the year of COVID, it got a lot easier because we had studio blocks, so everything around was ours when we were in our studio block, and when we left, if it was if it wasn't ours, it was left over from the studio before, so we knew that to be true.
46:29
SPEAKER_01: I feel like it's I mean, it's individual responsibility for the kids as it can be.
46:34
SPEAKER_01: I mean, I'm I tell the kids all the time, I was like, I love you, but I am not your mother.
46:38
SPEAKER_01: Like I tell them all the time that as far as presentation is concerned and organization organizing with things backstage and jackets and shoes, and you know, if you have a production number where they're changing shoes, like, yeah, you gotta kind of corral the backstage as the teacher and make sure that everything gets picked up or whatever.
46:56
SPEAKER_01: And, you know, but that's a lot, there's a lot of ownership for parents and kids.
46:59
SPEAKER_01: When you're going to competition, I think checklists are really helpful.
47:02
SPEAKER_01: So before you leave from home to go to the competition, make sure you have everything that you need because I'm also the dance teacher.
47:08
SPEAKER_01: Where it's like, if Betty Sue comes to me again and she's like, Oh, our dance has black gloves, but I only have one glove.
47:13
SPEAKER_01: Can everybody just like take off their gloves?
47:15
SPEAKER_01: I'm like, no, you're not going on stage.
47:17
SPEAKER_01: Sorry, Betty.
47:18
SPEAKER_01: Sorry, Betty.
47:19
SPEAKER_01: You don't have your gloves, you're not going out.
47:20
SPEAKER_01: Sorry, Betty.
47:22
SPEAKER_01: Sorry, Betty.
47:23
SPEAKER_01: So, you know, and I think it's the same thing in reverse.
47:26
SPEAKER_01: You know, I I've when the competition is over, we all have what I call competition hangover.
47:31
SPEAKER_01: We've been there for hours and hours and days and days, and we just want to go.
47:36
SPEAKER_01: But as a parent helping pack your kid up out of the dressing room, if you're a if you're a dancer that's really 13 and over, you have to check your surrounding areas for all your stuff.
47:46
SPEAKER_01: Make sure you have the costumes that you brought with you that day.
47:49
SPEAKER_01: And that's really it.
47:51
SPEAKER_01: Especially like it's not the teacher's job.
47:54
SPEAKER_01: You know, sometimes I'm I I go back and forth on certain events.
47:57
SPEAKER_01: Sometimes I'm determined to watch all of my dances from the front at any given competition, and then other times I'm determined to stay backstage with the kids because that's where the fun happens.
48:06
SPEAKER_01: So it's really the kids and their parents' responsibility to make sure they have their stuff before they go.
48:11
SPEAKER_01: Like, or especially if you're an older teenager, like, I'm sorry you lost your$1,500 costume that you paid for your solo, but that's just not on me.
48:20
SPEAKER_01: And as a male dance teacher, especially, I mean, I can't go in the dressing room.
48:25
SPEAKER_01: So I can't I can't check to make sure everybody has all of their stuff after they've left.
48:30
SPEAKER_01: I mean, I have all the trophies and the pins and the ribbons and the if we're lucky enough, the big trophies and the posters and the checks, but I just I can't help you make sure you have your stuff because I can't go in the dressing room to see where the stuff is.
48:41
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, it that's it's all true.
48:44
SPEAKER_02: And I'm gonna approach this from experiences as a professional dancer because I feel like I've learned a lot backstage when performing in musicals.
48:54
SPEAKER_02: So FYI, when people are performing on Broadway, when people are performing in shows, they actually have a dresser.
49:00
SPEAKER_02: They have multiple or multiple dressers.
49:04
SPEAKER_02: So they sometimes will, you know, dancers will have to put their costumes on themselves.
49:08
SPEAKER_02: But actually, per equity, actor's equity rule, you're not allowed to zip up someone else's costume.
49:15
SPEAKER_02: A dresser has to zip up your costume.
49:18
SPEAKER_02: And the hair and wig person has to put your wig on your do not touch, do not touch your wig.
49:24
SPEAKER_01: You will be fired and fined.
49:25
SPEAKER_02: Yes, you will.
49:26
SPEAKER_02: Uh well, maybe not fired, but you will be not fired, but you'll be fine.
49:31
SPEAKER_02: So I feel like some of the things that I've learned, I I've gotten so good at quick changing from doing shows and some like tips that I've seen from the dressers is the laundry basket definitely came to mind for me when it comes to quick changes.
49:44
SPEAKER_02: So if every dancer could get just like a little a portable laundry basket, even like a pop-up one or something that they could just put up next to their station.
49:53
SPEAKER_01: Throw your stuff into when you're done with it.
49:54
SPEAKER_02: Yep, exactly.
49:55
SPEAKER_02: The moment you get off stage, undress and put everything in that laundry bag.
50:01
SPEAKER_02: And I think mom or dad, whoever is dressing the dancer, you are the new dresser.
50:07
SPEAKER_02: You are the Broadway dresser for the competition events.
50:12
SPEAKER_01: Not for me.
50:13
SPEAKER_01: I ban this is gonna sound terrible, but I told I I mean, for COVID protocols and capacities in dressing rooms, I I had my staff jud uh dressing my younger kids and then my teenagers, I made them dress each other because just capacity, we didn't want too many.
50:28
SPEAKER_01: If every if every kid has up then a parent in the dressing room, it just it gets very tight.
50:33
SPEAKER_01: And I it was so harmonious.
50:35
SPEAKER_01: There was so much harmony between the dancers, and everybody was so happy the whole day.
50:39
SPEAKER_01: So I think I'm gonna actually keep it that I like I might keep parents out of the dressing room because if everybody ends up happier in that instance.
50:45
SPEAKER_01: But the older kids need to be responsible for their stuff.
50:48
SPEAKER_01: And the when they go in there and pack up at the end, that's a different story when everybody's getting ready to go and stuff like that.
50:53
SPEAKER_02: Anyway, another another trick that we definitely did on Royal Caribbean and when we worked on Spirit is if you have like quick back-to-back costumes, you can either underdress certain elements of your costume and if it won't show, like a bloomer or something, or prep ahead of time.
51:13
SPEAKER_02: Get a chair at your station, you know, wherever your clothing rack is in your dressing room, get a chair and lay out the costumes in order as to when you would need to put them on.
51:22
SPEAKER_02: So everything's right there on the chair for you, including accessories.
51:26
SPEAKER_02: If there's a glove, you put the glove on the top of the chair or at the bottom of the chair, and then lay the next costume.
51:32
SPEAKER_02: This is the next costume I have to put on.
51:34
SPEAKER_02: And then you just keep peeling costumes off the chair throughout the day, and and boom, you have a costume.
51:39
SPEAKER_02: So, like, that's another kind of like quick change, quick backstage dresser tip, I guess, for everybody.
51:46
SPEAKER_02: But I would recommend getting garment bags.
51:48
SPEAKER_02: My mom chimed in, and and she, of course, had to say, uh, she was like, Court, we had garment bags for every one of your costume.
51:58
SPEAKER_02: That's your mom.
51:59
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that's Robin Ripkey mom.
52:01
SPEAKER_02: Hey Robin.
52:03
SPEAKER_02: Also, thanks for the more donation money, mom.
52:06
SPEAKER_02: I appreciate it.
52:07
SPEAKER_02: Thanks, biggest fan.
52:09
SPEAKER_02: But yes, we we had a garment bag for every single costume, and then we would label it with what costume this is, what accessories, like the checklist that you're talking about.
52:19
SPEAKER_02: If do we have black fishnets, black jazz shoes?
52:22
SPEAKER_02: Is there a berette in the hair?
52:24
SPEAKER_02: Do we wear a glove?
52:26
SPEAKER_02: Is this the hair change, lipstick change?
52:28
SPEAKER_02: I mean, that's the only way I think that you're gonna be able to, like, you don't want to have to whip out a binder and be like, which dance is this?
52:34
SPEAKER_02: Like, slap it right onto the garment bag.
52:36
SPEAKER_01: It's all on your phone.
52:37
SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's all on your phone.
52:38
SPEAKER_01: Like, there you can make checklists in the notes app now.
52:41
SPEAKER_01: Very easy.
52:41
SPEAKER_02: Right.
52:42
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
52:42
SPEAKER_02: So I would say that as far as staying organized and then getting some type of bin where dancers can just throw all of their costume accessories and costumes themselves into during changes, and then mom can, or whoever is, you know, or the or the dancer themselves after the fact can go back and start putting it away, and everything's right there contained.
53:04
SPEAKER_02: So that's my best advice for that.
53:06
SPEAKER_02: Fears.
53:07
SPEAKER_02: Well, Joey, it's 2 03.
53:10
SPEAKER_02: And I know we want to take one more question.
53:13
SPEAKER_02: Do you want one more?
53:14
SPEAKER_02: We can give you one more.
53:15
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, let's do one more.
53:15
SPEAKER_01: Let's do one more.
53:16
SPEAKER_01: Let's do one more.
53:16
SPEAKER_02: Okay, let me see.
53:17
SPEAKER_02: What else do we got?
53:18
SPEAKER_02: One final question.
53:20
SPEAKER_02: I'm looking for it.
53:22
SPEAKER_02: I don't want to answer the acro one because we answer that all the time.
53:26
SPEAKER_02: Okay.
53:29
SPEAKER_02: Alright, this is an interesting one.
53:31
SPEAKER_02: I want to see if you have any advice because I I was trying to think of this ahead of time.
53:35
SPEAKER_02: This is from Emily in the group, and she said, Are there opportunities post-high school for advanced or intermediate dancers that may not stand a chance on the top level of jobs, colleges, etc., but they want to still dance.
53:52
SPEAKER_02: So what type of opportunities?
53:55
SPEAKER_01: I mean, one of the positive things after COVID is a virtual dance.
54:00
SPEAKER_01: I mean, you can live in Nebraska or Montana and take a BDC class online, I think, still.
54:07
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you can.
54:08
SPEAKER_01: So that's a big one.
54:10
SPEAKER_01: Virtual dance.
54:11
SPEAKER_01: I would say I don't know of any dance studio unless their schedule is super packed that would not facilitate some sort of adult uh adult dance class.
54:20
SPEAKER_01: But again, that's more regional and like what your resources are available to you.
54:24
SPEAKER_01: If you're in the tri-state area northeast, you can it's very easy to go into BDC, take a class, feel like you're included in something.
54:31
SPEAKER_01: As a theater dancer, I know that regional theaters or community theaters are always looking for if I mean once I mean again, this is pre-COVID era, post-COVID era, hopefully coming back.
54:43
SPEAKER_01: If you're looking for dance opportunities, I you know, look into stuff like that.
54:48
SPEAKER_01: Like look into your local community theaters.
54:50
SPEAKER_01: If you are I I just I feel like especially in the year 2021, there are so many resources to keep dance as part of your life, even if you don't see yourself having a paying career or a lucrative career or whatever.
55:04
SPEAKER_01: There's so many ways to I have a friend, he's in technology and he also does like taekwondo and stuff, but then he loves like hip-hop like jazz funk kind of style.
55:16
SPEAKER_01: And so he goes to BDC and he dances.
55:20
SPEAKER_01: You know, it's not his career, it's something that he enjoys, it's something he finds himself to be uh good at, but it's not something he's looking to get paid for.
55:28
SPEAKER_01: He just wants dance to be part of his life.
55:29
SPEAKER_01: So there's a lot of ways of keeping dance as part of your life, and it takes some commitment, it takes some, you know, I have a lot of dancers who, you know, go off to college.
55:37
SPEAKER_01: I have a student who's at Cornell University right now, and she didn't want she was an incredible competitive dancer.
55:43
SPEAKER_01: I mean, we're talking titles out the wazoo.
55:45
SPEAKER_01: She never placed lower than top three at any regional in her senior year, and she's at Cornell University and she wants to keep dance as part of her life, but she's not looking to make it her career.
55:55
SPEAKER_01: So she joined uh there's a very reputable like dance club at Cornell University, and she's doing three routines.
56:01
SPEAKER_01: They'll have a showcase at the end of the semester, and you know, she's gonna stay on top of it that way.
56:06
SPEAKER_01: You know, there's there there are so many resources, digital or otherwise.
56:10
SPEAKER_01: Look in your community, seek out if you are beyond the studio level or studio age level for like say competitive dance.
56:17
SPEAKER_01: You know, talk to your studios about, you know, do you have any adult dance classes?
56:21
SPEAKER_01: I want to keep this in my life.
56:22
SPEAKER_01: Look into virtual options at Steps BDC, wherever in the main city.
56:27
SPEAKER_01: I don't know if like I'm not I'm not California savvy, so I don't know if like Millennium in California has virtual classes or anything like that.
56:34
SPEAKER_01: But yeah, I feel like there's a lot of ways of keeping dance as part of your life, even if you're not looking to make it a career choice.
56:41
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and I'm I'm trying to think of like you know, guiding these dancers if they want a performance career.
56:48
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I think that like the question is obviously they understand that it might be harder for these dancers if they don't feel like they're at the top of their level.
56:56
SPEAKER_02: And when you were talking about regional theater or or theater in general, you know, and this is very specific to if they are interested in pursuing like a Broadway style career or a musical theater type of career, but I think it's important and and worth mentioning that a lot of theaters around the country need to cast local dancers.
57:16
SPEAKER_02: And usually the local dancers, you know, you have to are are exceptional as well, but you have an advantage if you can supply your own housing or maybe you're not in the actor's equity union because there is a certain amount of contracts that are for non-union members, which get paid a little bit less, versus union members.
57:38
SPEAKER_02: So it might be intimidating to feel like you have to move to New York City and you have to compete against, you know, the best of the best.
57:43
SPEAKER_02: But if you can find a city that you love living in that you can work locally as a musical theater performer and get hired non-equity, you're not gonna be getting the same salary as an equity performer, but you're gonna still be getting on stage and you might be considered more because you're local.
57:58
SPEAKER_02: So that is something to think about if you want to be on stage.
58:01
SPEAKER_02: I think another one is looking for every city has dance uh companies, you know, and like prof even if they're not high, high, high level professional companies.
58:12
SPEAKER_02: I feel like art is everywhere, you know.
58:15
SPEAKER_02: Go look at your major city that you live nearby and see if there's a company to dance with and audition for it, you know.
58:21
SPEAKER_02: The caliber of talent might be not as intimidating as if you were in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City.
58:28
SPEAKER_02: Those cities do really bring in the best of the best.
58:31
SPEAKER_02: So if that's what's scary for a dancer to like want to commit to, then I can understand.
58:37
SPEAKER_02: But also I say just give it a try.
58:39
SPEAKER_02: There's so many jobs to stay involved in the competitive dance world.
58:42
SPEAKER_02: So, like Joey said, lots of opportunities.
58:45
SPEAKER_02: Well, Joey, I think that's a wrap on today because you have to go you have to go teach tonight.
58:52
SPEAKER_01: I have to go educate the dancing youth of America.
58:55
SPEAKER_02: What I think you do, you have to go teach all those fabulous children out there in Long Island and uh have a wonderful night of teaching.
59:03
SPEAKER_02: So I am so grateful that you spent your afternoon chatting with us on the podcast for the fourth time.
59:10
SPEAKER_02: Is that true?
59:11
SPEAKER_01: My pleasure.
59:11
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I like that contact.
59:12
SPEAKER_01: That sounds that sounds right.
59:13
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
59:14
SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh.
59:15
SPEAKER_02: Wait, is it true?
59:17
SPEAKER_02: This is your fourth time.
59:19
SPEAKER_02: One it feels like more.
59:20
SPEAKER_01: I definitely did a couple of the blogs too.
59:22
SPEAKER_01: Like the contributed to the blogs, you know.
59:26
SPEAKER_01: I'm I'm on I'm I'm a bet.
59:27
SPEAKER_01: I'm an I'm an OG IDA.
59:29
SPEAKER_01: IDA was conceived in my living room sitting on a couch with us.
59:32
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that is true.
59:34
SPEAKER_02: That is very, very true.
59:35
SPEAKER_02: You've been there from the beginning.
59:37
SPEAKER_01: After a wing night in Astoria, you, me, and Rob sat there and talked about IDA, and it was all the good things.
59:42
SPEAKER_02: Yep.
59:43
SPEAKER_02: And here we are so many years later.
59:46
SPEAKER_02: And I and we're doing a podcast live on Facebook.
59:52
SPEAKER_02: Well, thank you for uh joining us.
59:55
SPEAKER_02: Everybody go follow Joey on Instagram at Joey Orto.
1:00:00
SPEAKER_02: And feel free, if you got a jet, Joey, you got a jet.
1:00:03
SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna pull you out of here.
1:00:04
SPEAKER_02: We're gonna say bye to Mr.
1:00:06
SPEAKER_02: Joey.
1:00:06
SPEAKER_02: Bye.
1:00:07
SPEAKER_02: Bye guys, thank you for having me.
1:00:08
SPEAKER_03: I love you.
1:00:09
SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much.
1:00:10
SPEAKER_02: You're awesome.
1:00:11
SPEAKER_03: Bye.
1:00:12
unknown: Bye.
1:00:12
SPEAKER_02: All right, I'm gonna wrap up this episode.
1:00:15
SPEAKER_02: Thank you everybody for tuning in and joining us today on QA with Courtney Live.
1:00:21
SPEAKER_02: Mr.
1:00:21
SPEAKER_02: Joey, we love you.
1:00:22
SPEAKER_02: He's always so fabulous and has such great advice on every single episode that he joins for the podcast.
1:00:27
SPEAKER_02: So be sure to go follow him on Instagram, like I said.
1:00:31
SPEAKER_02: Alright, final two things on our end as we wrap up this episode.
1:00:36
SPEAKER_02: We have online judges' critiques from IDA that are now going to draw.
1:00:42
SPEAKER_02: If you've never submitted your dance to IDA for a judge's critique, you can at any point in the dance season.
1:00:50
SPEAKER_02: They are your ground, uh, start at$35, and you just film your dance in rehearsal or send it to competition video.
1:00:57
SPEAKER_02: One of our judges will critique your dance just like you would get a competition.
1:01:00
SPEAKER_02: And then if you opt in for our our additional feedback feature, then the judge will go back through from beginning to end, start and stop your video and give you even more feedback, way more than what you get at a regular competition uh critique.
1:01:14
SPEAKER_02: So this is the a perfect way to get a second set of eyes to watch your dance, give you some feedback, maybe see some things your teacher has haven't seen.
1:01:23
SPEAKER_02: And for dance teachers, if you want a second pair of eyes to look at some choreography and request any advice, then send it our way.
1:01:30
SPEAKER_02: We would love to see.
1:01:31
SPEAKER_02: We actually got our very first online critique for the season from Australia this morning, which was so cool.
1:01:36
SPEAKER_02: Like the coolest thing ever.
1:01:38
SPEAKER_02: So visit our website, it's scrolling below.
1:01:41
SPEAKER_02: It's impactdanceadjudicators.com slash online critiques, and take advantage of this great service that we offer.
1:01:49
SPEAKER_02: All right, y'all, that's a wrap on this episode of QA with Courtney Live.
1:01:56
SPEAKER_02: Thank you to everyone who tunes in on Facebook.
1:01:59
SPEAKER_02: Thank you to everyone who submitted questions, and thank you again to our special guest, IDA Judge Joey.
1:02:05
SPEAKER_02: I hope you enjoyed this episode, and we'll have more live episodes coming to you throughout the season.
1:02:10
SPEAKER_02: Keep enjoying season three, everyone, and we'll see you next time.
1:02:13
SPEAKER_02: Thanks so much.
1:02:15
SPEAKER_02: Bye.