A Week Off Is....
Unbearable, Much Needed, Depressing, Restorative, Never-Ending, A Good Idea, A Bad Idea
I had a week off of dance due to travel for work last week. It was all of the things I listed above and more, definitely a mixed bag! I've been going hard since January, never missing a class and taking extra classes with Milwaukee Ballet. I've been sore somewhere in my body for months, and it was really nice to allow my body to restore and regenerate.
I traveled to a small town about 1.5 hours outside of Cleveland for the work visit, and unfortunately I wasn't able to find any studios that I could drop in on, so it was a dance free week. I left last Sunday and returned Friday afternoon, and in that whole time I didn't dance a single step. I found myself coming down with either a bad cold or my allergies kicking in the Saturday before I left, and that sickness kicked my butt the whole time I was in OH for work. So I guess if I had to get sick, it's lucky it was during an off week! I'm almost 100% again now, so that's a relief. :)
Dance seems to be entwining itself with my soul more and more as time goes on. I don't know how I managed to take the whole summer off last year, I don't think I can handle it this time. I'm searching for master classes, workshops, and other summer programs that I can take while still accommodating my work schedule.
I think what I'm really enjoying most of all is the process of learning a performance piece. The steady build in anticipation for our upcoming performances. This semester is vastly different than first semester, which was focused primarly on technique. We spent much more time at the barre, we learned much shorter center combinations that we worked on for 1-4 weeks and then moved on.
There is something magical about preparing for a production. I don't have much experience with the dance team/competition circuit type of performance, other than what I've seen on TV (which is obviously highly skewed) but I think I'd enjoy that world. I enjoy taking classes, but I find the creative process of teaching and learning and tweaking choreography to be very satisfying. Feeling the music, allowing it to take you places in the routine.
It's something not everyone enjoys. You can see it in the eyes of some of the girls in class-- being too shy to really open up and embrace unusual movements that the instructor asks us to do. I was there as a kid. I was as shy as they came, and very self conscious. Now as an adult I'm less worried about what my peers might think of me especially considering I'm 10 years older than most of them. I'm OK with "weird" choreography and know it's part of the overall vision. It's exciting when you see another student decide to embrace the lines and shapes she's being asked to do.
I've never in my life ever said "I can't wait for Monday!", but I really can't wait to get back in class. I wish I could take two years off of work to go back to school. I'd go for choreography for sure and become a dance teacher. I think dancing in school full time would be the most amazing thing ever. A girl can dream, right?
Happy Dancing!!
-L
I had a week off of dance due to travel for work last week. It was all of the things I listed above and more, definitely a mixed bag! I've been going hard since January, never missing a class and taking extra classes with Milwaukee Ballet. I've been sore somewhere in my body for months, and it was really nice to allow my body to restore and regenerate.
I traveled to a small town about 1.5 hours outside of Cleveland for the work visit, and unfortunately I wasn't able to find any studios that I could drop in on, so it was a dance free week. I left last Sunday and returned Friday afternoon, and in that whole time I didn't dance a single step. I found myself coming down with either a bad cold or my allergies kicking in the Saturday before I left, and that sickness kicked my butt the whole time I was in OH for work. So I guess if I had to get sick, it's lucky it was during an off week! I'm almost 100% again now, so that's a relief. :)
Dance seems to be entwining itself with my soul more and more as time goes on. I don't know how I managed to take the whole summer off last year, I don't think I can handle it this time. I'm searching for master classes, workshops, and other summer programs that I can take while still accommodating my work schedule.
I think what I'm really enjoying most of all is the process of learning a performance piece. The steady build in anticipation for our upcoming performances. This semester is vastly different than first semester, which was focused primarly on technique. We spent much more time at the barre, we learned much shorter center combinations that we worked on for 1-4 weeks and then moved on.
There is something magical about preparing for a production. I don't have much experience with the dance team/competition circuit type of performance, other than what I've seen on TV (which is obviously highly skewed) but I think I'd enjoy that world. I enjoy taking classes, but I find the creative process of teaching and learning and tweaking choreography to be very satisfying. Feeling the music, allowing it to take you places in the routine.
It's something not everyone enjoys. You can see it in the eyes of some of the girls in class-- being too shy to really open up and embrace unusual movements that the instructor asks us to do. I was there as a kid. I was as shy as they came, and very self conscious. Now as an adult I'm less worried about what my peers might think of me especially considering I'm 10 years older than most of them. I'm OK with "weird" choreography and know it's part of the overall vision. It's exciting when you see another student decide to embrace the lines and shapes she's being asked to do.
I've never in my life ever said "I can't wait for Monday!", but I really can't wait to get back in class. I wish I could take two years off of work to go back to school. I'd go for choreography for sure and become a dance teacher. I think dancing in school full time would be the most amazing thing ever. A girl can dream, right?
Happy Dancing!!
-L
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