Now that was a show!
Wow, what a way to celebrate a great year. Passionate performances, emotional crowd, awesome lighting by the tech crew, and great support by all the volunteers and parents.
We arrived at Chief Sepass at 10:45 to set up and rehearse for the afternoon show. All dancers made their way there around 11:00 and then met on the stage for a studio meeting.
After rehearsing the finale and discussing the way the performance is to proceed, the curtains were shut and the crowds began to filter in. The students peeked through the curtain with excitement from the knowledge that the people in the audience were there to watch THEIR performance.
Carlee's stage solo "Wilkommen" started the afternoon show by engaging the audience with an entertaining routine. The 12 minute production of "Annie" followed and demonstrated all the hard work that had gone on throughout the year. The matinee did have some minor bumps: wardrobe malfunctions, music problems, and confused dancers. The reason for the confusion was that for these dancers, this was their first true performance of the year; all other dances were competitions in which the lighting had to be the same for every dance. During the year-end show, there are no time restrictions so the choreographer gets to choose the type of lighting and is able to offer more variety for entrances and exits. As I said in the previous blog, it is unfortunate that dance competitions cannot be more like performances - as that is where the dancers truly shine. All in all, the matinee show was a huge success. Parents were so happy to see their children on stage doing what they love - and no lighting or costume problems can ever take that away. The show finished with a finale that included all the dancers in the studio and ended with a huge round of applause that filled the dancers with emotion.
Surprisingly, after all their efforts in the matinee, the energy of the evening performance was significantly higher. The dancers were running on pure adrenalin and feeding off the audience; at some points, I could not even hear the music because of the cheering from both the audience and the dancers back stage. Kaitlynn and Anna's pre-primary ballet duo "Shhh" grabbed the audience and then Lauren's Jazz solo and Carlee and Brianna's hip hop duo kicked the energy level up another notch. The tech guys from LFAS took it to a new level for this performance with lighting that truly exemplified the choreographer's vision of the dances. The first half finished with the uptempo and sassy Breakin' Dishes and as you walked through the lobby, you could hear the discussions and reflections about the first half; the best part was that there was still another half to go!
"Baila Baila" started the second half with more energy for the audience; this atmosphere continued with all the dancers performing at their highest level. As MC, I could not help but recognize the camaraderie and support going on back stage as well as the huge support from the audience... my thoughts from the last blog, "The Greatness of a Year End Show" became so evident during the performances. As the clock approached 9:00 with the dancers having been there 10 hours, you would think the energy levels would start to fade. During the finale, however, their seemed to be more team spirit and energy than before! When the dancers hands raised at the end of the song "Human" you could see the pride and emotion in every single face in that theatre; from dancers to parents, from volunteers to dance fans, each and every person had a twinkle in their eye that said, "Now that was a show!".
Thank you once again to all the parents and students for their continued hard work and dedication to Kick It Up A Notch. You are the heart and soul of this studio and your efforts will never go unnoticed.
A reminder that registration for returning students in June 12th from 4-8 and for new students, June 30th from 4-8.
Don't forget that the year is not over!!! Come out and support "Annie" on Saturday, June 27 or Sunday, June 28 at the Chief Sepass Theatre.
by Chris Wejr chris@kickitupanotch.ca