In March I heard about a 10 week dance class, called "Dance for Musical Theatre", taught by Repertory Dance Theatre. The invite on Facebook said it was for "anyone who'd like to brush up on their skills, who'd like to have a comfortable place to begin exploring, or anyone who'd just like to come in and have fun making art!"
I've known for a long time, that when it comes to musical theatre, dancing is not my strong suit. It's not really that I CAN'T dance. I can get it eventually, but I'm sort of a slow learner, and it doesn't come naturally to me.
The class was to be held on Sundays from 11:00 a.m. til 12:30 p.m., to accommodate people who are involved in local theatre productions, on weekdays and Saturdays. This worked out perfectly, since I am in a play, and also have band. I could pay per class, or buy a punch card for the whole 10 weeks. I figured, I might as well jump right in, so I paid a pretty penny for the punch card.
The next Sunday morning, I set my alarm, (hey, 11:00 a.m. is early on a Sunday), and arrived promptly for the first class. At first, it was just me and the instructor staring at each other. I asked if the class was for all levels, he said yes. I asked if he could give me a private lesson, if no one else showed up, but he wasn't allowed to. He said that the state requires there to be 6 people in order to hold class. But finally, more people arrived.
We started by warming up our bodies for a whole song. Then, we did ab crunches for a whole song. Despite recently having a baby and not working out, I was able to do crunches for the whole song, without stopping. I was very pleased with myself. I noticed some of the other dancers DID have to stop to take breaks.
Next, we did things like chassés, leaps, and pas de bourrées. I was only vaguely aware of these terms, and pretty much had no idea how to do them, but I did my best to follow along.
Here's a little bit of background information on my own dance history. I took a dance class from a neighborhood lady when I was about 4 or 5. I have no idea if she had any actual dancing experience herself, but I did learn plié and relevé.
Then, in Jr. High, by some miracle, I made Dance Company. Maybe they let everyone in who auditioned, I don't know. They usually put me in the back row, not because I was tallest, but because you couldn't see me as well back there.
I think I may have taken a beginning dance class in high school, to fulfill my PE credit. Since there were a lot of football players in the class, I wasn't the worst one, but it did take me a while to learn the dance. I also signed up for Beginning Dance for Non-Majors in college, thinking that since it was for non-majors, it would be more my speed. WRONG. I couldn't keep up, so I dropped the class. And that's basically the extent of my formal dance training. Pathetic.
Back to "Dance for Musical Theatre". After our floor exercises, we start learning the choreography. The dance was relatively easy to learn, though the details were surprisingly technical. I was able to keep up with the others...barely. But that mirror! Not only did it accentuate how much bigger I was than everyone else, it also made it apparent how much better than me they were. While the rest of the class looked like this,
I looked like this,
which made me feel like this:
I've known for a long time, that when it comes to musical theatre, dancing is not my strong suit. It's not really that I CAN'T dance. I can get it eventually, but I'm sort of a slow learner, and it doesn't come naturally to me.
The class was to be held on Sundays from 11:00 a.m. til 12:30 p.m., to accommodate people who are involved in local theatre productions, on weekdays and Saturdays. This worked out perfectly, since I am in a play, and also have band. I could pay per class, or buy a punch card for the whole 10 weeks. I figured, I might as well jump right in, so I paid a pretty penny for the punch card.
The next Sunday morning, I set my alarm, (hey, 11:00 a.m. is early on a Sunday), and arrived promptly for the first class. At first, it was just me and the instructor staring at each other. I asked if the class was for all levels, he said yes. I asked if he could give me a private lesson, if no one else showed up, but he wasn't allowed to. He said that the state requires there to be 6 people in order to hold class. But finally, more people arrived.
We started by warming up our bodies for a whole song. Then, we did ab crunches for a whole song. Despite recently having a baby and not working out, I was able to do crunches for the whole song, without stopping. I was very pleased with myself. I noticed some of the other dancers DID have to stop to take breaks.
Next, we did things like chassés, leaps, and pas de bourrées. I was only vaguely aware of these terms, and pretty much had no idea how to do them, but I did my best to follow along.
Here's a little bit of background information on my own dance history. I took a dance class from a neighborhood lady when I was about 4 or 5. I have no idea if she had any actual dancing experience herself, but I did learn plié and relevé.
Then, in Jr. High, by some miracle, I made Dance Company. Maybe they let everyone in who auditioned, I don't know. They usually put me in the back row, not because I was tallest, but because you couldn't see me as well back there.
I think I may have taken a beginning dance class in high school, to fulfill my PE credit. Since there were a lot of football players in the class, I wasn't the worst one, but it did take me a while to learn the dance. I also signed up for Beginning Dance for Non-Majors in college, thinking that since it was for non-majors, it would be more my speed. WRONG. I couldn't keep up, so I dropped the class. And that's basically the extent of my formal dance training. Pathetic.
Back to "Dance for Musical Theatre". After our floor exercises, we start learning the choreography. The dance was relatively easy to learn, though the details were surprisingly technical. I was able to keep up with the others...barely. But that mirror! Not only did it accentuate how much bigger I was than everyone else, it also made it apparent how much better than me they were. While the rest of the class looked like this,
I looked like this,
which made me feel like this:
 |
| Clearly not a dancer |
I felt like I should be in the Remedial Dance class. If only the other dancers were bad beginners like me, I wouldn't feel so stupid. I haven't had the courage to go back, even though I paid a lot of money for it.
Plus, you know, 11:00 is EARLY on a Sunday morning. I think I'll sleep in.
I am surprised you haven't gone back, and then at the same time I can totally understand why. Dancing is way more fun when you have others around you at your same level or at least a friend there. I bet you were better than you think - for sure better than Napoleon D. ;)
ReplyDeletep.s. I'm sorry to say this, but because you actually CAN dance, even if it takes longer for you to pick up than all those dancing prodigy's, you are still a triple threat. :P
Keri, I took an adult dance class about two years ago. I also bought a punch pass. I also stopped going. There is something about a room full of mirrors that brings out every inch of your body. I was just embarrassed to see myself try and move and not let the heavier parts of me move independently from my body. I think it's why I love performing comedic roles in theatre. You're suppose to look funny on stage, so when my natural dancing abilities portray that, I feel successful. HOWEVER! I've danced with you and know you are way better at it than you think. Try again. At least one more time.
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