The annual recital was always my favorite part as a dancer and it still holds true as I am now a teacher. All of the hard work the dancers have been putting in gets to be showcased on stage. However, it can be a bit stressful for parents (and us teachers too!). The best thing you can do to prepare your child is to plan ahead and be prepared yourself. Here are some tips for making this showcase a great memory for your little dancer.
Know Your Dates
- Registration forms and costume deposits are due to your child’s teacher by saturday, march 28. If you know your student won’t be participating in the showcase, let your teacher know. We’ve been busy choreographing and if we’re going to have fewer students than we planned, we need to readjust.
- Tech rehearsal is scheduled for may 6 & 7. You received a packet from your teacher about dates and times for your child’s rehearsal times. It is very important that your child be at this rehearsal. This is the only chance he/she will get to be onstage before the performance and familiarize them with the space. I remember growing up and being at tech rehearsal for over 4 hours. Luckily this isn’t the case with design dance! You’ll be in and out in no time.
- There are two performance times on saturday, may 9. Make sure you know which one your student is a part of.
Practice, Practice, Practice!
As a teacher, it makes me so happy to hear from my students that they’ve been practicing at home. Ask your child’s teacher what song they are using for their performance so that you can practice with your child at home. This way they’ll be comfortable dancing on stage and will know their dance. They’ve been working so hard and we want you to see what they’ve learned! It’s very important for new students this session. With the showcase being after a short 8 week session and a week off for spring break, we had to jump right into learning choreography. This can be tough on new students to catch up so practicing at home will be a great help! Feel free to ask your teacher what skills they could be working on. We love talking with you about your dancer!
Make a Checklist
I’m a big fan of checklists and this will help keep you organized for the day of the showcase. There’s nothing worse than getting to the auditorium and realizing you left your child’s shoes, tights, etc. At home. You will be getting a costume form from us with everything listed that your child needs to bring. I like to put everything in a large one-zip bag for each dance number with the items listed on the front with a sharpie to know that everything is in one place. It’s also a good idea to throw in some small entertainment options while they’re waiting to go on stage: books, coloring books, crayons, etc.
- Costume (tried on ahead of time at home to ensure that it fits)
- Dance shoes
- Tights
- Props/accessories
- Makeup: if desired
- Hair supplies: hair ties, bobbi pins, hairspray, bows, etc.
Prepare Your Dancer
Dancing onstage can be intimidating for some students. Let them know ahead of time where he/she is going, what’s going to happen and where you’ll be the whole time. We have wonderful backstage volunteers to help the dancers but it’s always good to hear it from mom and dad. Be encouraging and enthusiastic of their performance while keeping it light and fun so that they feel confident. The most important part is having fun!
We can’t wait to show you everything your child has been working on!
-Sarah Frye, Design Dance Instructor