This week I sent out a manuscript of a scientific review article. Next week I'll go to DC to attend the American Association for Cancer Research's (AACR) annual meeting. For the writing and preparation for the meeting, it has been a busy week.
To reward myself, we went to two dance parties over 3/31/13 weekend, on Friday 3/29 a masquerade ball for a college ballroom dance club, and Saturday 3/30 a West Coast Swing (WCS) contest/event: Tulsa Spring Swing (TSS).
Tulsa Spring Swing is already the "seventh annual", and has grown into a well-run WCS event under Tulsa-based event director Jeanne Degeyter. This year they upgraded the event with a fancier hotel, more event staff, workshops and contests. Most notable was more contestants, mostly from OK, MO, TX, AR and LA. The floor was full and it looked good.
For the people who are unfamiliar with WCS event/contests, the contests come with a variety of categories. The categories are divided by many different factors. Newcomer, Novice, Intermediate/Advanced and Open, are divisions made by experience and accumulated contest points. The "experience and contest points" may not necessarily reflect the dancer's current level, but generally serve as a guideline. One needs to set some rules of the game.
There are categories divided by what you do. Jack and Jill (in which you draw a partner so that you would dance with someone you don't dance with regularly, and dance to a song that you are not told about previously. This is supposed to test your ability to dance socially), Strictly Swing (in which you sign up as a couple, but dance to a song that you are not told about previously. Your on-spot choreography is tested here), and routine (you sign up as a couple, specify a song, and show your dance. A lot of choreography can go into this).
There are categories divided by who you dance with. Pro-am means one of the dancers is a professional, and the other is amateur, usually a student of the pro. Male or female refers to which gender is a pro.
In addition, they can add age as a dividing factor, like Juniors (the young) or Masters (dancers over 50, usually).
So with this many categories (like, "novice strictly swing" or "female pro-am intermediate strictly swing"), you should be able to find a category you can sign up and compete in happily. You don't have to compete against the nation's best. It just does not make sense if you have to. This way, you have a better chance of going home with a trophy or two and with good memories.
What was noticeable in the TSS event was that there had been an increase in the level in the contests. As Damon D'Amico (a champion WCS instructor/dancer from Houston) pointed out in his MC, dancers in the dance community have seen a lot so that they may be under-appreciative, but to the untrained or someone who just walks in, even the entry level contest is amazing. I agree.
Let's talk about my thoughts on contests a bit. The way I see it, a contest is a show. What you show can differ depending on the category, but the basic notion is that you show or demonstrate what you got to the audience, and to entertain (or impress, amuse, inspire, etc) the audience with your art.
This implies that to be a contestant, you need to have something to show, and have a dose of professional mindset. The days may be over for a contestant when you are happy just shaking your body. Now you might want to think what you can show to them. This switch in mindset, consciously or not, should happen as the contest experience deepens.
To dance like professionals, probably the most important thing is to think like professionals, and do as they do. That includes practice, and the sense of service. You got to practice to take your art above a certain level. There is a certain threshold where your art becomes an art, and anything below the threshold does not meet the professional standard. And equally importantly, when you are a professional it is not about only you anymore. Firstly you need to dance as a couple, so you would be a fool if you do not think of the dance as a couple's act and do not aim at maximizing performance as a couple. Then think for the community/audience. They are the ones who support you.
This introduction of the third person perspective may be the most important transition in your partner dance training.
I was also thinking about how you involve yourself in dancing. Professional dancers and teachers, they of course started out as dancers, and had fun primarily moving their body, then their partner's. But to be a professional, you need to appeal to others through what you can provide.
A dancer's body changes over time inevitably, and dance is an ephemeral art. Being an entertainer-dancer is unlikely to last long. That is why professional dancers have to think about their next business model sooner or later. Shifting efforts to teaching, event-directing, studio-running etc. are ways to construct new business models out of their dancing. The ways to contribute will and have to change over time. In fact, writing a how-to book about a dance is one way to contribute.
Too much digression? It was great to meet friends again, or to dance with someone new. We went home happy and slept well on Sunday.