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2011 -The Year of the Troupe-a-Doop

9/17/2011

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Pressure.   In 2009, our dance company won the Belly Dancer of the Year Competition, and we've been chasing the "1st place" title ever since.  During 2010, we won awards (1st runner up, 2nd place, etc) at several events, but the winning title alluded us.   Luckily, we reversed the trend in 2011 and won two big competitions -- Belly Dancer USA and Yaa Halla Y'all.  

I wanted to sit down an figure out what we did differently,  and here is what I think changed our trend : we had fun and really enjoyed dancing together.   Okay, I'll admit it, this isn't the epiphany you were probably expecting, but I really believe that is the secret sauce for all dance groups.  

I've now logged tons of hours watching performers and troupes at competitions  -- the work and skill of all these dancers is always evident when they take the stage.  The ones that get my attention are the ones that engage their 'hearts' and get out of their 'heads'.  They also are clearly enjoying dancing together (that energy is always felt by and audience)  AND you can't tell who the troupe director is which is a big plus for me.    I also really like the ones that break the mold and do something unexpected.  

So back to 2010 -- we had all the right stuff -- great choreography, beautiful custom-made costume, great dancers -- we performed everything exactly right, but were not dancing to have fun and entertain --we were dancing to win -- I think when you take on that type of perspective your body, your attitude and your energy changes.    

As we entered 2011 -- it wasn't about the win, it was about performing our best, entertaining the audience, enjoying the dance, and sharing lots fun and laughter along the way.  That attitude helped fuel the year of the Troupe-A-Doop



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Getting Ready to Compete

9/2/2010

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Okay.  I'll admit it.  I love competing.  It started early in my life when I'd rush to finish off a pile of pancakes before my brother...proudly spinning my fork after my last bite.   I paid for those pancakes later.  

On to the subject at hand --Preparing for Belly Dance Competitions   

There are so many different types -- friendly hafla-type competitions, quasi-pro competitions and amazing international competitions.  

If you're in a troupe, make sure that all your troupe mates share the same goal .... competitions are a huge commitment for everyone, and you've got to make sure that you all share the same passion.   You also need to be prepared to take criticism --- Competition judges score your performance and give you very direct feedback -- not to easy if you have a big ego.       

Preparing for competition:  Getting into competition mode is not for the faint at heart... Step 1 of our process starts with picking our theme for the year -- a style of dance we haven't done before that we all want to learn --that is the easiest part.  Step 2 is to decide on our budget for the year, determine the competitions we'd like to try and make sure that we are clear on the time limits for the competitions.  (There is nothing worse than spending countless hours working on a choreography, only to find you need to change it all because of a time limit you didn't realize).   Step 3 is about music selection -- OMG !  We go through hundreds of songs, trying to get music that has the right combination of pacing --with moments of drama, jubulent celebration and hand clapping fun.  Our mentor, Leea Azziz,  always stressed that we are entertainers first, and we've found that the music truly determines everything !  So pick your music carefully.  
Step 4 of competition preparation is about costuming -- we sketch out ideas on our costume  based on our themes & music, and work with an extraordinary costumer to bring it all to life.      Steps 1-4 generally take about 1 1/2 months to sort out.... then comes the creation of choreography.  

Step 5 is choreography creation which really needs its own complete blog post, so I'll just say-- urk deluxe !    Plan on months of time in the creation, hand off and perfection of choreography.  To all the folks that create lots of choreography -- my hat goes off to all of you extraordinary people....it is soooo tough to do.    Step 6: Practice, practice, practice.   It's not just about getting the steps, it is making sure that you all look like one unit-- arms, heads exactly in unison--and try to visualize the song so you can dance to it.  In one song, we actually all imagine we are aliens landing on hostile soil, and that our armpits are our breathing apparatus... the entire song has a story-line that we know which makes it lots of fun to dance to.      Step 1-6 takes about 6 months of time, and lots of time together getting everything unified.    

Competition Day: 
Note to self: we've got to plan to give ourselves more time to get ready. We always end up having to hustle at the 11th hour -- There's always something --a broken fingernail, forgotten costume part, loose bra.  Be prepared for DRAMA, and bring lots of humor.     You'll also find that your mouth becomes dry as the Sahara...don't know what is with that, so we always bring a supply of sucking candy so our lips don't stick to our teeth when we get on stage.   

The moment has arrived --you've just spent months of preparation -- your name is announced and your music starts. Sometimes you can see the judges faces, and sometimes you can't.  The crowd cheers you on and for seven remarkable minutes you feel like your flying !   That moment is worth all the trials and tribulations it takes to get there !  



Next Post:  The in's and out's of some of the big competitions.    
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Dancing in a Troupe

7/8/2009

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Raks A'Diva started as a social troupe -- our primary aim was to get to know other dancers, perform together and  enjoy spending time together.   The first adjustment was shifting from being 'soloists' to dancing together as a unit -- when the dancer next to you is six inches shorter -- you just have to adjust.    This took time as we had eight very strong soloists, each with their own style.... compromise and  persuasion took on new meaning.   

The first year of the troupe started as a  perfect dictatorship -- as we were ruled by our iron-feather-fisted Director Zamon who took care of everything.   We performed together for six months and entered a competition where we won THIRD PLACE.    This became a major wake up call for us, and we made a big shift in our focus and decided we wanted to make the effort to become a 
Professional Troupe.    

What is a Professional Troupe?    This is a group of very committed dancers who often invest 5 -10 hours a week in rehearsals to be at the top of their game.     Most professional troupes are run by an artistic director who conducts auditions, establishes choreography and sets tone for the troupe.  

Raks A'Diva troupe members made the commitment to be the very best we could be,  and we set our sites on seriously competing.   Unlike most professional troupes, all our dancers participate in decisions  -- helping select music, participating in choreography design, etc.  We're a family and a very hard working one at that.   Our troupe members often spent 6+ hours every week practice, plus attending classes or performing as soloists.      We set a goal of re-inventing ourselves each year so that we can learn new skills and grow as dancers.    We also have a strict rule that we must have fun in the process --sometime we have to remind ourselves about that one a lot !!      

We all love dancing, and we all love dancing together.  We also love to spend time together and have great fun in the process.   We're blessed because we genuinely like each other .  We don't have any formal rules or by-laws --just an incredible commitment to be the best we can be and enjoy the ride along the way.  

2 Comments

    Iman

    Co-Director of Troupe Raks A'Diva.   Resident Social Mediator & Twitterer

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