It's funny as I never intended to raise dancers. I always thought that my girls would play soccer (Lil' Sis is doing that this spring as a matter of fact) or maybe get into gymnastics. But not dance. I don't know why, but I didn't think it would be something our family would enjoy. All the costumes and make-up and practicing the same routines over and over and over. just didn't sound like something I'd invest our time and money into. But boy was I wrong!
This year the recital had a Hollywood theme. All dances were done to songs from the movies. Lil' Sis danced to I Saw the Light from Tangled. Boy was that a hit with her preschool class! Big Sis's tap routine was Tightrope from Happy Feet. Her jazz dance was to Perfect Day from Legally Blonde. And her ballet was to blue Danube from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Her ballet routine was one of my favorite dances ever, it was so beautiful!
Big Sis has been dancing for 3 years. She now takes ballet, tap and jazz. In addition to the Spring Recital, this year she was part of the studio's production of the Nutcracker as well as their spring ballet, La Boutique Fantasque. She also had a few extra performances this year because she is part of a performance team. I am so proud of her and how hard she has worked. She has never complained about all of the extra rehearsals as well as all of the extra stretching and practicing at home. In addition, her confidence amazes me. As a 2nd grader, she showed no fear auditioning for both ballet productions. Being one of the smallest dancers her age, she also is normally front and center onstage and has had no problem leading her groups in their dances. I would have never been brave enough to do all she does in front of an audience!e!
This was Lil' Sis's first year of dance. She was in the standard first year preschool ballet/tap combo class. I am so proud of how well she has absorbed all her teacher has shown her all year. She quickly picked up many of the French terms for ballet and easily caught on to some tricky (for a preschooler) tap moves. Not too shabby for a four year old! And on stage - watch out! She's definitely the shy one out of the two girls, but you'd never guess that on stage. She bravely looks right out at the audience with a huge smile on her face. She was beaming after the performance and appears to have discovered that she loves being in the spotlight!
So dance isn't so bad after all! I love the confidence my daughters have developed from being in dance. I also love the discipline that comes along with being in a class for an hour. Ballet, especially, teaches the girls to focus and work hard. And you cannot argue with the fact that dance is great exercise. Just check out the dancers on So You Think you Can Dance. They are in amazing shape!
Another year of dance is done. I'll miss our busy Wednesday nights at the studio as well as getting to see the new friends we made this year. We'll be doing tumbling and gymnastics over the summer just to mix things up a bit, but we are already looking forward to the end of August and the beginning of another great year of dance!
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