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Too often these days, I find that some dancers want to place blame on everyone other than themselves. Sometimes, the parents want to blame everyone but their dancer. It is the age in which we live, it appears. When it comes to dance, the successes and accomplishments one has within the art form, lies completely with the individual. For example, let's say a dancer didn't do as well as they hoped at the recent dance competition. They and/or their parents choose to blame the teacher, or say the choreography wasn't good enough. How about just admitting someone else was better that day at that competition? It's ok for someone to be better. It's also okay to appreciate the hard work of another. One of my teachers told me in high school, "Meredith, there will always be people better than you but there will always be people you are better than. Keep working." Instead of getting upset and playing the blame game, perhaps it is time to go back to the roots by looking in the mirror, do some good old-fashioned work, and appreciate the art of dance and all its glory.
Dance is an individual art form. It is extremely personal. You can have textbooks for references, but you must have a teacher, a mentor, to guide you and an open mind to learn. The dancers themselves are in complete control of the outcome. The individual decides just how far they will go by their level of commitment and determination, not just their level of interest. Training is HARD. Dancing can but fun, but it's not all fun and games. Dancing is about constant training and commitment to your mind and body. A dancer must decide to "dance smart" in order to maintain a level of accuracy and continue to grow with technique. Wonderful movement quality doesn't come overnight. It is developed with much practice. Practice with intent and purpose. As my own ballet teacher would say, "You can chose to be a dancer or an uncontrollable mover." Once a dancer reaches a certain level of achievement, without continued training, much can be lost in a short amount of time. You may have heard the saying, "If you don't use it, you lose it." Well, that is true. Often times, school dance team, for example, gets in the way. A dancer decides to be on the dance team at school and that can be time consuming. They decide to cut back on the "boring" classes, aka technique classes, and only take "fun" classes, such as choreography style classes like contemporary. Man oh man, will the ability level quickly fly out the window! Ballet classes also make a huge difference. You can't replace a good ballet class. Ballet is foundation of it all. A dancer cannot cut out basic, fundamental classes and expect to drastically improve.
Blaming the teacher for faults or disappointments the dancer may have when said dancer doesn't show up for class, rehearsals, take the recommended technique classes, or make the corrections given, isn't fair either. As I have written in another blog post, "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make them drink." A teacher cannot make a student have work-ethic or a desire to really learn. It not the teacher's job to stand on their head to motivate the class each week by saying, "Yay! You are so awesome!" It's the dancer's job to motivate themselves. A student can want to achieve all day long. However, wanting it and working for it, are two very different things. Without the personal drive, the work ethic just won't be there. Often times, parents have more of a desire for their child than the child has for his or herself, and that creates a problem. If the desire isn't within the student, it doesn't matter how bad the parent wants it. The desire has to come from the dancer.
Let's talk about choreography for a minute. Blaming the choreography is never fair. Who is performing? The choreographer or the dancer? Let's say the choreography really is terrible. A brilliant dancer can make even the worst of the worst choreography look beautiful so that excuse holds no water. What a dancer does with the choreography is up to them. THEY must work. Another point I must make is a good competition judge knows to score on what the dancer DOES with the choreography, not ON the choreography. Now with this being said, choreographers can only give dancers what they are capable of executing. If choreographers are forced to give dancers choreography not suited for them, it can be a disaster. Teachers, dancers, and choreographers just need to be honest about what a dancer is actually ready to perform. I am all about giving dancers styles and elements that are out of their comfort zone, things to challenge them artistically and technically, etc. I believe these things to be necessary for advancement and growth, but that I believe is for the classroom not the stage. The stage is for performance ready qualities and skills. Patience is a virtue. Sometimes parents push the teacher/choreographer to give their child a piece and elements they aren't ready for and then blame the teacher/choreographer. Why? Because they just want it. They see others doing it and think they, or their child, should do it too.*Sigh.* Once again, dance is individual. Dancers learn, grow, and advance at different paces. Comparison is deadly.
The level of success a dancer can achieve lies within them. They need to be confident with who THEY are. It isn't about how interested a dancer or their parent is, it is about how committed the dancer is to the art. Dance is a way of life. Dance is all about personal responsibility, desire, and work ethic. A dancer only gets out of class what they put into class. No matter how tired a dancer is at the end of a class, they should always finish stronger than they started. Like I always say, if you love to dance, you better love to work hard. Dance is so fulfilling when you feel accomplished and proud of yourself. Not proud by the trophy in your hand, but proud of the personal goals you accomplished.
Facebook: The Competitive Edge by Meredith
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Twitter: @the_comp_edge
For class, choreography, or booking information, please email: meredith@thecompetitiveedgebymeredith.com
You can also read The Competitive Edge by Meredith on Dance Apps Inc's app with NappyTabs, Dancer's Toolbox under Dancer's Dish.
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