Author: Aquinnah

Let the records show that Miss Bethanny is absolutely amazing and, that I love her.

Upon arriving at the studio today, I very nearly beat Moriah to the door, though she would argue otherwise. She and I talked about the importance of baseball bats in relationship to math class for several minutes, and then class began!

Well… kind of.

I was surprised to see Miss Sara walking out the door as her contemporary class ended– wait! I was just as surprised to see Bethanny walk in with all of her gear. “Yeah,” she started, “I wasn’t expecting this either. So, I actually do not have a lesson plan today.”

That stated, our class consisted of off-the-top-of-Miss-Bethanny’s-head combinations (including an upbeat plie scenario with The Beetles) along with abs. And yes, it was extremely awesome.

Our abs workout in particular made me very happy, as Bethanny used our curtain call song from recital 2012-2013 (To listen to this song, see “Recital Songs 2013” on the right-hand side of your computer screen). It took me right back to May, where I had no desire to leave.

At  the end of class, my sisters and I lined up in order to give Miss Bethanny “hugs of appreciation.”

“I love [Name of Studio] so much!” she exclaimed.

Yeah, I love it too. <3

Laugh. It’ll make you feel better. <3

It has been a lovely day, beautiful dancers! (And I’m feeling quite random, so I apologize in advance….)

In Miss Bethanny’s Student Led Performance Ministries class, we (now including Abby!) continued to plan our Christmas performance (temporarily entitled, The Notcracker). As of right now, we have the basic scenes planned out as well as our playlist for the occasion. …More to come…!

Ballet 2A was fantastic– I absolutely adore the students! Each girls’ turn-out muscles have improved immensely since last week, as well as their spotting skills. Ms. Tina introduced them to “opposition” and began choreographing a dance to Britt Nicole’s, “All This Time.”

Fantasy is only fantasy if you think of it that way. <3 (Something that I came up with today, after finishing Catherine Gilbert Murdock’s, Princess Ben.)

Well, lovely dancers, the Tuesday Training 3 class has officially closed, and today was my first Training 1 and 2 lesson with Miss Sara for 2013— what an experience!

It was great to meet Jenna and Channing, two incoming Training 1s. I was also able to see Lily, Emma’s little sister, in class. And, of course, seeing Adysen was the highlight of my entire day…! <3 Good luck girls!

First off, my hip (?) was giving me a boatload of issues. Throughout the extent of three combinations, Miss Sara and I tried to put a finger on exactly what was causing the trouble, but to no avail. Oh, well… I have a good excuse to take a hot bath tonight…*tries to look sad*

An even greater challenge arose with the slow, tedious combinations which my teacher dealt out to the class; I had completely forgotten how much effort it takes to move slowly. It was a fabulous experience, however, for I was able to correct the essentials (my head, arms, turn-out, toes, etc.) which seem to slip when faster, more complex combinations arise. I do believe that this class is going to give my technique a new-found quality and clarity, and that makes me very happy… 🙂

In a word, lovely, beautiful, amazing dancers, today was a blessing. <3

Miss Sara’s Training 2 and 3 class was a challenge, to say the least. It entailed barre work, center and some extensive across-the-floor. It was definitely a learning experience, but as always, I feel that we are the better for it (I’m sure that my beloved sisters would agree!).

Our hardship– though not so hard as to be considered not enjoyable– was brightened in several aspects. For starters, Emma showed up for barre today– ah! <3 It was so good to see her and to dance with her once again. Come back soon, Emmy…!

Secondly, Ms. Tina kindly visited our class, bringing Bethanny and her Training 1s along. We all sat down and had a ten-minute “Training Meeting,” during which Ms. Tina expressed her care for us and prayed over us. “If you ever need to talk about anything, whether it be about dance or something else, Miss Sara, Miss Bethanny, Miss Mimi… we’re all here for you,” she said sincerely.

I can’t even begin to describe how much that comment means to me. That I have a group of teachers who are willing to work through ANYTHING with me… that’s special. So thank you, all of you. I have the best teachers in the whole, wide world. <3

After our meeting, Miss Bethanny slid an envelope across the floor toward me. “That’s for you,” she said.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed a massive candy bar attached to the outside…! Kaden and Brody… Mine. 🙂

Inside the envelope, my teacher wrote the most heartfelt letter, one which will have a place in my keepsake box for all of eternity. Yes, Miss Bethanny, it’s going to be an incredible year. <3

So many hearts! Goodness, it sounds like I love my studio or something… <3

Oh my gosh.

Oh my gosh.

Oh my gosh.

Nobody pinch me.

I do apologize, but today was simply the best day… ever.

First off, truth be told, Miss Bethanny’s choreography class consists of only two students: Elizabeth and myself. And, truth be told, I didn’t mind. Nothing could have made that class more enjoyable.

Today’s lesson was pretty simple. We worked on handwriting. Kind of.

“Choreography ages 13+” has encountered a name-change. It is now entitled, “Student-Led Performance Ministries ages 11+,” making the title pretty self-explanatory. During the fall semester, our group (including students from a few of Miss Bethanny’s other classes who “don’t have a choice”) will be performing the Biblical Christmas story. For the spring semester, we’ll shift gears and tell the tale of Easter through dance— ah! So exciting!

So, our object today was to brainstorm. We started off by writing down everything that we could possibly think of that a [short, dance] performance could need. Afterwards, Bethanny gave us some input on our lists and read to us the story of Christmas from the books of Luke and Matthew. Elizabeth and I took notes, recording our thoughts on certain characters, areas and events. We then shared our lists and ideas with the class. From there, our teacher explained that the only thing that she has planned for our first performance is the opening music piece. Other than that…well.. it’s up to us!

I will give more details on our performance layout later on, but for now, I will tell you this: It’s going to be INCREDIBLE. From our “thesis statement,” to our candle-light service, to our specially choreographed pieces… oh, my. Prepare to be wowed.

If you attend classes at “the studio,” WE NEED YOUR SKILLS. Smiles.

As for assistant teaching with Ms. Tina, things were perfect! <3 The girls are very well-behaved and mature. We worked on barre, center, across-the-floor, worship and “tickets” (the end-of-class reward for this age group)— all in an hour’s time! I felt like Miss Sara as I went around and corrected girls’ turn-out and arms. It was glorious…!

Some people spend four hours at a half-day at school. Some people spend four hours on a road-trip. Some people spend four hours shopping. And some people spend four hours at dance. Like me.

What a wonderful evening!

I walked into Studio B today, prepared to teach my brains out in Miss Bethanny’s ballet/tap class. Upon sighting Bethanny, I gave her a huge hug, and the two of us expressed our excitement for the year ahead. “When I found out that you were going to be assisting me with this class,” she said, “I started doing back-flips!”

The class was AWESOME. I loved it. The girls were so very polite and mature. We worked on a bit of center, some stretching, leaps and played a few rounds of Freeze Dance— what fun!

After work, I had a thirty-minute dinner-break (which Abby so kindly joined me for), and then it was on to modern! The class is much smaller this year, as we have three different levels now, which is quite nice. To begin, we performed our usual warm-up, complete with plies and tendus. Afterward, we did some across the floor work (ah!– crazy!) and stretching. I especially enjoyed our final developpe combination.

Finally, it was time for Training 3. This class, like modern, is quite a bit smaller than Training 2 last year, consisting of only ten dancers. We did a “smidgen” of barre-work and then ran down to Studio B to put on our pointe shoes. Once there, we found Bethanny (she had a long day!), who informed us that more dancers are needed for her choreography class. Apparently, Elizabeth and I are the only two who are currently signed up…! 

As this was my first class in my new pair of pointes, I started to feel the pins and needles after a while and resorted to my flats. Though my feet cramped for the rest of class, my chaines turns were not a complete failure, and I managed to make it through without any blisters… yay!

Today was the beginning of my third year at the studio.

I’ve never been in one place for this long. Give me a second to cry.

*takes a deep breath*

All better. Except for the shock. But ignore that.

Today’s Training 3 class was tough– really tough– but I’m the better for it. We did some glorious barre combinations, A LOT of stretching, worked on a lengthy adage piece and practiced across-the-floor. All in all, it was fabulous, hard though it was. It was so good to see Miss Sara again.

Besides new choreography, I collected quite a bit of information this morning. For starters, Valerie and I are the only two dancers signed up for the Tuesday Training 3 lesson. For that reason, the class is being cancelled and will not appear on the schedule by next week. Therefore, Valerie and I were given two options: attend the Monday Training 3 class or take the Training 1 and 2 lesson on Tuesdays (directly after our cancelled class). Because I love my quaint Tuesday mornings, I will be signing up for the Training 1 and 2 class. I’m quite excited, for Adysen is in this class…! So, it all works out!

Next on the list, the studio’s latest feature, a theater company, had a HUGE turn-out. The Training Center is needed for the 30-or-so girls signed up for this Wednesday class. Therefore, my Wednesdays are going to be a little hectic…:

~I will assistant teach with Bethanny in Studio A.
~We will take modern in the Training Center.
~We will do Training 3 barre for half an hour in the Training Center.
~We will go down to Studio A for the remainder of Training 3 (pointe). 

So, it all works out!

I then ventured to ask my teacher how on earth our Fridays are going to work out this year, as Training 1, 2 and 3 are all scheduled at the same time. As it turns out, Training 2 and 3 will be combined and spend this month with Miss Sara while the Training 1s work with Bethanny. Next month, we will swap teachers and so on and so forth. So, it all works out!

Lastly, I inquired upon the combined dance for our upcoming recital in May. Miss Sara assured me that the entire Training Division will be involved in a “celebratory” dance for our ten-year anniversary.

If you haven’t already guessed…