allthatjazzley.

I took salsa class last night! 
It was my first time dancing in heels and doing any ballroom partnering, but I had a good time. The music is really fun and following the guy is new, but it’s all really neat. 

Dance classes all day, every day this summer.

I finally have some time to put down some thoughts about this weekend.

Dress rehearsal on Tuesday went smoothly. The dancing felt great, and I had no trouble between taking care of my kids. We were ahead of schedule and I had a pretty good time. I got a great audience reaction for my solo, as I heard them say “Aww” at the end of my performance.
I helped out during the Wednesday dress rehearsal. I just wanted to spend as much time as possible with the studio, a sentiment I will continuously re-express over the summer.

Saturday came quickly after graduation and I found myself oddly nervous and anxious.
The 12 o’clock show started out rocky. The dancing didn’t feel too good and started to freak out because I didn’t want to be terrible for my last recital. After some thought and pacing around, I finally resolved myself with the Nike slogan: “Just do it.” I compared my experience to dress rehearsal and realized that I had been over-thinking all the dancing too much, psyching myself out. So then I just let go and let the music carry me as I bounced excitedly in the wings of the stage. That’s one of the things I love about dance-I don’y have to think. All I have to do is dance and enjoy it. Everything else falls into place. With this in mind, my solo went well, giving me a burst of energy to continue.
The 4 o’clock show was more about the kids. I only had the teacher dance and my solo, so I had a lot of time to help out backstage and watch the show. My solo went quite well though; I had those magical moments where time slows down in the music and gets wonderful. And my kids were so adorable, excited in their costumes and makeup.They actually did considerably well, and got a good crowd reaction. I was very proud. 
It was during the evening show that I had a wonderful moment. It was nearing the end, and everyone was tired, but still happy. I looked around me and saw all these dance people that I knew and loved; and I was happy. My heart felt light, but was constrained by some terrible anguish. I realized that it was my last dance recital, and that I would miss all these people so much. These are the people that I love, the community that I adore. I remember Brittany laughing, Lili smiling and Elisha telling some charming anecdote. It was a beautiful, fulfilling moment.

Sunday greeted me with surprisingly sore muscles and a trenti Starbucks tea. I would need all the energy I could get.
The 1 o’clock show went very well. The dancing was so much better and together; it was so much fun! We all had a good time, despite the little glitches. Halfway through “Heads Will Roll,” the music cut off! We finished the dance acapella to the audience and backstage cheers. I had to admit, dancing with such high energy and so fast, was really fun. Afterwards, we discovered that the CD has skipped and jumped, and that we were scheduled to dance the number again. We did with pride, redeeming ourselves and just having a good time.In addition, one of my girls Kiera, showed up with a black eye. Her shoe also flew into the audience as she was dancing. She looked at me confused about her show, but I told her to keep going. Luckily, she did and the performance was funny and cute. Despite the minor technical difficulties, the dancing was great and it was a fun show. One last thing that was great about this show was my solo. Birdie had suggested that I make actual noise and cry on stage. So I did. It was hysterical. Everyone backstage died with laughter and I personally had so much fun with it. That’s the joy of character pieces-it’s all about the acting.
The 5 o’clock show was great. The dancing went well and I didn’t have to worry about any of my kids. I just danced and lived in the moment. Before my solo, I almost cried as my last recital was coming to an end. I got recognized as a teacher and had a blast. I loved it.

I should take a moment to acknowledge all the people who came out to support me this weekend. My church friends: Eric, Daniel, Kevin, Ben and Tiffany came the Saturday 12pm show. Spencer came to see me at the Sunday 1pm show. The Sunday 5pm show was watched by Holly, Brian, Julia, Sean, Jon, Gina, Kevin, Dustin, his parents and my parents! That’s 16 people cumulatively who came to show their love and support. Throughout my 13 years of dancing, people have never really come to see me dance, and I was blown away to have all these people come to see me. I’m so blessed. 

The teachers’ party afterwards was fun also. We’re all loud, funny and entertaining. We just like to have a good time. It’s all about family, and we support each other continuously. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. 

It’s been an incredible year. I can’t wait to dance all summer. Sometimes, you just Gotta Dance. 

ready to go to college, to leave everyone & everything i know behind.

Whenever I’m really sad, I just put on my pointe shoes and walk around on my toes. It makes me feel better. I don’t know why.

Today, Birdie subbed.
Warm up as usual, with some killer abs. Then modern across the floor, which is always really fun. Got to play around with momentum and just big, sweeping movement.
Last half of the class was going over and drilling recital combos. We were all tired, but we caught Marina up on what she missed on Tuesday.

The last 15 minutes or so, Birdie taught us salsa! It was street salsa and just fun. I loved it, although the other girls weren’t so into it. We learned basic step, crossing, crossing traveling, and pivots. Then we learned some partnering basics, with tension in the hands, turns and following the guy’s lead. It’s just so fun; I really can’t get over it. New obsession. 
I even stayed after class to work and add some more to the basic step. It’s so weird because I’m trained to be turned out most of the time, but this weight and hip placement is so different! But it’s so fun! The Latin music is so rhythmic and it’s so easy to get into the beat. We added some arms and more footwork, but I got in trouble for staying late. Worth it though. 

I just want more salsa!