SWS SHOWCASE TRIVIA!!!

TRIVIA THIS WEEKEND!
At showcase we had a lot of fun playing SWS Trivia with the crowd! Even though SWS has only been open for 3.5 years now there is so much history behind it. Our Trivia game allows the audience and members to learn a little bit more about who we are, who our students are, where we came from etc..

Trivia questions this season were:

1/Which program did we ad more hours to this season?
Acro- It definitely shows Almitra has done some wonderful work this season!

2/How big was Step with Style’s very first studio room?
a/20x21 b/20x31 c/20x41
Answer was a/20x21 SUPER SMALL!

3/What was SWS’s first competitive extended line called?
"How Do You Step?!"

4/Last season Sasha performed in a routine.. what was his character in this performance??
Restaurant Owner/Manager

5/ SWS originally opened in Millbrook. On our present team we still have 4 members that were enrolled and put on our very first class lists in our first location.. who are they??
Angela Casalino
Sarah Mulder
Trinity Coatham
Kayla Coatham

6//How many faculty members were a part of choreographing extended line this season?
6-Mandy Sasha Almitra Tamara Patrick and Kristen

7/Who won Most Improved Junior in our 2nd season?
Joelle Joncas

8/We had 17 students on our competitive team in our first season. How many members did we have in our 2nd season?
64

9/There are two SWS moms who can do baton and do it well… who are they??
Colleen Pacione and Shelly Williams

10/ In our 2nd season who told Sasha and Mandy “I can’t believe this is only your second season….. I don’t want to meet you at a competition in five years.”
Joanne Chapman-owner and director of Ontario's finest dance studio Joanne Chapman School Of Dance for 35yrs!

11/For everyone thinking Mandy swallowed a basket ball… she did not.. when is the due date for Masha?
a/July 8th b/July 10th c/June 28th
Answer was: b/July 10th

12/What was SWS’s very first production?
"Madonna"

13/Which routine won the highest mark at Dance Odyssey for highest mark of the competition?
"To Where You Are"

14/How many fish does SWS have?
3

15/Which one of the SWS graduates just got hired by Royal Caribbean?
Tamara Freethy she leaves in July!

Good luck at next seasons Trivia! Thank you to everyone who participated! Winners each received a $25 gift certificate to a restaurant of their choice!

SHOWCASE 2010!!

Step with Style had an amazing showcase this past weekend!
March 27th the Junior group routines were all the talk!
March 28th the intermediates and seniors brought the house down!

Showcases are meant as dress rehearsals for competition. As a dress run everything went very smoothly. No major problems with costumes, hair and make up looked GREAT, and the routines were very polished!

There was a huge reaction from intermediate and senior parents.. much of this is due to the fact that at this level most parents decide to stay away from the studio and be surprised! Many parents of the inter and senior dancers have been in the competitive industry for years now and have learned that if they don't watch everyday the progress is much more noticeable!

After the Junior showcase Sasha and I went back to the house and watched some of the old tapes. It was unbelievable how much progress the juniors have made! We hope all the parents go and pull out these old tapes too! "Supermodels","You" and "We Will Rock You" from 2009 were wonderful routines.. but WOW "The Fame","Jai Ho" and "Abracadabra" are at such a higher level this season! Congratulations dancers!

We want to give a shout out to all the Pre Comp students for doing a great job in their first Pre Comp performance in "5678!" Great job my little ones!

To all of our students you have made us so proud! we could not be happier with your progress! The faculty looks forward to polishing a bit more in the next few weeks and then sending you out there! To compete with the BEST you have to work like the BEST and you truly do! We love you!
Love Mandy and Sasha

LONGER DANCE SEASONS EQUAL MORE PROGRESS

Step with Style's Dance season is longer than many dance schools. Classes run from September through to the end of June. Therefore, our students have more time to learn new techniques and styles before settling into their routines for competition/recital and the progress is that much greater than students who have a much shorter year at other dance schools.

Step with Style has always used the time throughout the year to it's fullest to maximize the progress for all of their students recreational and competitive. We begin classes the 2nd week after school starts. We have always found the first week of school is an extremely busy week for families. Getting into their school routine first before getting into the classroom helps students adjust back to the busy fall schedule. Classes run through until Christmas, then recreational students have 2 weeks off. Competitive students who wish to continue choreography for their solos, duets trios and small groups give their availability in to the office and continue if available. Christmas is not mandatory for competitive students however most students on the competitive team make the decision to use this time wisely.

After Christmas Break classes start up again the week the students go back to school. March break week is off for recreational students, however the first half of March break Saturday-Tuesday is mandatory for intermediate and senior competitive students and Wednesday-Sunday is mandatory for Junior competitive students. This time is used for choreography sessions as well as cleaning before our big showcase at the end of March, while also allowing each group to have a lengthy holiday for the other half of March Break.

Classes continue when school is back in session until the end of June with days off for holidays such as Easter and Victoria Monday. Step with Style always holds the recital mid to late June. This is MOST beneficial for the students as the longer season allows them to learn so very much more than the average program!

There are 2-3 weeks off after the recital show and then our open classes commence for both recreational and competitive levels. Throughout the summer students who take open classes often make tremendous improvements. Without having school work to do this extra time to focus can help push a dancer to new levels. SWS has had students in the past who have attended open classes regularly and improved so much they jumped three levels by the time assessment time came in September!

The more opportunity a student has to take regular class the more they learn and strengthen no matter what level they are.

As a dancer I remember taking as many classes as I possibly could. When I was a competitive dancer I would take every competitive class I could and on my breaks would jump into recreational stretch and ballet classes as well, and I did this 6 days a week. This dedication and repetition allowed me to improve and build a technical base that will never leave my body. (However our dancers do not dance 6 days a week.) Our goal at SWS is to give that same opportunity to our students by ensuring they get the most out of their year with a schedule that is approx 3-4 days a week for our serious competitive students while our recreational dancers can have a schedule that is as low as 1 day a week or up to 3 days a week.

Step with Style strongly believes longer dance seasons equal more progress!

JUNIOR RUNTHROUGH HIGHLIGHT REEL

So another run through has passed. Our LAST before the big day! Junior showcase is tomorrow! Sat March 27th! 5pm invite everyone you know! This show will be great for all friends and family of all ages!

Last night the routines ALL looked better than our last run! The instructors got together and put their heads together for the five routines that made the HIGHLIGHT REEL this time around. This was a hard job to do as their were so many dancers who came out strong!

HIGHLIGHT REEL
#1
Justine Tooth was on fire last night. She performed her 9yrs Jazz solo (Choreographed by Almitra)and surprised everyone with how professional her performance was from the moment she started to the time it finished. Justine held her character throughout the entire routine, never lost her smile and she completed every single step of her choreography on time to the music. Her audience felt very confident that she knew exactly what she was doing and was in complete control. CONGRATS JUSTINE!

#2
Courtney Raney came out with some serious ENERGY and PASSION! I think everyone would agree that Courtney has one of the toughest (physically challenging) solos in the entire studio and wow did she ever impress everyone last night! You would have to see this solo to believe it. In "Battlefield" 13yrs Open solo (Choreographed by Mandy) Courtney doesn't have time to think or breathe. This routine is jam packed- with aggressive dance, tumbling, switch splits etc and last night was the first time she really hit every step! CONGRATS COURTNEY!

#3
"Abracadabra" 8yrs Open Group (Choreographed by Mandy). The prop work was SO much better this time around! Great tricks guys! Their secret weapon "Julia In A Box" worked great! Working with props is a very difficult thing to do so we congratulate all dancers in this routine for getting their tricks together! GO ABRA!

#4
Nicole Staite 14yrs tap solo (Choreograhed by Tamara) was a thousand times better than last run! There was a HUGE difference in the quality of sound this week. It's absolutely wonderful to see when students make that kind of improvement in just a week with taking a few notes from their instructors and really making them count. CONGRATS NICOLE on a job well done!

#5
Shostakovich Waltz 11yrs Ballet Group (Choreographed by Sasha) WOW that turning combination was dynamite! The entire studio roared with applauds after. It was definitely a highlight of the night. You could see the younger dancers looking up at these girls as they turned absolutely in sync with great admiration. We LOVE that you dancers are inspiring each other!

There are many routines that have been coming along quite nicely but haven't yet made it to the Highlight Reel. After showcase we will keep you posted with any routines that wowed the audience that day!

It's definitely time! The students excitement this week has been contagious in the studio as they gear up for showcase! It's so wonderful to see all the parents feeling that excitement as well! Many SWS dads showed up to watch run through last night and are just as excited as everyone else which is AWESOME to see! Dads and brothers are a tough crowd to please.. you gotta keep it interesting for them to watch.. so this is a great sign that we have so many coming out to watch and it isn't even showtime yet! Congrats to all dancers for your hard work, and good luck at showcase we all know you will be amazing!

WE LOVE RUSSIAN BALLET!

There are so very many reasons we LOVE Russian style ballet! As a dancer, choreographer and Artistic Director I appreciate the Russian style of Ballet (Vagaonva) so very much. It's presence has been so valuable in my life.

I can honestly say that without taking ballet seriously I never would have became a dancer. It changed everything about the way my body formed and functioned. I have taken every style of ballet there is and strongly believe there is no other syllabus that can possibly attain the results that the Russian Vaganova system does on a daily basis.

As a choreographer you can easily pick out the students who take Russian ballet at auditions. Dancers who take Russian ballet are physically stronger, more passionate in their portabras and are the most exciting dancers to watch. We have had many new joining students come through our doors stating that they hated ballet at their previous studio. They have said "Ballet is boring", "I don't feel like I accomplish anything in a ballet class", "I just don't like ballet" etc... It is absolutely unbelievable how many new joining students have said these things and not understood why they felt the way they did about ballet, only knew that they did. These students then take one of Sashas ballet classes and change their minds completely. Every single student whom ever walked into our studio said they hated ballet class, after one class with Sasha they have changed their minds. This is how wonderful the Russian syllabus is. It can take someone for example who only loves hip hop and open their eyes to a whole new world.

As an Artistic Director I have seen many students under Sasha and our staffs supervision make astounding progress each year. At competition adjudicators recognize the skill level, style and technique from our students. At recitals it is always noticed how beautiful the ballet is. Our ballet program is one of our most talked about programs from our studio. Our instructors truly love what they do and it shows. Students can feel the passion from their instructors and it has been a pleasure to watch them be inspired when Sasha and staff demonstrate a movement.

All over the world the Russian system Vagaonova is highly respected for it's unbelievable technique and boundless passion. The Russian Syllabus is not boxed in like others. Rather, it welcomes the audience into its dance with each portabra, it is larger than life and absolutely stunning. Students who take this style of ballet seriously not only improve in ballet but it also improves their jazz, contemporary, lyrical and modern technical base tremendously!

Step with Style is so very proud to be able to offer every single one of their interested students the best ballet program possible the Russian Style of Ballet!(Vaganova)

HOW IMPORTANT IS EXTENSTION/FLEXIBILITY??

HOW IMPORTANT IS EXTENSION/FLEXIBILITY?

They say Pictures are worth 1000 words.... How important is it for a dancer to have great extension/flexibility?... VERY.

Step with Style's dance program highly encourages extension and flexibility from all it's students. It is because of the encouragement and wisdom of the faculty that Step with Style is recognized by audiences and adjudicators for producing dancers that have great extension and flexibility.

Extension/flexibility go hand in hand when creating great lines for your adjudicators and audiences to see. Great lines in the air as well as on the ground can only happen when your flexibility allows it. This is why so very many dance instructors stress that students improve their flexibility.

If you struggle with flexibility remember you have to be patient! You can't just dive in and stretch for a long time until you hit your splits-that is how so many get injured.... you need to work your muscles into that position. Anyone who wants to be more flexible we won't lie... stretching hurts.. and the only way to be flexible is to stretch. There is no short cut to greatness.

Start by stretching just a little bit when you are watching tv or getting out of bed in the morning.. then day by day slowly increase your time spent leaning forward touching your toes and remember to BREATHE! Just a little bit each day is the best way for you to actually see results. If you do too much the following day you will be further away than you were the night before. The good news is if you are persistent and perform stretches everyday you WILL see results... the bad news is that once you hit your split line you can't stop stretching daily or you will loose it... and stretching never feels good,your body does get used to it, but it will never feels great. However, that being said- someone who truly loves dancing and being a dancer always feels a little pain and hard work is worth being able to have great lines!

Make your picture worth 1000 words.. get stretching! ;)

CONGRATULATIONS- NEW TRICKS LEARNED!

Our Acro program has come such a long long way this season! Thank you to Almitra for all her hard work with the program and students!

Some tricks that our students are working on within their acro classes include:
-Walkovers (front and back)
-chest stands
-elbow stands
-aerials
-handsprings (front and back)
-tucks (front and back)
-layouts
-whipbacks
and more!

We just wanted to give a shout out to all SWS students who have learned a new trick this season!

*If we have missed anyone and or you learn a new trick after this post do let us know and we will edit this blog to include you!

CONGRATS TO ALL DANCERS

Please note*These tricks are not all our students can do but are recent additons to the many tricks our team has learned over the past few years.

Courtney Raney 13yrs NEW TRICKS!-Backhandspring straight into a Layout
Kyal Ranine 13yrs NEW TRICKS!-Front Aerial, Right Aerial
Tori Williams 11yrs NEW TRICKS!-Left Aerial, front walkover
Kristen Pacione 13yrs NEW TRICK!-Left Aerial
Madison Bell 13yrs NEW TRICKS!Front Aerial, Left Aerial
Jamie Nix 15yrs NEW TRICK!-Layout off of the BEAM!
Ashlyn Secord 12yrs NEW TRICK!-Backhandspring
Shyla Davenport 9yrs NEW TRICK!-Backhandspring
Jessica Saunders 16yrs NEW TRICK!-Whipback
Tiffany Hsu 13yrs NEW TRICK!-Right Aerial
Justine Tooth 9yrs NEW TRICK!-LeftAerial
Rachel Brennan 12yrs NEW TRICK-Right Aerial
Melissa Blackburn 12yrs NEW TRICKS!-Front and Back Walkovers
Emma Reilly 12yrs NEW TRICKS!-Front and Back Walkovers
Jessica Bellows 15yrs NEW TRICK!-Layout
Santana Welsh 9yrs NEW TRICK!-Left Aerial
Jazmin Miranda 8yrs NEW TRICK!-Back Tuck
Ashley Welsh 14yrs NEW TRICK!-Right Aerial
Cailey McCurdie 14yrs NEW TRICK!-Back Handspring
Katie Blow 14yrs NEW TRICK!Back Handspring
Emily Krolick 12yrs NEW TRICK!-Right Aerial
Kelly Bradley 15yrs NEW TRICK!-Right Aerial
Kiera Breaugh 11yrs NEW TRICK!-Right Aerial

Congrats everyone we look forward to adding on to this new trick list with new names and new tricks!!

MARCH BREAK CLEANING MADNESS!

This past March break competitive students ages 5-18yrs got together and were a part of SWS's March Break Cleaning Madness! No no .. dancers were not sweeping or cleaning mirrors they were working on cleaning up their routines before this weeks showcase.

There were a lot of hours put in by the faculty and students, and each one of these hours made a big difference in the routines.

If you are thinking "What is cleaning a routine?... what does that mean?"
Well .. competitive dance students are all taught enough choreography that they have an entire competitive routine approx 2:30-3min long. After the students have learned the routine, sometimes not all dancers are doing the exact same thing. Things as little as a head movement-to the side or to the front?? ... are some of the details that can need some work after then routine has been taught. Cleaning is basically where the instructors review the routine with their class many many times over to ensure everyone is doing exactly the same thing. of course there is no such thing as perfect but that doesn't mean we don't try!

At the end of the week all the companies 1-7 got together to work on their extended line. What a great feeling it is to see 70 dancers move at the same time! Very powerful! Thank you to each and every dancer who spent their March Break with us! It will absolutely pay off for you xoxoxoxox
Mandy and Sasha

WHERE THE FACULTY STANDS

WHERE THE FACULTY STANDS..

THINK POSITIVE THOUGHTS AND POSITIVE WILL HAPPEN..
It is very easy for dancers to look out at the dancers in their category performing and hope that the dancer(s) makes a mistake or doesn't do well. This is something SWS faculty work very hard at getting our students NOT to do. Whether they are in the category with their friends or other schools. We are teaching our students if they allow these kinds of negative thoughts to enter their mind before they hit the stage it will affect their performance in a negative way. The more positive thoughts a dancers thinks towards every one of their competitors positive will come back to them.

COMPETING WITH FRIENDS..
Many of our categories include more than one SWS group or dancer. Students are being taught by the faculty that when this happens we are not against other SWS members we are competing WITH them. Judges opinions vary between competitions and while at one competition Suzy may win, at another competition Judy may win.. While winning and receiving placements is a goal as a competitive dancer it is very much a "studio" goal. It doesn't matter who receives 1st, 2nd or 3rd, if the team is doing well every member should rejoice in it. Our students have always been very good in the past cheering each other on and we are sure this season will be no different.

IF YOU DO YOUR BEST WE ARE HAPPY!
Every single faculty member at SWS only wishes for our students to do their absolute best out there! Personal progress is #1...and if winning happens to be a part of that wonderful- that's a bonus. As a competitive athelete of any kind, dancer included of course your goal is to win. Who goes to the Olympics for example or the Stanley cup finals without the goal of winning?.. however if our students do their absolute best out there we are HAPPY!! the placement is not important at that point. This is absolutely all we want as a faculty, because when the students perform to the best of their ability they know it and feel good about it. We are all here and a part of this studio to help out students be the best they can be.

BE A GOOD SPORT
No matter who you are competing against good sportsmanship is more important than anything to the instructors at SWS. At every competition SWS has ever atended students have been recognized for their sportsmanship, and this is something all instructors are continuing to instill in our students. Because bottom line is that great dancers come and go but great people are remembered forever.

Good luck this season everyone!

JUNIOR RUNTHROUGH

We recently had our 2nd Junior runthrough- held at the studio. The students ages 8 through fourteen performed their groups, trios, duets and solos as a prep for our upcoming showcase. There were a few incredible highlights that day that SWS wants to share!

The faculty want to say CONGRATS to a few dancers who really did an outstanding job!

Kayla Coatham 10yrs performed her Contemporary solo "The Climb" better than any instructor has ever seen her do it! Her musicality was dead on. Each movement she made brought out a different piece of the music as she floated through her solo and made it look so easy. CONGRATS KAYLA on a job well done!

Miss Stephanie McCandless 5 years performed her cameo in "I Could Only Imagine" Junior lyrical group. She might be small but my my she is mighty! Beautiful smile and she is sure to have everyone at showcase smiling with her! CONGRATS STEPH!

Miss Julia Blackburn 5 years has a cameo performance in "Abracadabra" our junior open routine. In her first live performance she did not make one mistake, smiled and even performed her magic trick dead on time! CONGRATS JULIA!

The biggest highlight of the day had to be Miss Tori Williams 11yrs. Tori won 1st Overall Novice last season 3 times out of 4 competitions.... but everyone knows that novice categories are not as difficult as being in with the students who have competed since they were 5 and 6 years old. Now another year older than last season, Tori was given a solo that was much harder than before and no one really knew what to expect from her in her first year out of novice. Well well.. I only wish I had her on tape for you! Tori was OUTSTANDING! She performed her jazz solo "Rich Girl" for everyone and knocked everyones socks off! No one was quite expecting the performance we got! Her technique had improved so very much and her facial performance had everyone wanting to be up there with her. It was nothing but FUN FUN FUN! She really and truly looked like a little professional! The best part was when all the students realized what a great job she did they ran to her and gave her a big hug! They are such great team mates! CONGRATS TORI!

This was our 2nd runthrough and it was much better than our first! Thank you to all the students for all their hardwork.. these cleaning rehearsals are definitely paying off!

The faculty look forward to seeing who will be in the highlight reel next run through!

ATTENDANCE

The entire faculty want to congratulate Miss Emma Reilly for having PERFECT ATTENDANCE this season! Just this past season in June 2008-2009 Emma Reilly was presented the award for Most Improved Junior and it is no surprise that she has continued to make tremendous progress as she NEVER misses class!

Every class that a student has to miss due to sickness, injury etc can set a student back. As students all over continue to take class and get stronger a student who misses class misses the opportunity to improve. Of course everyone understands that people get sick and injured and this is a part of life... but we hope students learn to take good care of themselves by washing their hands, warming up properly, wearing their coats when it's cold out etc, to prevent sickness/injury and the amount of times they must miss class.

Take care of yourselves students! The more classes you take the better you will be!

OUR STUDENTS MAKE OUR WORLDS GO ROUND

Some evenings it hits you a little harder than others... Tonight was one of those nights where you realize how much people mean to you. We definitely do not have any time for social visits during our classes... SWS is pretty business business while in classes working hard on all our techniques and dances.... however, tonight on our dinner break I had the opportunity to chat with some of my senior students.

I truly feel very fortunate to have such amazing and caring young people with us in our studio. I had such a wonderful time chatting and listening to them. They are so dedicated to their craft, have great sense of humors and are so very respectful towards others.

My husband and I have been instructors in this business about fifteen years now and we have seen many students come in and out of our lives. But I have to say students that we seem to draw into our studio are some of the most respectful, dedicated, hardworking and caring individuals we have had the pleasure of meeting.

If someone is injured they care, they check up, they calm them down by letting them know it will be ok and they will get through it. If someone is lost in a class or missing due to sickness, they are there for them in any way they can be, including coming in extra hours to help their friends out. If someone is new we have seen our students time and time again take them in with welcoming arms and make them feel right at home.

Yes a lot of this team work is instilled by our incredible faculty however Kyal told me a chinese proverb that is very suiting...
"A teacher can open a door but you must enter yourself." Without having the students make the choices to be these kinds of people it wouldn't happen.

Tonight as I listened to our students talk with eachother I was not just proud of them as dancers but so proud of them for the people they are becoming. I couldn't imagine my life without them. Our students truly make our worlds go round.

Seen here in the image is our senior class during our Secret Santa December 2009.

CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S ALMOST HERE!!!!

My my how time flies when you are having FUN! We can't believe it's almost here! showcase is right around the corner. The faculty and students have worked so very hard all season and are ready to show you what they have produced!

Our acro program has truly come a long way this season. Many students have mastered new tricks thanks to our wonderful acro instructor Almitra McMillan! This showcase look for "X FILES" and "ADAM AND EVE"

The tap is looking exceptional! Each routine this year has a lot of pizzaz, style and great footwork! We hope you check out one of our most fun routines "BLAME IT ON THE BOOGIE" performed on March 27th.

This season we are also excited to be showcasing some new styles as well. The students have worked hard and have begun to mold into beautiful contemporary dancers! This is new to SWS and the students have worked so very hard to understand this new style. Doing Contemporary for their first time are the dancers average age 11yrs in the routine "HEAVEN" being performed March 27th.

SWS has the most well rounded program and we are all so very excited to share the end results with you during our showcase. Come on out! March 27th and 28th Two completely different shows. The 27th at 5pm is our junior groups and inter/senior soloists while the 28th at 2pm is our senior groups and our junior soloists. Both shows are sure to be entertaining! Hard to decide??? Come to both! Hope to see you at the Bowmanville High school March 27th at 5pm and March 28th at 2pm!

AN AVERAGE DAY OF AN SWS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Hello there everyone! Many students from SWS and other studios wish to become dancers, teachers and even studio owners themselves one day.. and many of them have asked what a regular day is like for someone in our profession. This blog and others will allow those who have those types of questions the insight into our day and profession. If you would like more info about our program do keep checking back as this blog site will include the Artistic Directors daily work and thoughts as well as program info and updates from the studio itself. In the meantime if the blog does not have the information you are looking for you can always check our website at www.stepwithstyle.ca or give us a call (905) 723-1133

AN AVERAGE DAY...
You dream you are at your showcase and the lights won't work or the music goes wrong... then you wake up yikes.. you think that better not happen. Hmm change of thought.. did I change that part of the dance to the choreo I wanted? I'll have to do that tonight...


The dog goes crazy because the mail man is at the door with another costume package. Go to the door grab your blackberry.. yup another 25 e mails to answer before breakfast.. schedule questions, schedule requests, costume questions, seamstress needs time with students, lighting questions for recital, did you burn that cd for us yet? think about March Break Schedule and the list goes on.

Call the insurance company get the insurance papers needed sent to the theatre.. grab some cereal.. usually something full of sugar like Nestlie Quick or Captain Crunch.. silly for a 30 year old to eat like this but hey we all have weakness lol.

Let Lady out, ask Sasha when he'll be back from hockey, put away cereal bowl,
Do the banking, do the paperwork, pay the bills, think about March Break schedule some more. Usually there would be choreography to do but we are at that time of year when routines are finished!!!! YAY leaving a little time for me during the day to think about the Nursery what colour to paint, if I'll be a good mom etc.., clean the closets sweep the floors and do the things every family does, laundry, toilets and more.

Write approx 10 emails to the office manager about things she and I need to remember... think over March break schedule some more.

Eat something else... somewhere along the way throw in some bathroom time... maybe text a family member.. what are you doing this weekend they ask.. working I say... next topic. Faculty member texts they can't make a certain day need a sub... find them a sub.

Go to the studio ask the office manager what the problems are for the day.. solve the problems. Teach a few classes- which feels like doing jumping jacks for an hour straight while talking. Did they understand the correction, does this part of the dance work, does that spacing look right, whose arm is late there, feet feet feet knees knees knees... all eyes peeled at all times on absolutely everyone for the entire time you are in the room.. because that's your job... to see everything and prevent bad habits.. no pressure... between classes visit office manager for any issues that need to be tended to (usually includes sorting who is doing what dance at the recital, in what costume, and how are the programs coming etc etc)

At the end of the teaching day pick up at least 20 waterbottles from kids who left them behind. Restock the bathrooms, collect lost and found, put away chairs, put away music, recharge I pod for tomorrow, remind Sasha to feed the fish,

Go home straight to the office while Sasha cooks and I deal with all e mails sent by the office manager during the evening with items to be tended to the following day... work on the networking facebook twitter and blogging! Eat watch some CSI or Criminal Minds with Sasha..Lay down... and notice... hmmmmmm someone is kicking me.... that's awesome!

Thats an average day.

OPEN MINDED STUDENTS BECOME WONDERFUL DANCERS

At SWS our faculty teaches students to be open minded. Not only about what dance styles they learn but acting and vocal as well. There are many different avenues to take in the entertainment industry and the program our students are a part of gives them an edge at competition or when auditioning. The more well rounded the education the better the performer.

Open minds go a long way in the classroom. Students who keep their minds open and allow instructors to give personal corrections without getting upset make more progress than students who take these corrections personally. It is so important that parents and faculty work together to explain being told you are doing something wrong is a GOOD thing.

We have actually had students switch over from other schools get very frustrated and upset that they have never been told certain corrections before in their previous training. Phrases like "I could have been so much better right now." and "Why wasn't I told this before?" we hear all too often from newer students making the switch. For these students the faculty tell them not to look back and think of what could have been .. but to look forward to what will be with a little hard work.

Talk to your dancer today make sure they keep their minds open so they can make the progress their instructors know they are capable of!

Here in the image you can see some of our Junior students ages 9-11yrs

CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN!

Students worked hard all night cleaning... no not the studio but their routines! Showcase is in 24 more days and dancers are getting more and more excited!
Tonight after ballet and vocal classes we worked on Single Ladies, Time To Say Goodbye, and Hot Like Wow! Single ladies is a funky routine that always has everyone in the room smiling, Time To Say Goodbye is a unique tribute to MJ and an extremely powerful routine sure to leave audiences quite and in awe, and Hot Like Wow ... well it looks just like is SOUNDS!
In the next three weeks I will be calling on the best of the best of our faculty to get our routines looking great! Our faculty has a nack for cleaning and can make any routine sparkle! Thank you to all who are helping students prepare and the students for their hard work!
Cleaning is hard work but it WILL pay off for you!

JAI HO COSTUMES ROCK!

Students from Company 3 had their last fitting for their Jai Ho costumes this evening. They are stunning! You'll have to come out to showcase March 27th 5pm Bowmanville High School to see for yourself! Our seamstress Joanne did an amazing job with the design we gave her. The costume couldn't be more true to the character and feel of the routine. THANK YOU JOANNE!

SWS PREPARES FOR MORE THAN JUST DANCE!

As dancers prepare for their upcoming showcase we are also preparing for something else! Now 5 months along.. 21 weeks to be exact. We had our last ultra sound on the 16th of Feb and they said they "think" it's a GIRL! Either way boy or girl my husband and I will be thrilled!

It has been an interesting and challenging job being the Artistic Director of a thriving competitive and recreational dance school while also being pregnant. You don't know how much it affects everyday life until you actually go through it. Thank you to our amazing staff Almitra McMillan, Heather Humphries, Kristen Morgan, Angela Casalino, Sadie Brooker, Tamara Freethy, and Kimberly Stewart.. all of whom helped a great deal in the early stages while I learned how to pace myself through the week.

She or he is moving quite a bit now, mostly when I am still... or at least thats what we think. When I am teaching I am moving too much to really notice just yet if she or he is enjoying the music...

Of course provided that they like dancing our child will dance, although we won't teach her or him ourselves for years to come. We work with our students by night to clean routines and work on our home by day to clean and organize... yes I have reached the "nesting" phase.

Sasha and I have been so lucky! Through the years we have seen so many great parents pass our door steps. We have seen what to do and what not to do. Owning a studio has been a great learning tool for us. THANK YOU to all the amazing SWS parents out there. You have inspired us to do the best job we can with your children as well as our own!

DANCERS ARE VERY EXCITED!

GREAT WORK HAPPENED TODAY! Senior dancers Sadie, Angela, Jessica, Megan and Kristen had their final choreography rehearsal for their competitive routine "Not As They Seem". There are many cleaning rehearsals still to come, but what an excellent feeling it is to have the routine completed! This is sure to be one of the best from SWS this season. These five ladies bring so much passion into their dances you just can't help but get involved when watching them.

"Not as They Seem" begins with five ladies (friends) whom trust eachother completely. They rely on eachother and when they need someone they fall back on the friendship that they share. Everything in the beginning seems perfect.. too perfect. Throughout the routine situations in their lives come up where they may not have been completely truthful with eachother. The deceipt and betrails slowly bulid up and put a wedge between their friendships.. leaving everyone wondering who they can trust in life... as people are Not As They SEEM to be at times.

A very interesting and thought provoking routine... don't miss this at showcase March 28th!