The Greatest Show, Part 2

If you haven’t read The Greatest Show, Part 1 yet, you probably should do that first (this won’t make much sense if you haven’t)!

Masks were everywhere – all spectators had to wear them pretty much wherever we went (in the tent, in the conference center near the dressing rooms and restrooms, running to Starbucks because our call time was 6:45 a.m., and by God, we’re only human), etc.  The dancers were also expected to wear them at all times, except when they were on the stage.  We were instructed to label a Zip-loc bag with our dancer’s name on it; the masks would be kept in these, laid out on a table near the stage, while the kids were performing.  They would put them back on before dashing back to the dressing room.

In addition to the masks, spectators needed to have their temperatures checked in the conference center.  If you were fever-free, you received a wristband that allowed you to walk in between the center and the tent.  This process went very smoothly for us, and we had no issues.  

It was also suggested that spectator wristbands be limited to two per dancer to minimize the crowd.  Even though we are a fairly small school, we packed the seating that was available in the tent.  Many of us parents stood in the back outside of the tent; you could still see the stage fairly well anyway.  Truthfully, I wonder how the larger studios fared with fitting their fans into the space.

With the tent being outdoors, the dancers had to walk between it and the conference center (where the dressing rooms were located).  This path had no cover, and the forecast had called for thunderstorms that morning (of course it did).  As a precautionary measure, we packed plastic ponchos and/or umbrellas for our kids in case the skies opened up.  By some stroke of luck, the rain held off and our kids stayed dry!  

The humidity threw us for a loop (yes, we were fully aware that it was August).  The kids were becoming dehydrated quickly, and there was no food or drink allowed in the dressing rooms.  Two of our girls have asthma, and needed their inhalers as soon as they exited the stage (there was a scary moment – one of them realized that she left hers in her dance bag at home, so she had to make do with a borrowed one from my sister).  The moisture on the stage made the surface very slick, causing at least two of our dancers (in different routines) to slip and fall during the number.  As a result, our director decided to quickly rework an intricate turn sequence in our production routine to minimize the potential for disaster.  Our kids handled the last-minute change like pros!  Makeup was continually touched up as well; the girls were sweating off the carefully-crafted face we moms plastered on them that morning, resulting in some frantic lipstick and blush reapplication between numbers.  Plus, sweaty bodies make for uncooperative costumes, as the girls had to peel and tug their drenched outfits off quickly so they could attempt to slither into their next getup.  

When all of our dances had finished, all of our girls were allowed on stage (with masks) for the adjudications, scholarships, and special awards.  Because all of the teams had not yet gone at that point, there were no rankings announced. Rather, a virtual awards show is planned for the last night of the event; it will be livestreamed so we can watch from our homes.  This does take something away from the energy of a live show, of course.  But in order to have an in-person event, it’s a sacrifice we’re all willing to make.  I was pleasantly surprised at the number of judges’ awards, scholarships, and other awards given; I had assumed that there wouldn’t be many to give out right then, as the rest of the teams had not yet been seen.  My girls were thrilled to receive 5 star elite rankings for their solos, and two special awards as well (Jayden received an invitation to Power Pak, and Jocelyn won a scholarship for the World Dance Pageant).  Their group routines all earned at least five stars, and one had scored a special judges’ award to boot.

In order for the staff to thoroughly clean the dressing rooms, we were instructed to pack up all of our things and get them out of the rooms before the awards ceremony.  But the awards ceremony started right away, and I was unable to pack and move the Dream Duffel until after the awards’ conclusion.  I dashed back to the room and threw everything in the bag before busting out of there, and saw that the next studio was beginning to trickle in as we were departing (luckily, they had a different set of designated dressing rooms, so I’m pretty sure we didn’t hold anyone up).

In hindsight, it was fitting that this competition was under a “big top”; to us, it was the greatest show on earth!  

Work hard, have fun! – Danielle