It's that time of year at Absolute Dance where dancers, teachers and parents are on the treadmill. March is a nerve-racking yet exciting the time of year. In March, we can finally emerge from the studio and share with audiences what we have come up with after of hours of learning, practicing and perfecting. Although everything seems to have crept up on us very quickly, I think that earlier competition and exam dates have really pushed both students and staff in a positive way. In the past month, many extra hours have been spent in preparation for competition and ballet exams and it is so nice to finally start to feel ready for all the important events that will lead us up to our year end in June.
Our first performance event of the New Year was Plies to Performance, which was held at the studio on February 24th. This was a student-driven semi-formal ballet performance featuring nearly all those dancers who participated in our December production of Cinderella. The evening was another opportunity for the dancers to learn and present new material in a short amount of time and to perform more in smaller groups and as well as in pairs. Aurelle Crerar and Carling Strayer were our hosts for the evening and did a great job sharing some of the dance history information that was complied by the participating dancers. The show ran very smoothly and the dancers were proud of their work. It was also nice to connect with parents during the short reception that followed. We are already looking forward to next year!
On March 13th, our Spring Session of Royal Academy of Dance Ballet exams began. Congratulations to Katie Giammarino who went in for her Advanced Foundation exam. Coming up very shortly are our Graded set of exams which will be held at the studio on Thursday, April 12th. Mock exams for those candidates will be held on March 24th. Best of luck to all of our candidates! We are proud of all your hard work and hope you enjoy the experience!
This weekend kicks off our first of three competitions that Absolute Dance's competitive team will be attending. Thunderstruck will be held March 16th - 18th at the Martha Cohen Theatre (inside the Epcor Centre) and will feature all of the studios solos, duos/trios, and groups. To our competitors: get lots of sleep, stay focused, and give it your all! Absolute staff are looking forward to seeing everyone dance their hearts out on stage.
March 24th will mark the beginning of our two week long March Break. All regular classes are suspended and will resume on Monday, April 9. Please note that the studio will still be open on Saturday, March 24 for the RAD Mock Exams. For those families with children between the ages of 3 and 8, we encourage you to check out our March Break Camps which will be held from Monday, March 26 - Friday, March 30. Our Tinkerbells and Toads Camp is a half day camp for ages 3 - 5 and our Glamour and Glee Camp is a full day camp offered to dancers 6 - 8. No experience is necessary. These camps are a fun way to try out different forms of dance and see what interests your child. They are also a great way to stay in shape over the break.
In addition to our March Break Camps for younger ones, Absolute Dance is holding some fun workshop classes for older and more experienced dancers. Everyone is welcome! We've got Intermediate/Advanced Hip Hop and Contemporary classes happening the evening on Tuesday - Thursday the week of March 24th and April 2nd. Guest teachers have been invited to teach these special classes. Dancers are encouraged to participate to keep their technique up and to gain the experience of learning from someone new. Please sign up in advance at the office.
Finally, we are pleased to announce Ryan Tram as our Student of the Month for March. Ryan's charisma, effort, leadership and commitment to dance has stood out in his classes. Congratulation Ryan and keep up all the hard work!
Absolute Dance would like to wish the best of luck to the competitive team and ballet exam candidates in the weeks ahead. Also, to our families that may be traveling over the holiday, stay safe and enjoy yourselves! We hope that everyone is able to relax a bit over the course of the break. We are looking forward to coming back in April ready to venture into the last leg of our regular season.
