By Mary Serico
Happy New Year! The turn of the calendar to a new year has me reflecting on how ballroom dancing has affected my life. There are so many interesting people from various countries and walks of life that I would have never met if not for ballroom dancing. My circle of friends has been very enriched by the people I have met as part of ballroom dancing.
While things are not back to any semblance of normal, it was so nice to see some of my “dance” friends and meet new friends at the Dance A Lot Holiday ball. The showcases were virtual but watching them with friends and sharing a meal felt like we were on track to getting back to live showcases. The virtual showcases were not missing any of the energy, drama, comedy of a live performance, and it gave us a chance to see everyone dance instead of being in the dressing room changing or watching from the side of the stage. Everyone’s dances highlighted their talent, hard work, and creativity.
The preparation for a virtual showcase is just the same as for a live showcase, but you do get a second (and maybe 3rd) chance for a video redo. The hair, costume, and makeup must complement the dance and work with the camera. This is my least favorite part because it involves mascara and lots of hair spray. Dancing in the studio during my lesson is a bit different than dancing with the video running — it gets the adrenalin pumping and autopilot kicks in.
Every showcase needs a great introduction, Joe (aka the voice of Dance A Lot) recorded an introduction for each of the dances. It was fun and a little challenging to create the videos at the lagoon, golf course, with our neighbor’s dog, and our house.
Even with great dance videos and introductions, we still needed someone (Georgi) to edit and put all the videos together to make us look our best. We all know what a perfectionist Georgi can be so there must have been a lot of sleepless nights putting it all together. A big thank you to Adi and Georgi.
If you haven’t seen the Holiday Ball showcase, check it out on the Dance A Lot below (or on their FB page), and don’t forget to watch the bloopers.https://www.youtube.com/embed/OcmeTdy1TAw?feature=oembed
