The Competition Experience

Competition season is upon us! It is a time of endless costumes, so much glitter, and weekends filled with both rehearsals and competitions. Our dancers have worked so hard to perfect their routines and I couldn’t be more thrilled. Each season Royal Dance Conservatory studio carefully selects four to five dance competitions to attend, but not for the reasons one might think.

While it is wonderful to perform on stage and get feedback from industry professionals, there is so much more for our dancers to gain from competition. Trophies and plaques are certainly a fun bonus but we don't go to bring home an award. 

We go for the experience, the life lessons, and the team building.

It takes a lot of courage and strength to step on stage knowing you are being judged and scored by strangers. Yet our dancers bravely grace the stage with talent, class, and style. Our kids know that we want them to have fun, enjoy the performance experience, and give their personal best. It's not about comparing themselves to other dancers, but as the one and only Mikhail Baryshnikov said, “I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to to dance better than myself.” At the end of the day, they have already won by simply taking on the challenge to be better than they were the day before.

Scoring is an inherent part of competition and can be motivating or devastating depending on the result. While we encourage our dancers to knock it out of the park, we don't want them feeling discouraged should they not achieve a triple platinum or titanium. We guide these kids to view their scores as simply the humble opinion of judges who are providing feedback in order to help them improve. If the score is high, wonderful. Keep striving. If the score is less than they hoped for, wonderful. Now you will learn how to do even better the next time. Either way we can always work hard and improve. This life lesson applies way beyond their dance career and will serve them well in life as they learn from their setbacks and successes.

Another facet to competition is team building. Our dancers learn what it means to be a team and a studio that supports one another. With good thoughts, encouragement, and shameless hooting and hollering before and after each routine, our students know how to build each other up.

As a teacher and studio owner, competition is always an emotional weekend for me. I am filled with such pride for my students as they perform. I don't just see a routine. I see how far these dancers have come from their first dance class to the confident performer they have become. I see the friendships that have been established and the lasting memories being made.

Competition is a chance to bring out the best in our dancers. I look forward to the opportunity to share in these moments with our dancers every season. Bring on the waterproof mascara and hope that it lasts though all the happy tears and moving performances. 
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Now let the competition season begin!

Nicole Gornik
Directer/CEO
​Royal Dance Conservatory