Dancing with the stars is a great description for the dance rehearsals for Terpsichore D’Amour. Most of the time we practice outside since our upcoming performance in September is going to be outside. It makes perfect sense, after all, since we need to be comfortable dancing on the same sort of terrain that we will use for performances. We have had a few rehearsals in a traditional studio, but dance studio space comes at a premium and when you rent by the hour it’s not always easy to get the space when you need it. And really, it’s kind of nice to dance in a natural setting for a change, looking at nothing but trees, grass and blue sky (and easy on the wallet).
I live close enough to our rehearsal space in the park that I usually walk. I’d much rather walk than drive whenever possible. I could get used to this, was my thought as I walked over for rehearsal the other day. It’s pretty cool to dance under the big blue sky, nothing but you and the clouds and stars overhead. It’s free, heck it’s freeing. Honestly, I was feeling pretty good about the whole thing and admiring our ingenuity for thinking of it in the first place.
Until I got to the spot where we usually rehearse and was confronted with:
Um. Okaaaaay.
Getting a dance performance off the ground, especially with a brand new dance company that you’ve made up from scratch, requires a certain degree of flexibility and the ability to think quickly on your feet. Then again, so does parenthood, so I’ve had a fair amount of practice in on-the-spot decision making over the past eight years since I became a mom.
What did I do? I did nothing.
Okay, that’s not exactly true. I laughed about it. Then I stretched and waited for my dance partner to show up.
It all worked out, of course. We just shifted down into a different (much busier) area of the park. We performed to an audience of energetic toddlers and the caregivers and hyperactive dogs against the l whining of chainsaws and grinding of heavy machinery.
I figure it was the perfect preparation for the real thing.
