In Retrospect: The Road to Oz (Prelude DMV 2013) by Chelsea Cooper
What started off as a passing thought four years ago turned and greatly surpassed every imagined expectation of reality! But here I stand on stage with eight women by my side soaking in the cheers and chants of the audience while trying to allow it to sink in… We placed at Prelude! I instantly turn to my crew members and saw the most beautiful thing in each of their eyes…We did it! A piercing look of complete triumph and joy, gratitude and love, relief and excitement but most of all, PRIDE. If there was one word I could use to describe Kickrocks Crew and the love we all have for our family, it would be “proud”. Proud to not only share a stage together but proud to call each one of these girls my sister.
You see, each Kickrocks member has had to overcome life’s difficult obstacles and dodge its astonishing right-hook blows, but one thing we’ve all discovered through these four years is that we never have to face them alone. When one is floating, the other is there to ground them. It’s a balance. Though the yellow brick roads to our goals were always clear, the road to Oz wasn’t always easy. Let’s face it, we are an all women crew with our “moments” each month (wink) but we’ve learned to focus on what the outcome is after those moments have passed and it’s always made us stronger.
How we got our ruby slippers
Back in 2009 a few female dancers from the DMV came together to share thoughts on starting a crew. One that would be a crew in every sense of it’s meaning; Strong in passion and dance but also in values and friendships. A crew that meant training in their art form and growing together in skill, talent and support. With these important criteria, there was no question who to form Kickrocks with. Originally starting with eight members, Kickrocks Crew debuted their first performance at the 2009 Culture Shock ECDC Pre-show at Mount Vernon Square. At the end of the performance we all knew we had gotten the taste of wonderland. We wanted more… we wanted Oz.
The Tornado
Like most things in the beginning, Kickrocks had its growing pains. We had our ups and our downs. Our arguments and our support circles. It was made very clear from the very beginning that Kickrocks was not going to be run like a dictatorship. Everyone was just as important and had just as much of a say as the next. We were a crew, not a company. Well…get eight women in a room and try to have them all agree on everything…good luck! Haha. It was an adjustment. One that we all knew would be difficult to bear but worth pushing through to the end. The biggest hardship we all had to come to agreement on was commitment. Not just in showing up but also in representing and being proud of our crew. Unfortunately, some commitments just couldn’t be made and adjustments needed to be made. Suddenly Kickrocks wasn't in Kansas anymore.
Finding Our Courage, Heart, and Brains
Finally after a few adjustments, feeling confident in the strength of our kickrocks bond, the idea of competing in dance competitions was said aloud. For four years, KRC had only showcased. Our goals as a crew were to do just that, showcase our hard work and dedication to our crew and creative property without the pressures or attitude of trying to be competitive.
One day at our regular Monday night rehearsal we decided to take our confidence in KRC to a different level and compete. We had no expectations but also knew the stiff competition the DMV had to offer. We needed to bring our courage to keep us confident in our success, our hearts to throw on stage for everyone to see and our brains to stay smart about how we portray our true selves and message as a crew. We got in the lab and started creating what eventually became a placing medley in our first ever show as a competing act.
Meeting the Wizard
The day has come…It’s time for our tech. Feeling prepared and ready to bring the heat in true Kickrocks fashion, we run through our set ironing out all our kinks necessary for a great show. Backstage we throw our makeup on and gear up in our cheetah pants. With time to kill and nerves buried in our bellies we seek a way to calm ourselves in goofy ways taking pictures and creating funny memories.
Sharing a dressing room with our brother crew Upper Classmen was the perfect way to feel at home. They call Kickrocks on deck and we immediately get in the zone. As tradition, we circle up and give thanks to the most important thing in our lives, God, for bringing us together and giving us the gifts and talents he so graciously bestowed upon us. We walk out on stage whispering good luck to each other and set in our beginning pose. The words from the music project out “We On” and in that very moment of our last move of our medley we stand frozen, realizing that everything we’ve gone through in the last four years has lead to this feeling. We all realized that the true Wizard was within ourselves. That the Wizard we sought was always our crew and we just released it right there on stage for everyone to see. It didn’t matter if we placed because we knew that no matter what; we gave ourselves full-hearted to that stage and we were proud. Proud to be Kickrocks Crew.
“You only live once, but when you live like us, once is enough.” -Kickrocks Crew
Check out Kickrocks Crew's 3rd Place Prelude DMV 2013 performance here. To see the rest of Prelude DMV 2013, check out Rhythm Addict TV's YouTube channel.
Words by Chelsea Cooper (@chelseabrettcooper), Kickrocks Crew
Photos by Chelsea, Ama, Chris, Ollie, Jeannine