We had our first class of the season for hip-hop company on Wednesday. 9 out of 15 people were there, and we got an introductory talk from Tayla about how the year was going to go. I knew that she was different than other dance teachers but I wasn't prepared for what was about to be said.
First she talked about commitment. She detailed the different performances, rehearsals, and competitions that we would have to do. She made sure to include things about extra rehearsals for production numbers and the importance of class attendance in the fall. Class attendance includes staying home sick, contacting her when you are gonna be absent, sitting out for injuries but still being in class, etc. Already a huge checkmark.
Second she talked about how competition was. She knows exactly how things are and she made sure we knew everything that could and would possibly happen. She talked about the attitude of other dancers in convention classes, how our attitude should be, and how she expects us to prepare to look our best for the competition. She talked about how to be successful in convention classes, how Monsters Hip-Hop Convention works, and all the other stuff that is included in that category. She even had Liam talk about how it worked from a student's perspective and what the different awards are and stuff so we had both a teacher and student perspective.
Third, she talked about class routine. SHE HAS A FRICKIN ROUTINE. HALLELUJAH. This is the part where I'm gonna be dying inside for the summer cuz we do conditioning every week. Jumping jacks, squats, running in place and around the studio, butt kicks, high knees, 15 pushups, 20 sit ups, and 10 burpees. Then a 7 minute stretch routine. It's a lot and I don't think I will ever be the same but hopefully this means that I won't be injured the way I was last year. After that we do actual dancing. While it's gonna be a lot at first, doing that every Wednesday, I'm excited and hopefully I'll finally be stronger and have more endurance.
Fourth, she talked about her ethics. This is the biggest one because this is what is going to overall shape our class and team experience. I'm gonna have multiple paragraphs for this cuz it's long.
No drama in class. Whatever is going on in other classes or at school or anything stays at the door. We don't wanna hear it, we're here for a good time.
Mental health is prioritised. If you are genuinely having a bad day and you need to step out, just ask and you can. You will not be punished for taking time to decompress if you really need it.
If you see someone doing something wrong, don't correct them. That causes tension and it's not a good way to go. Instead, let them figure out how to do it themselves, and if you are concerned about it, just let Tayla know and she'll watch them and correct them.
NO JUDGEMENT. We have lots of people who are of different ages, levels, and personalities. No excluding anyone for any reason.
At competition, don't be afraid to vibe off other people. If someone is really slaying, vibe off them and try to use them as a role model. If you bump into someone, say hi and get to know them a bit. Community building is key.
PRACTISE. It is what is going to make us successful and make us be the best we can be. We want our comp dances to look like professional comp dances. Practise as much as possible. If you are absent, try to learn as much as you can from the video and come back knowing enough to be able to figure out the rest in class. Don't come in knowing nothing because that's not gonna help anything and it’s gonna set us back.
Fifth, she talked about the company show. We have a production number and a company dance. She detailed how shows work and the themes and things that go on. Most people have already done June Show so it wasn’t that much she needed to fill us in on. She also played the music for us for our dances and talked about what her plan was for parts to work.
That's all about how the class went. I'm so grateful that she's an actual sensible human being with morals that are different than they were in my other terrible company. We did conditioning and stretching for the whole time after we were done talking so now I'm collapsed in tiredness but life is good. The kids on Troupe are also genuinely nice people, so I know that we won't have a problem there.
She did give details about costumes and gendered parts. Apparently there's gonna be a boy's part and a girl's part, because we have 5 boys and 10 girls. Make that 5/6 boys and 9/10 girls cuz imma be the fluid one. I'm gonna finally give her an answer about what I want my part to be in terms of boy or girl. I'm gonna basically tell her I'm genderfluid without telling her I'm genderfluid. I'm not in actuality, but that's unimportant and she doesn't have to know that lol. I'm gonna tell her that there will be some days where I feel differently than others, and that's why I want to be in both groups. I'm also gonna ask for the boy's costume cuz apparently the girl's one is a cropped sweatshirt and I don't wanna go through that. It's insane that I feel safe enough to do that because I've never had that sense of ground and protection in dance before.
Huge shoutout to Tayla for giving us a safe space on hip-hop company and for being the best teacher ever. Thank you so much for all you do and I am excited to work with you this year.