The Dawn of Dance Recital -- Wherein the Students demonstrate to Babypea what they have learned!

It took a while to come down off the ceiling after the amazing weekend of the Dance Galaxy at LEA12 in which the Dawn of Dance students strutted their stuff for 70 people who filled the sim  to capacity.

But now I can look back and share a few highlights of the experience.   24 students started in the class, 17 stayed the course and 13 danced in the Dawn of Dance recital.  While not everyone felt ready to perform a solo, 4 of us did while 2 others danced a duet and 2 more danced in a group dance with some of their friends and all 14 (including Baby) danced in an energetic group dance choreographed by Babypea von Phoenix, our wonderful teacher and coach.

Roni at the Dawn of Dance recital - photo by (Roni) Ronda Saunders

Roni performed a lively electro-swing dance to The Swing Phenomenon by Bart&Baker, featuring Nicolle Rochelle, with a very minimalist black and white high tech set which she built.

Jo (JMB) Balogh at the Dawn of Dance recital - photo by JMB Balogh

I knew from the start that I wanted to perform a flamenco dance and I found Gipsy by Jesse Cook, some wonderful dances from A&M, poses from oOo studios and put them all together, with a outdoor courtyard set I built.

Anashra Dubois at the Dawn of Dance - photo by Aubreya Joszpe

Anashra Dubois danced to Fireflies by Owl City and she built one of the prettiest sets seen that weekend, with her lovely costume completing the effect.

Snow Mistwood at the Dawn of Dance  - photo by Babypea von Phoenix

Snow put our hearts in our mouths as she danced to Come fly with me - Frank Sinatra, along the length of an airplane in the sky and down along the wings!

Maia and Aytia at the Dawn of Dance  - photo by Babypea von Phoenix

After a musical introduction from Swan lake, Maia and Aytia, in their black and white tutus, changed pace and danced to Radioactive by Imagine Dragons.  Their set of moving islands was very innovative.

Empressdyme and Nasiyah with friends at the Dawn of Dance  - photo by Babypea von Phoenix

Empressdyme and Nasiyah invited some friends along to dance with them to  Shake it off. Their wonderful set even had rain with puddles!

Finale dance at the Dawn of Dance - photo by Babypea von Phoenix

Dancers:  Babypea, Cherri, Ruby, Barb, Jewel, Maarah, Anashara,

  Nasiyah, Jo, Roni, Empressdyme
Snow, Maia, Aytia

With her great generosity of spirit,  Babypea wanted every one of her students to experience performing at the Dawn of Dance recital, so she put together a group finale for 14 of us, which of course included her!  It wasn't easy on such a small stage but she managed it brilliantly with a high energy dance which had us popping up on the stage in groups at various times.   She even included the shadow dancer effect which everyone loves.    

Roni and I had to find our movers by camming under the stage and sitting on them.  This was rather daunting and due to lag Roni's didn't rez for quite a while and she was in panic mode for a brief period.   But eventually 14 dancers were shaking their booties to Aretha Franklin and Annie Lennox's Sisters are Doin' for Themselves, which Baby had kept as a surprise for us till the day.

Dance performances are but fleeting moments in time but they live on in our memories and can be captured not only in photographs but also in videos.   Fortunately Renaissance woman Roni has mastered that art too and she made videos of her performance and mine on our dance platforms before the day.

Miss Ronda Saunders electroswinging to The Swing Phenomenon 

by Bart&Baker feat. Michelle Rochelle

Miss JMB Balogh dances Flamenco to Gipsy by Jesse Cook

Thanks to everyone who made that day so special for me:  to Roni, my dearest friend, who shared the whole experience of learning to create and perform a dance with me, to my fellow classmates and dancers, and to our inimitable DJ Gunner von Phoenix.   But most of all thanks go to Babypea von Phoenix who created the whole idea of the classes and the recital and showed endless patience with her scatty students as they floundered their way through a priceless learning experience, culminating in a truly enjoyable performance which was a triumph for everyone!

On with the dance! let joy be unconfined;

No sleep till morn, when Youth and Pleasure meet

To chase the glowing hours with flying feet.

~George Gordon, Lord Byron

The Joy of Dance in the Virtual World of Second Life - Introduction

Jo - The Dancing Fool

I don't dance in Real Life.  To tell the truth I'm the proverbial cliché of a person with two left feet.  

I went to an all girls' high school and I didn't take dance lessons until I was in my late teens.   Perhaps I have no "dance" gene or perhaps I left it too late, but somehow dancing didn't take with me.  But that's not to say I don't admire dancing or regret that I can't dance.  My foot starts tapping, just like everyone else's when I listen to dance music, of any genre.  But for me to get up and dance would only lead to embarrassment for everyone. 

When I go to the ballet or see it performed on television, I imagine that I too have the perfect control over my body that those dancers have.  I don't know if they have the "dance" gene which inspires them to work so hard to attain that perfect control.   I do know what it takes to achieve it and what dedication they show to their art.  But above all they must have an enduring, driving passion to express themselves in movement with music. 

In Second Life, I too have discovered that passion for dancing.  In its simplest form there, dancing is just going to a music venue and using dance animations created by other people.   You can dance alone or as a couple with another.  Usually there are a variety of dances to choose from, although their names can be meaningless and totally not in synch with the rhythm of the music being played.   

More experienced dancers buy dances themselves, using them instead of depending on the dances provided, which can be minimal or extensive depending on the club or venue.    There are usually more couples dances of better quality than individual ones and not all solo dances are unisex.  Some are very feminine or masculine and I think many owners just don't want to get into the complication and expense of providing something for everyone for the singles.

But solo dancers have the advantage of being able to use the dances they own and matching them to the music as it changes.   Of course there are specialized venues which keep strictly to one style of music, like Blues or Latin Dancing, Rock or Fifties, Electric Swing or Ballroom.  That makes it a little simpler in some ways.  Whatever your taste in music it's playing somewhere in Second Life in a place where you can also dance.  

Matching dances to the music is an art indeed.  It requires not only talent and a feel for the music but also a deep knowledge of the dances you own.  Yes, some creators name their dances clearly like Salsa or Hip Hop but a dance named Club Dance 15 give you no idea if it's fast or slow paced until you've tried it a few times.

Roni and Jo - Ladies in Red

I'm very fortunate to share many of my Second Life dance experiences with a dear friend who is very talented in matching dances to the music.  Roni owns a vast array of dances which she has installed into a personal dance hud which makes it easy to switch dances quickly as the musical numbers change.   The hud has the added advantage of being able to invite other avatars to dance along in a "chorus line" or group so we are often seen dancing as a duo around the grid.

The idea of this blog is to share some of our dance experiences and photos and our impressions of the World of Dance in Second Life, in its multitude of forms.  I hope you will find it of interest.  

Dancing is creating a sculpture that is visible only for a moment.

― Erol Ozan