The following recommendations are from the experiences of your Adagio teachers (who were students themselves, once!) on how to make your student's stage experience a success.

Plan ahead for the recital!

The recital is a once-a-year event and your student looks forward to the day to shine on the "big stage." The performance should be a priority in your family plans and take precedence over other social events. Please mark your calendars early with the performance weekend and try to not overcrowd the weekend with other activities. The Saturday rehearsal and the Sunday recital can be exhausting when combined with other activities.

Talk about the recital and performing with your student .

Mentioning the performance at home will help them develop the mindset that their dance is special and that you appreciate the importance of their recital. You may even ask your teacher for the name of the song that they are dancing to and purchase a copy for them to practice with at home, if you wish, to get them excited about their dance. Playing videos of dancers on stage is another way to show them what performing is all about.

Come to the Dress Rehearsal

The dress rehearsal is an essential element of our Annual Recital. Taking place the day before, it is a time for our dancers to orient themselves to the "big stage" and to feel more at ease when they dance the next day. It is also important for the Adagio Ballet staff to coordinate the technical elements such as lighting, scene changes, and transitions to make the performance a success the next day. We have two dress rehearsals, one each for the morning and afternoon performances. Please check back here closer to the performance date for the exact schedule of this year’s dress rehearsals.

Dress them appropriately for their dance.

Part of the formal training in a ballet school is the preparation of a dancer mentally, as well as physically. This helps to separate ballet from other types of activities in the student's mind, especially when they see themselves look like a dancer in the mirror. Following the dress codes for the different levels and making sure that your student's hair is pulled up an out of their face begins to prepare them for the discipline of being a dancer. All dancers should wear their hair in a bun (or ponytail for jazz classes) on stage and wear the clothes described for them by their teachers. Ballet tights and leotards with holes should be replaced before their performance.

Make the big day special!

Making a special breakfast for your dancers the day of the show will make them feel like a star. Similarly, Miss Nicole always remembers the silver dancing charms (ballet shoes, music notes) that her mother gave her after every big show on the stage. Flowers are a welcome treat, as well as simply telling your students what a great job they did and how proud you are of them!

Enjoy the show!

Invite family to attend your student's recital and plan on staying until the end of the show. The sense of community the dancers feel with one another, and the opportunity to see older dancers on the stage, will encourage them and make them feel the day was a success.

Remember, even the youngest dancers on the stage will feel like stars after they perform. Especially for dancers that have never been on stage before, reassurance that they will do a wonderful job is helpful to get them over their performance "butterflies." It is the repetition of practice and performance that will eventually make them confident and graceful dancers on stage.

It is the process of preparing for a goal and achieving it, rather than the actual technique of the dance itself on performance day, which is most important for the younger students. The fact that your brave young ones have performed before an audience (all by themselves!) is the greatest reward of all---and is truly an experience that will build "Grace and Memories for Life."