2017 Interclub competitions

In my opinion, this year's interclubs went by very quickly and now classes are focusing on synchronicity for the team competition. As per BjP guidelines, clubs may only compete in two interclubs per year, I entered in both. Over two consecutive Saturdays, I travelled to school halls about an hour's drive from my residency.

Interclub #1 

As with last year's interclubs, the beginner and novice sections were scheduled as the last events of the day. The sun was setting as I looked beyond the louvres of the hall. This interclub consisted of fairly local dancers. We were treated with a generous warm-up space and provided with plentiful parking which took a lot of the stress away. I was able to practise in a mirrored room to music which accompanied previous ladies' sections. During marching, I gauged that grip on this particular floor was smoother than that of my usual venue's. Also, the music was louder than my usual setting's, I had to adjust to these differences. It was time for me to dance! I discovered that I had forgotten to focus on my five words and let my mind drift away until about the third routine. I had a great time doing my best physie. Eventually it was quite dark outside as ladies and their supporters headed towards the car park. 

Interclub #2

I was impressed with the dedication of the families who flew in especially for this competition. Unlike Interclub #1, the host had welcomed clubs from three different states. The school hall was packed with girls, ladies and their supporters resulting in a lot of standing audience members. After marshalling, we were seated for about one and a half sections (about 15 minutes). I've never experienced this before, even at zones we were able to actively stand up and keep our blood flowing. On the floor, I found the problem of comparing myself to others which meant I couldn't give my full attention on physie-ing. I will try to focus on my own dancing rather than watching others in my peripheral vision at the zone competition. As we marched off, I realised that strategically positioned sideways-facing chairs created a barricade so that dancers could have an aisle to exit. 

Overall, I was very pleased with my performances. I am glad that I had the opportunity to experience how different clubs run their events and to explore different venues. 

Practise performing

It is important to practise performing in low-stress situations such as practice competitions run by your club (affectionately known as lollipop/chocolate competitions) where you have the opportunity to perform in a familiar environment and with people you know. There are noticeable differences between dancing in lessons, at mock competitions, interclubs, zone and intra-club competitions. I once read that clubs cannot use their normal class venues to host an interclub. This provides a level playing field for all physie girls and ladies as competitors will not have had a chance to regularly dance at the venue. However, girls/ladies may have danced at the venue before for a biennial interclub or participate in other fitness activities at the chosen venue.

What's the difference between class and competition?

• time of day
• audience
• dancing with others (not from your own club) can be off-putting when they perform moves at a slower/faster pace
• expectations
• grooming
• venue and environment
• anxiety
• louder music (I only realised this last week at an interclub)
• the material of the hall floor (I also only just realised the impact of this on foot grip)
• harder to access drinking water & bathroom facilities especially when you're in a leotard

How can we create our own opportunities to mimic a performance/competition?

• wear competition attire to class (leotard, hair)
• perform in front of family and friends
• participate in opportunities given by the club (fete performances, showcases)
• participate in practice competitions
• enter yourself into a [talent] show (especially for girls in school)

For more tips check out Practice Makes Progress.