CREATIVITY

CREATIVITY

I have been a teacher, choreographer, a master class instructor and competition adjudicator for the past 30 + years. So to say that I have seen it all comes close. I want to also say that I am not the best teacher/choreographer/instructor but I am certainly not the worst. What I do bring is a wealth of knowledge and experience from a dancers’ point of view, as well as a teachers’ and choreographers’, and certainly an adjudicators’. There have been so many posts in the past on different threads on social media, blaming competition judges for wrong placing, wrong scoring, bad critiques, little or no critiques, and many other things, that I decided that I would like to weigh in on the situation from a different perspective; that being the Adjudicators’ point of view.

Now, these hired professionals have 2 jobs to do. Firstly, to critique the hundreds of routines being presented before them, hour after hour, day after day, in a multitude of disciplines, genres, styles, and age levels. To say that each and every critique that these judges are giving to every single entry is going to be life changing is quite frankly absurd. Especially once the judges have seen 350 or more routines!!

The second job that the adjudicator has is to score, appropriately, the routines and thus putting them in to some sort of ranking or placement within the categories.

What I would like to explore in this blog is HOW does a teacher/choreographer make his or her routines stand out, make the judges take notice. So that you, the teacher, can achieve the higher marks and get into those overalls! I am going to assume that we all have choreography and that we are all teaching our students the basics of technique. So if we are all doing this, how can one routine stand out against so many? I believe that CREATIVITY is the key.

Now, when it comes to creativity, I am speaking on several levels; Creative and intelligent music choices, creative age appropriate choreography, creative eye catching costuming, creative and clever use of props (if there are any), and creative themes. Let’s discuss these points further…

MUSIC

Before you even start choreographing that opening pose or first step, teachers will have spent hours upon hours and even more hours listening to, trying to be inspired by, and researching music. This is possibly the single most difficult part of the entire choreographic process!! The right music for the right dancer(s) or the right concept! If you are setting a routine on a soloist, take into consideration age, skill level, personality of the student(s), their personal likes or dislikes to certain music genres. How does this dancer move? What kind of style can be developed? For example, there is so much cute music out there for younger dancers, that we don’t need the most popular songs on the radio for all of your younger dancers. Or some obscure club/dance/house song that you heard in the nightclub. Does the song “do something”? Does it have a different break in the chorus? Does it have a different orchestration somewhere in the middle? Are there any kinds of variations within the piece? Can you splice into a different version of this song? If the music sounds the same throughout the 2.5 minutes of the solo it gets monotonous, then the judge will get bored of the song, and therefore the judge will not have the same focus and attention to the dancer.

Also, different kinds of music are better suited for different genres. For instance, a very loud and fully orchestrated piece of music, like a heavy metal song, will not be suitable for an 8 year old tap solo! Now I do realize that is going to the extreme but it gets my point across! A general rule to follow for Tappers is the less number of people on the stage , the less instruments. You don’t want the music to overpower the sound of the taps! After all, the tapping is a big part of what they are being judged on, so it needs to be heard! But you also need the impact of the music for the overall effect of the choreography so you don’t want the music to be turned down too much!

For the Ballet choreographers, there are many many different types of music available to you, NOT just classical. If you use your imagination, and look for a little inspiration from different sources, you will find so many options out there! Today’s musicians are coming up with hundreds of new classical sounding songs in movies, television shows and commercials. Branch out! If all of your Ballet routines are done to the same old slow, classical music, there is a good chance that your judging panel will not be engaged into your piece.

Jazz, so directly linked to the evolution of music and fashion! Who doesn’t love a great swing routine, or a hot spicy Salsa inspired group?! Fosse style anyone? Sock hop? Just the mentioning of these musical eras and styles have already conjured up recording artists, movement staging,, and of course costuming to reflect those eras. But again, age appropriateness, style, concept and theme of the music have to be interpreted by the dancer so choose wisely!

The point is, for an overall effect, musical selection is a major piece in the entire puzzle of your piece of choreography, and most likely, the most important! But also for the effect of your entire body of work! Try to keep the judges guessing who the choreographer is of each piece that hits the stage. Don’t be predictable! Don’t fall into the same “rut” that you always feel comfortable choreographing in for all of your routines.

So don’t just settle for any kind of music! We want our dancers to be versatile in their styles and techniques, so be versatile in your musical selections!! Be inspired by your musical selections! Push your creative musical listening skills! Oh, and just because someone used that particular song last year doesn’t mean that you have to use it this year!!! A catchy tune will catch the attention of the judge and be able to catch a good score!

CHOREOGRAPHY

When you are setting a routine on your dancer(s) you must try to make sure that each routine is unique and different. When a judge is seeing your ENTIRE BODY OF WORK, you don’t want all of your solos, duets, trios and groups to look the same, have the same style, same movement quality, the same tricks or the same type of songs (remember, you chose an amazing and different song for this routine!). All of your dancers have different personalities so why try and make them all the same type of soloists? You want each and every routine that hits the stage to be memorable for some reason, so try and make it for the right reason! You want the judges to look forward to your studio code and not have them anticipate the same choreography, steps or tricks that they just saw a few routines ago. Choreography should be like reading a book, lots of sentences, punctuation, descriptions, and paragraphs. Think of the sentences as the transitional sections linking everything together, punctuation are your accents and “tricks”, descriptions can be your style and movement quality, and paragraphs are choreographic sections like a turn section or a series of jumps. How do you put your story or book together? Does it have a theme? What kind of characters are involved? What is the climax of the plot line? Does it end satisfactorily? Only you, the teacher and your creative mind can answer these questions.

Teachers need to ensure that the dancers have a wide and vast scope of technical skills and “tricks”. There is so much more to a jazz solo than grabbing your leg and hiking it up to your ear! And even though it is impressive, does every single jazz solo need to have that leg pull in their solo? Or leg tilt? Or leg grab pirouette? You get my drift. Variety is the spice that judges look for in a category full of many entries!

One “pet peeve” in choreography that adjudicators have with routines that are presented on stage, is that the dancer(s) aren’t able to perform a technical skill or trick with absolute security!!! Why make a dancer try a certain skill that will not show them off? Why make them look weak or less secure or technically less proficient? Teachers should want all of the dancers to go up there and do their best, with their best! If a dancer isn’t able to perform a certain skill, you as a teacher and choreographer need to come up with a different or creative way to try and achieve the same WOW factor with a different move or different way of executing that same skill. Maybe try a different style with that technical element or trick? Just because we all went to the same convention and saw that amazing jump or turn, doesn’t mean that we all have to now put it in every routine! Why not use it as INSPRIATION and put your own creative spin on it? Different arms, a different exit, make it something more unique to you and your style!

Also with skills and style, not all dancers should be doing the same type of moves! It’s called age appropriateness! Those 10 year olds should not be doing the same type of stylized choreography as a 16 year old! There are many different and creative skills and techniques that a 10 year old can do! You should pick a style that will not only look good on the dancer but the dancer can perform it with confidence and security. Making smart, creative (or different) choreographic choices for any age level will get the attention of the adjudicator and the routine will be awarded a better score!

COSTUMES

So many colours, styles, fabrics, textures patterns and embellishments to choose from!! Where does one start? Well, there are 3 choices that teachers will have:

· Hand crafted, made to measure by a professional seamstress

· Catalogue ordered

· Store bought.

Now, before we tackle this section I always understand the constraints of budgets. Most families can’t afford $500 costumes for each and every single routine. But what I’d like to point out is that it doesn’t necessarily have to be the most expensive costume that will catch the judge’s eye. It should however GO WITH the musical selection, style of the choreography, enhance the body shape of the dancer(s) and age level of the dancer(s). Maybe you start with a catalogue bought costume, but then you create a new costume by adding some “extras”. Add a little (or a lot) of bling, a jacket, gloves, a hat? Make it totally unique from everyone else’s. Use those creative juices and make it more memorable! Conversely, does that $500 costume dripping with rhinestones automatically come in first place? No. While they certainly are stunningly beautiful, costumes should enhance the routine not BE the routine. A little creative arts and craft can go a long way to make an age appropriate costume stay in the mind of the judge for a long time!!! They may not remember the exact choreography but they will remember what they were wearing!

Please be aware that not ALL of your dancers have the same body type! If a 2 piece costume looks good on a dancer with a “perfect” body type, more than likely it won’t look as good on the “not so perfect” body type. You need to find costuming that is reflective of your choreography, AND that will look good on ALL of the dancers. Costume trends are just that, trends. Tights vs. bare legs. Two piece vs. covered up. You don’t have to always follow the trends just because everyone else is! You need to take into consideration of how your students will feel up on that stage wearing that particular costume. If your students feel amazing they will dance amazingly!

PROPS

Only if applicable, props can enhance a routine, help set theme and staging and character, but they can be a detriment as well. So many choreographers “forget” about the prop. They will start the routine on or touching the prop but then ignore it for the entire dance, or maybe go back to it once, then finish on or touching the prop for the ending pose. Adjudicators like to see the prop used at least3-4 times within the routine and that doesn’t include the opening pose! The prop should be an extension of the dancer and therefore be an integral part of the choreography being presented on stage.

Why always use a chair? Is there not another piece of furniture that one can sit on or utilize? And if we are using a chair must it always be stationary? On all four legs? Can we not move it around? Tilt it? Place it on its’ side? Same thing with a table or a bench. When using a prop in a group, try to hide the manipulation and have it just “arrive” in its new position like magic! Or, make a big deal about moving the prop pulling the fous so that it continues the story/theme. Using a prop in a different or creative way will show the adjudicator that the choreographer was thinking outside the box, being unique, not settling for the norm! Judges will appreciate that creative way of using a prop and will remember that long after the routine has exited the stage.

THEMES

If you are contemplating having some sort of theme or concept for your particular routine(s), please take into consideration several points. Firstly and most importantly, age appropriateness of said theme for your dancers! Be careful of the maturity of the theme in relation to your dancers.

Will they be able to mentally understand and fully appreciate/comprehend the gravity of your concept?

Will they be able to execute the style of the choreography for that theme?

Will they feel completely comfortable performing said style and really let themselves be fully immersed into the choreography?

Try to come come up with original and unique themes and concepts for your routines, something that hasn't been done before. Most of the time the music will speak to you, the choreographer, for the style, costuming, use of props and staging. For example if you are using the Party Scene music from the Nutcracker Suite, you would contemplate using Victorian style chairs, sitting room type furnishings, period style costuming, a Christmas Tree, to fully set the theme, flavour and concept of your routine. This theme and concept is straight forward and established right from the start of the routine. The story is laid out for the judges, and can be fully appreciated and understood by everyone and leaves little doubt as to what is being performed.

Sometimes the theme will be more abstract, more conceptual as in many of the modern routines being presented on stage nowadays. An artist standing in front of a giant picture frame, blank. The dancers enter the stage representing all of the colours of the rainbow. He then goes through the mental process of how to create his masterpiece, the mental anguish and self doubt of colour, patterns, aspects, choices. Finally, as the routine finishes he has created his master piece as the canvas has come alive before the judges' eyes. This theme leaves more to the personal understanding and empathy of the viewer (judge). These type of routines take the judges on an emotional journey and is subject to interpretation, and thus risk the judge not fully appreciating or even comprehending your choices.

You must be careful when using more abstract themes as some people "won't get it". At times with a conceptual piece you need to give them some deliberate details to relate to in the choreography, really it them over the head with your ideas, story and theme!

So teachers, find your inner creativity! Push your own creative boundaries! Create different ways of staging, movement qualities, different jumps or turns, costuming, musical selections, and/or prop use, themes and concepts. This will make the judging panel sit up and take notice from the sea of dance that is presented before them for and entire weekend! Catch the judges’ eye, keep them focused throughout the routine, add those wow factors in your choreography, and you should see it reflected in your scores!

Cheers!