Episode 6
Dec 22, 2020
Hey dancers and welcome to Dance Tips with Brittany! It’s Christmas week and if you’ve been following along, you know how much I love Christmas and celebrating holidays. Merry Christmas eve, eve, eve and Happy Holidays! What are your must watch Christmas movies every year? Share below!
Mine are The Santa Claus 1&2, Christmas Story, Elf, and Jingle all the Way
This week’s tip is about performing in Christmas or Spiritual performances.
How to improve stage presence (in uplifting lyrical routines)
The real answer to improve stage presence is,
act like you are a king or queen. It is all about the upper body. Now, when you begin to dance like this, it will feel a little over the top and silly… but if you can learn to push limits, your change in stage presence will light up a room and make eyes well.
Storytime:
When I was a freshman in college, I was in a dance to “O Holy Night” choreographed by Jo Rowan. Now, if you don’t know Jo, she is the head of the dance department at OCU.
She is eccentric, she is intimidating, and she is brilliant. She wanted us to dance up to the ceiling. I thought it was crazy to dance like this, but I was a freshman and terrified. She drilled and drilled trying to get our head out of the mirror and dance up to the balcony and beyond. I could see the frustrations rising as my group wouldn’t take the correction. Then one day it clicked. We got out of the mirror and just tried our best to take the note, letting go of our insecurities. It brought tears to her eyes. We finally did it. We brought the Christmas spirit to the studio, the stage, and to her holiday.
It can feel foolish to step out of your comfort zone but when you do it can feel soooo good!
So today’s tip
How to improve stage presence for uplifting lyrical routines
I encourage you to get out of the mirror. Just like the holidays, it is not about you. It is about everyone around you, spreading joy, and creating that aura of love.
So when you are performing a spiritual lyrical routine, I encourage you to think about being a king or queen. This is how: (add text to my video)
- Puff out your chest
- Look up and out
- Present the port de bras
See how when I’m at this level, I am just speaking to you. But when I become the queen, I am speaking to all my subjects. Or if you prefer a light snow analogy, puff out your chest, look up and out at the snow falling, and feel the snowflakes fall on your fingertips.
Now, I am speaking a lot about the holiday dances and spiritual pieces but how many of you have performed a routine to “Amazing Grace” or “Let it Go”. This tip can help make you look larger than life when performing uplifting lyrical solos and group dances. Get out of the mirror and try it! You’ll see an immediate change of reaction from your parents and teachers!
Comment below if this worked for you and how you’ve found your Eureka moment! If you want to learn more about perfecting your competition performances and working with me personally, click on the link below!
Catch ya next week!
