Costume Try-On Week is such an exciting event for dancers! Slipping the costume on for the first time is often the “a-ha” moment when the dancers suddenly understand their teacher’s vision for the performance. This is also the moment where your dancers get pretty excited about their time in the spotlight. Simply put, they feel like stars.
Behind the scenes, so much goes into the logistics of costuming. Your studio’s process of selecting costumes is a painstaking one, full of careful thought, creativity and the joy of putting a smile on your child’s face. Read on for the top 5 things we things we REEEEAAAALY want you and your dancer to know about costumes:
- Costumes aren’t a democracy. 🙂 Your dancer’s costume has been selected by the choreographer (the person who made up the dance), and has been carefully considered to both bring the dance to life, and flatter the performers. There may be differences in costumes in the same class. For example, it’s possible there will be three different colors of the same style of costume in one routine. The colors have been chosen for specific dancers for a reason- such as formations- and there is no switching or requesting.
- Costumes have been chosen not only with artistry and beauty in mind, but also with modesty and tastefulness as top priorities. You will not see exposed midriffs in our choice of costumes. All dancers will wear tights. These are non-negotiables for us, and we’re proud to keep your dancers covered on stage.
- We are building a non-judgmental culture of love and understanding at our school. Please keep these core values in mind as you see the costume reveals and bring your dancers’ costumes home. If the costumes wouldn’t have been your choice had you been in control of the selection, please keep in mind these costumes WERE the first choice of the teachers who picked them. We are very excited about our costumes and can’t wait to see our dancers wearing them. Remember if it’s not necessary to say, then it’s necessary not to say it.
- If it’s your dancer who comes home less than thrilled about his or her costume, then please use this as a teachable moment for your child and educate them about everything mentioned above. Let’s work together to get your child pumped and operate under the principle, “You get what you get and you’re super excited about it!” (We like this better than the old “throwing of the fit.”)
- Our costumes are not custom-made, however we take careful measurements following the manufacturer’s guidelines and we allow for a reasonable amount of growing room. Even so, costumes may still need some adjustments. Pinning and/or a neighbor with simple sewing skills will be your best friend in these cases. If something absolutely does not fit, we will make every effort to exchange it. Remember, we are on Team YOU!
Thank you for taking the time to learn “how we elevate.” We understand not everyone grew up in dance or theatre, and we want you to feel like the confident, competent and loved members of our dance family that you are. Mostly, we want you to be happy and we’re working hard to make that happen. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask one of our friendly staff members. Happy Costume Time!