westcoastjunkie
04-17-2008, 08:19 PM
It's been really interesting reading the various topics and comments in the Competition Corner. A few obvious observations: Competition is very important to a lot of the dancers in this community for various reasons, and it seems many are confused and/or frustrated with their experiences or the process.
It is this latter observation that is prompting this thread. There is an awful lot of focus on the point system and "levels" but that is only one aspect of competing. From several of the comments and posts it seems (to me, anyway) that many dancers are not properly prepared or set up with realistic expectations when they enter the WCS competition arena and I thought a discussion thread might be helpful. It is not really intended for ranting or complaining but for asking questions and guidance with the hope that the more experienced dancers/competitors and professionals will share some of what they have learned over the years.
I'd like to start with Etiquette:
1. Being a good competitor also means being a good sport.
If you do not do as well as you had hoped DO NOT blame The Man, the point system, your partner, the judges, the DJ's, the event director, the MC, the floor, the audience, the other competitors, the hotel, the temperature, the time zone, the Sun, the Moon and the stars or the WCS world. This goes beyond one's conduct at a specific event and includes one's interactions with their dance community overall. Over the years I have had occasion to witness more than once Mary Ann Nunez not make it to a Champion/Invitational final ~ yes, Mary Ann Nunez ~ along with other top professionals. If they can loose with grace and class, so can we. Yes, I've seen pros roll their eyes and even complain about a song selection, and I've seen pros be unhappy with not winning, but I've never heard a pro say in public or on the internet that it was someone else's fault or that the competition was unfair.
2. Be prepared to NOT WIN.
Only ONE couple can win. Just one. Everyone else does NOT WIN. This seems to be a fact of competition that somehow gets lost in the process. The larger and more competitive your division, the harder it is to win. Look at Jordan & Tatiana. For a while they seemed unbeatable. That is not the case anymore. As talented as they are, if they can be beat in a competition then so can you. To judge a dance will always be subjective, but that does not mean it is unfair. It is a subjective evaluation for everyone. When you don't win, please refer to No. 1 above.
3. Smile.
"If you have a choice of faking enjoyment or genuinely fearing for your life - genuinely enjoy yourself. Why compete if you don't enjoy at least some aspect of it?"
4. Be coachable.
If you ask a judge for feedback, or if comments are provided on the score sheets and you choose to read them, take the coaching. If you don't agree with a judge's evaluation that's your right, but DO NOT then go confront and argue with a judge about it (See No. 1 above). Criticism can be difficult to hear, even if it is given with good intentions, so if you are a tad sensitive you also have the choice of not asking for feedback or reading the comments.
5. Play by the Rules.
For those of you who think you are Unique - you are - just like everyone else. ;) For any competition to be fair the rules must be applied to everyone. If you are playing basketball you do not get to dribble out of bounds and then back in without being penalized. The league officials (or anyone else for that matter) do not want to hear how special you are so that rule shouldn't apply to you and that you need to dribble out of bounds anyway because your teammates are incompetent. If this sounds like you, see No. 1 above. Skirting the rules only proves that you are good at skirting the rules, not that you are special or better. If you agree to play basketball, you've agreed to the play by the rules of basketball. If you agree to compete in a WCS dance event, you've agreed to compete by the rules of that event.
It is this latter observation that is prompting this thread. There is an awful lot of focus on the point system and "levels" but that is only one aspect of competing. From several of the comments and posts it seems (to me, anyway) that many dancers are not properly prepared or set up with realistic expectations when they enter the WCS competition arena and I thought a discussion thread might be helpful. It is not really intended for ranting or complaining but for asking questions and guidance with the hope that the more experienced dancers/competitors and professionals will share some of what they have learned over the years.
I'd like to start with Etiquette:
1. Being a good competitor also means being a good sport.
If you do not do as well as you had hoped DO NOT blame The Man, the point system, your partner, the judges, the DJ's, the event director, the MC, the floor, the audience, the other competitors, the hotel, the temperature, the time zone, the Sun, the Moon and the stars or the WCS world. This goes beyond one's conduct at a specific event and includes one's interactions with their dance community overall. Over the years I have had occasion to witness more than once Mary Ann Nunez not make it to a Champion/Invitational final ~ yes, Mary Ann Nunez ~ along with other top professionals. If they can loose with grace and class, so can we. Yes, I've seen pros roll their eyes and even complain about a song selection, and I've seen pros be unhappy with not winning, but I've never heard a pro say in public or on the internet that it was someone else's fault or that the competition was unfair.
2. Be prepared to NOT WIN.
Only ONE couple can win. Just one. Everyone else does NOT WIN. This seems to be a fact of competition that somehow gets lost in the process. The larger and more competitive your division, the harder it is to win. Look at Jordan & Tatiana. For a while they seemed unbeatable. That is not the case anymore. As talented as they are, if they can be beat in a competition then so can you. To judge a dance will always be subjective, but that does not mean it is unfair. It is a subjective evaluation for everyone. When you don't win, please refer to No. 1 above.
3. Smile.
"If you have a choice of faking enjoyment or genuinely fearing for your life - genuinely enjoy yourself. Why compete if you don't enjoy at least some aspect of it?"
4. Be coachable.
If you ask a judge for feedback, or if comments are provided on the score sheets and you choose to read them, take the coaching. If you don't agree with a judge's evaluation that's your right, but DO NOT then go confront and argue with a judge about it (See No. 1 above). Criticism can be difficult to hear, even if it is given with good intentions, so if you are a tad sensitive you also have the choice of not asking for feedback or reading the comments.
5. Play by the Rules.
For those of you who think you are Unique - you are - just like everyone else. ;) For any competition to be fair the rules must be applied to everyone. If you are playing basketball you do not get to dribble out of bounds and then back in without being penalized. The league officials (or anyone else for that matter) do not want to hear how special you are so that rule shouldn't apply to you and that you need to dribble out of bounds anyway because your teammates are incompetent. If this sounds like you, see No. 1 above. Skirting the rules only proves that you are good at skirting the rules, not that you are special or better. If you agree to play basketball, you've agreed to the play by the rules of basketball. If you agree to compete in a WCS dance event, you've agreed to compete by the rules of that event.