What makes a good performer??

After having a conversation with Paula via Skype we ended up exploring a lot of different topics. But one that got me going was performance!

What makes someone stand out on stage?
What draws you in?
What makes them so good?
Who is my favourite artist and why?

In cast change on the ship I am currently on I watched the shows for a month while learning them. One girl stood out every time I watched. I tried to watch other people but she had such stage presence I couldn't take my eyes from her. She trained at Elmhurst from the age of 11.........is this why??

Please comment and leave your answers and ideas.

Blogging slowly in the Bahamas!

Module 2 - 4a

After all the preparation there are still so many questions that I have, that could lead me for my inquiry but I am finding it difficult to know which route to take. I think this is because I want my inquiry to benefit my future career, as I am sure that all of us BAPP students intend too. The problem is I really don’t know where my future lies. I am currently on a cruise ship and only have just over two months. I also intend this to be my last contract with Carnival, as I want to start auditioning and try my career on land.

The reason I am doing this course is because I would like to eventually teach in schools, dance colleges and the original dance school where I trained , this course was a great starting point. But before I do that I want to keep auditioning, the more experience I have the better teacher I will be? (note the question mark!)

Below I have blogged my ideas and work I have done so far and would be very grateful for any feedback or ideas.

Please see a spider diagram that consists of topics that interest me. Appendix A

I found that the questions I asked were too general and open. I’ve narrowed down the questions and also managed to merge some together to form one question relating to areas that I felt were appropriate for my inquiry.

Is how you look essential to have a career with in the dance industry?

This question would cover a lot of questions on my spider diagram. From having a healthy eating regime and workout plan to wearing the right thing to auditions. I am a qualified ETM instructor and I am very interested in becoming a personal trainer that specialises in dance. It would give me something to focus on while in between jobs.

Could I have been better prepared for: Dance College

                                    Auditions

                                                               A professional Career

I would have to pick on of the three options. Dance college - I think this question would benefit me personally as a performer but also in the long run when I decide to teach. I feel personally that I was let down by my training as a child and there are a lot of things that I would have changed about my training from the age of 5-18.

Is there anyway I can prepare myself for the “unemployment stage?”

I really enjoy reading self help books and can see how they can benefit anyone, not necessarily performers. Maybe I could create some sort of helpful guide for performers that go through a dry spout in their career.

 Appendix A

When slowly up loading this blog due to slow connection in the Bahamas I have managed to look at a few linked in websites and also Facebook groups that have been created by previous students. That will be the next thing on my list to do when I get Wifi.

I look forward to your feedback.

One thought leading to another......

Yet again I haven't given myself a break longer than 4 days which is really a positive but very demanding and draining. A week today I fly back to America and onto a Carnival Ship to complete another 6 Months Dancing. I'm trying to prepare myself as much as possible. After a long conversation with Paula my thoughts and questions on my line of enquiry are continuously expanding, developing and changing!

One problem I have while deciding is where I am going to be when I complete the Modules. The day I sign off the ship module 2 will be complete. I will then be on land while completing module 3. I could plan all these questionnaires, interviews and different ways to investigate and then get home and not be in best place to complete my plans. All this needs to be taken into consideration.

As myself and Paula discussed,Preparation is KEY!

After receiving verbal feedback I know where I am at and what I need to improve! I am actually looking forward to the next module........whether it's because the thought of studying on a beach beats this English weather I am not sure ;-)

1st Module done......and already worried about the next!

It was a great relief to have handed in my 1st Critical Reflection........It wasn't half the standard I would have liked it to have been after falling behind on the ship. Once I got home in April I cracked on!! However as I said in my previous blog I fell literally straight into a job in Bannatyne Gym.

NOW...........I have been offered my 1st request for my next ship which I am SOOOOO pleased about however I am already worrying about the next two modules that I will be doing while on the ship. I will be based in the ideal work place but the lack of internet does worry me!!! I am going to get as organised as possible.........printing all handbooks etc which I have already done and started ready (-:

Any tips from people that have already been in this position? How did you all get on? I would appreciate all the help I can get. x

Task 3d – Critical questions and issues the emerge

Do some very specific ideas emerge about your networking and sources? Does your engagement to date seem appropriate? Limited? Focused? Planned? Unplanned?

Due to being on a ship for 7 months my networking sources have been very limited. I made the most of my sources there. I have a new affiliation with Carnival, getting to know the old cast, supervisors and the new cast I now have a group of people that are from all over the world that may help me out in the future. If I had studied reader 3 before meeting these people I think I would have done things differently. I have now added most of them on facebook so I can keep in contact. I would have asked them more questions about their careers, jobs, studies. Learning from other peoples mistakes, getting advise and finding out there chosen paths could have added to my knowledge and maybe helped me out in the future. Up to now it has been unplanned, I have just let things happen. Now that I have access to all the sources I need I can focus on where I am going and create my path.

Are your ideas, position or concerns shared by others within and/or beyond your professional area of work?

Yes- from reading peoples blogs I notice the word unplanned a lot. I think a lot on BAPP course this module has made them look deeper into how they are using their networks, at the moment they are just letting things happen just like myself.

Does sharing ideas and communicating with others shift your thinking, planning or practice?

I am constantly learning and changing my plans. My career has only just began, until now I had it all planned out. I now have choices to make about my next direction. Talking to people that have been in the practice for years have influenced me a lot. I am not closing and doors and saying no to any options. I am ready to take any route they may evolve on my path.

Does critical reflection help you decide what really matters and the action to take?

Most definitely! If you never re access your actions you are never going to learn or move forward. Critical reflection has developed my second self as I like to call it.  By taking myself out of the box and looking at actions from a different point of view. I am still learning a great deal and I have not come to grips with it totally I can just refer to my reader to remind me. I feel it has already benefited me not only as a self employed dancer but also as a person.

To what extent do concepts and theories assist you in thinking about your professional networking in different ways? And do these different ways of thinking have some purpose for you?

Previous to Reader 1 & 3 I used networking sites and had many sources of networking however it was all subconscious. There was no planning or reasoning behind it. Now I can reflect on that and learn to use them to my best ability.  I can plan ahead. This way I will save time and effort with a more effective out come.

Are you left thinking differently prior to this part of the module? And if so, how?

Yes – I have not been using my utensils in an active way that I should be. I have gone into a depth of networking which means I have seen it from a totally different specific. I have neglected the benefits that it could have on my career.

3b - Theories relating to networking

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pywKiWQVStpKGK1B7EJFRMK8JLQ4ioGo0F2xziHfvq4/edit

Task 3a - Current Networks

At college it was always drummed into us about networking. I had never heard the term until then. My very first memory was of a girl with a very encouraging mum, who made her take everybody’s name and number in the pantomime she had been in and she contacted them on a regular bases to see what they were up to………at the time I just thought she had a very pushy mother. Little did I know that she was just getting a head start in what was about to begin.

My networks are continuously expanding and I am using them more beneficially.  I am currently on spotlight, which enables casting directors, agents, choreographers and other professionals to see my photo and CV. I am currently working on getting an agent. Due to being on a ship for 7months straight from college I was never had the time to audition or even write to agents and gain myself that very important contact and way of networking. Even though agents take a percentage of money from you if they do put you forward for a job and you get it at least you are broadening you network. With an agent as well they will only out you up for jobs that you are appropriate for, which sometimes isn’t always obvious from your own eye. Agents tend to get you closed auditions as well which means you are not crammed in a studio with 400 other girls struggling to get to the front. From talking to other professionals it can take time to get the right agent for you. An agent your friend is with may not be the right on for you, however it is always good to ask what agency people are with. 

The obvious networks are facebook, my space, twitter etc. I am part of both twitter and facebook which I try and keep as professional as possible as I am friends with other practitioners and professional however I have the majority friends and family. I am thinking of creating a page just for my profession, where I can advertise classes that I am beginning to teach and also add casting directors, choreographers, agents etc and remove them off my current personal one.

For me looking into networking could not have come at a better time. Having just finished a contract I feel I am starting at the very beginning and I need to start establishing myself. I can learn from other peoples blogs what they find most beneficial or from there mistakes. If you have any tips of pointers please let me know.