And they were dancing, and singing...

This weekend my daughters had their dance recital. The oldest was in the opening and danced hip-hop to some song I’ve never heard (except when I saw her practice in the studio) and the youngest performed a jazz routine, a ballet to Sleeping Beauty Waltz, and a tap number to Popular from Wicked (I saw this on Broadway and LOVED it –the book, not so much), where she did a bit of acting in mouthing Elphaba's words in the beginning. Both girls performed quite well – exceeding my expectations, which were high for one, and admittedly too low for the other. Yesterday morning, the youngest started a musical theatre dance camp – on her 10th birthday! She is very excited to get to act, sing, and dance, while Stephen and I have been a bit sappy about her giant leap of confidence coincident with her reaching the double digits.

It is really quite satisfying to watch them work and succeed and be happy with their successes.

While the youngest was at camp for the day, and her older sister was surviving her last day of high school as a freshman, I decided to branch out from my video arcade dancing experiences. In a move which surprised even me (given my general dislike for video games and specific dislike for video games that simulate playing instruments when there is a real 7-piece drum kit two floors away, a real tambourine within an arm’s reach, and a real keyboard across the room), I filled in as a singer for my son’s video “Rock Band”, Naughty Dogs (his work was cancelled due to rain). By the end of my stint, I think the rest of the band and I reached an agreement: except for Creep by Radiohead, I basically sucked as a singer. Even for Long Time by Boston, I couldn’t match the little vocal riffs sung by the singer.

But, the very best part of playing in a virtual Rock Band, probably similar to the thrill of wearing different costumes in the dance recital, is that you get to make up your virtual rocker alter ego. Now that she has to hang up her Doc Martens, I’m going to miss my Evangeline with her expertly razor-cut asymmetrical black hair, runaway face, and ripped striped tights. No matter how old I get - it's all about the dress-up.

Oh. Were you all doing something more productive?

Nothing like a little Wild Cherry in the AM. For some reason, I find it almost embarrassing to watch these guys. It’s more than a feeling.

Comments

tm said…
Now we just need a video clip! Happy Birthday to the girl!
June 25, 2008 at 10:32 PM
Lynne said…
If I ever get one, I'll think about it. I'm still feel rather oogy posting about the kids let alone pictures of them. Go figure!

Now she playing a postulant and Frau Zeller in the Sound of Music. Who could ask for anything more? I told her that she needs to be the best damn postulant the audience has ever seen (she was disappointed because she really wanted to be Brigitta). I'll lend her my favorite Halloween costume so she can get into character when she practices around the house.

Thanks for the birthday wishes - I'll pass them on.
June 26, 2008 at 12:24 AM
tm said…
Yeah--talking about kids on-line is just a really personal thing. For a long time I was sure I was never going to post pictures. I remember I was really iffy when posting the first one. Now I'm used to it, but that doesn't mean that one shouldn't be very concerned!

What I really thought would be fun was a video clip of you dancing!
July 4, 2008 at 10:23 AM
Lynne said…
I never claimed to be a good dancer!

We do have one video of us, last year or so, reenacting the swing dancing Gap Ads - until an inside turn took a turn for the worse and SNAP! you could hear my fingers crack! It's rather amusing. Perhaps I should post it.
July 4, 2008 at 12:44 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Plainsies, Clapsies

A ball bouncing game from my youth instructed the player to throw the ball up ( plainsies ), throw it up and clap ( clapsies ) throw it up and roll your hands ( roll the ball ) and touch your shoulders ( tabapsies ). In trying to locate the rest of the ball bouncing chant, I found out not only is my “tabapsies” a mondegreen , but also the motion – touching your shoulders – isn’t even the correct movement! You are supposed to clap your hands behind your back and say “ to backsies .”  Yeah. That makes much more sense. Being only slightly deflated by this discovery, I will still share my exciting news.  In an attempt to counteract the stretching of my wrist from doing front squats two days in a row, I pulled out the tabapsies motion this morning.  This, in itself, is not newsworthy.  However, I grabbed both shoulders with all five fingers!!! Again, not exciting unless you know that when I was nine years-old, I broke my left elbow doing a running c...
Read more

Memorizing the Preamble to the Constitution

Image
In preparation for celebrating the 222nd anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of the United States on September 17, 1787, here are a few videos that I hope will inspire you to at least memorize the brief, but powerful Preamble. First, here is my first attempt at video editing with the bare bones Windows Movie Maker (no ability to step through frame by frame with sound, or ability to mark stops before cutting). My daughters are reading the Preamble to the Constitution from the little book I carry in my purse. They can recite it by heart, but it I thought it would be a little different (and a little less exposed) if they did it this way. Let's not even talk about the 20 takes due to laughter. If you knew it as a child, don't worry, it'll come back to you as Barney shows in this video. Finally, a little treat for my sci-fi loving friends. And if memorizing and reciting The Preamble in creative ways leaves you wanting more, you can find out which Founding Father you...
Read more

Why I am an Objectivist

I am a human being who values her life on this earth above all other things. The right and good is that which contributes to my life and the wrong and evil is that which destroys it. Every action I take must pass through the gates of identification before being pursued as a value which I understand will contribute to my life. Happiness is my ultimate goal. I understand the importance of identifying, applying, pursuing, and achieving those values which will contribute to my life, not just in the immediate sense (which every child understands), but in the long-term sense (which develops with experience). This is not to say that I’m really good at always identifying, pursuing, and achieving those values, or that I remain consistent in my applications of them; merely that I had already understood that this selfishness was the key to my happiness when I was relatively young. The importance of the fact that I understood I was responsible for my own happiness can not be overemphasized here. W...
Read more