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The Intermediate Hump: This is what I call the phase that all dance students go through. They have mastered all the basics and many of the more advanced ideas and concepts, but there is still something missing. They are "stuck" and their dance doesn't seem to be improving.
It's a very frustrating phase and one that every student hits, myself including. I remember it well - even though it's been over 15 years ago! I've seen all of my advanced students go through it (and personally I don't consider you an advanced student until you have successfully made it over this hump - no matter how much technique you know!). I've watched other dancers in the community go through it. Each one deals with it differently.
Some quit. That's it, they can't wait for this nebulous phase to pass. Others keep doing what they have been doing and just hang out at the hump and never make it over because they eventually give up and quit. Those who hang in there and don't quit eventually make it over the hump.
What is so frustrating is that this is an individual process. I, as your teacher, can make many suggestions, but there is no one thing that works for everyone. This hump is as individual as you are! There isn't a "do this" check box that will get you over the hump and there is no short fix. This is where you decide who you are as a dancer, what you value, what you want and what drives you. It's where YOU take charge of your dance and you become a partner in your dance education. It's not that you will never again need to take class or learn new technique (as a matter of fact you may still need to learn lots of technique). But it is where you start evaluating your path as a dancer and begin to think outside the student box and make decisions based on your individual path as an artist.
I read a most wonderful blog today on finding yourself as a dance artist. She said it really well and while all dancers need to do this, the dancer stuck on the intermediate hump needs it most of all!
Think outside your box! Go to the library and check out Orientalist painting books - not because they are accurate, but because they can inspire you! Take a Flamenco class or a folk dance class. Sit in on a Persian music concert. Spend time reading on the history of the region and culture. Start collecting beautiful textiles from the region. STEP OUTSIDE OF YOUR BOX!!!! Don't think that taking another technique class will do it all by itself. This is about you finding yourself as a dancer - not about learning someones technique or a new choreography.
As your teacher, I want you to grow. If you are growing with me, then I'm thrilled. If you need to be elsewhere to grow - GO THERE! I'm so thrilled when you return and I'm just as thrilled if you discover that your dance path is Flamenco and you never return! As your teacher, I want you to grow into the beautiful amazing dancer that I know you can be - whether you ever dance professionally or not. This isn't about how much money you make - it's about soul and art!
Fly Baby Dancers! Fly!
1 comment:
I think all artists in all media experience this. I think of it as "flipping the switch in your head" or making the step up to the next level. It happened to me in my painting; after years of practice, of experimentation, of study, of practice, practice, practice, one day I took a risk & everything came together & what I created took my breath away. Then it was all, "Can I do this again?!" And I did.
You can get all the tips in the world, take all the classes, but at some point you have to internalize them in your own skin & let them flower in your own way. Nobody can do it for you, & nobody does it in the same time table. I can look at people who practice my art & see who has jumped up to the next level & who is right there on cusp, so close, yet not quite there. It's a million little tiny subtle things, & when that light switch in their head flips, the magnitude of change is astounding.
You don't stop learning there, either, though. You keep learning, & keep applying, & keep experimenting & taking risks, & bit by bit, your mastery becomes deeper, richer, broader, & lights up your soul. From the day I made that big jump, I continue to see improvement in my art, but that's the day I truly took wings to fly.
What a great article!
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