ESTEVAN - After two long years of changes and challenges, the dance students went back Into the Spotlight last Saturday.
Drewitz School of Dance hosted a fascinating recital. The 39th edition of the Spotlight on the Stars show attracted a big crowd of parents, friends and fans of dance.
Choreographer and director Lorie-Gay Drewitz-Gallaway said the recital went beyond her expectations.
"The shows were full of energy and went off without any glitches," Drewitz-Gallaway said after the recital.
This year's edition was named Into the Spotlight, and Drewitz-Gallaway said she was very happy for the children who were finally able to be back in the spotlight. Many hours of hard work that were put in throughout this and previous years culminated in excellent performances.
Getting ready for the recital after a long break was a bit stressful but definitely "amazing", Drewitz-Gallaway said. Up until recently, they weren't sure if they would be allowed to go back to their normal recital. Fortunately, everything worked well and one of Estevan's favourite events once again could treat the community to a beautiful performance.
Another challenge was that for many students, getting on stage and performing in front of the crowd was something completely new.
"There's been kids that have danced three years that have never been in a recital. And that's probably 95 per cent of the recital. It's, it's all new to them," Drewitz-Gallaway shared.
So not only were they learning how to dance, but in preparation for the recital, they also had to go through all the stages of understanding how to behave, where to stop and what to do on stage. And despite the stress, they all did extremely well.
Drewitz-Gallaway noted that while things are getting close to where they were before the pandemic, it's still different with COVID remaining a part of the reality. Nevertheless, the school was able to have all of their exams, and the year, in general, went well.
"The year was great. We had all our exams and our last was the ballet exam … Everyone made it in the first set of exams in two years that they didn't have to wear masks. So they were all surreal," Drewitz-Gallaway said.
Once the exams were in the past, students started preparing for the recital. They had about eight weeks to put the recital together. Those who were to perform on stage for the first time were anxious to different levels, but when the time came they all excelled.
"It's not that they don't want to be on stage. It's not that they're not prepared, but everything is unknown to them. There's been a lot of anxiety in children in the last two years. So, I was just making it all about [students]. Let's go out there and have a party on stage," Drewitz-Gallaway said.
Emily Phillips, Codie Lemcke, Elsie Alexander, Tiana Seeman, Bryanna Morrow, Iciss L'Heureux, Mackenna Empey, Hunter McNabb and Katelyn Conquergood are graduating from the Drewitz School of Dance in 2022. The nine students made it to the end, developing their skills and talents to different scales.
"There are ones that have danced all the way through just because they love it. It's good for them. It's good for their coordination, and they feel the confidence … We have nine grads, and I'm so happy to celebrate them," Drewitz-Gallaway said.
Kailey Kowalchuk, Gabrielle Bokhorst, Faith Haberstock, Kiera Renauld, Bryn Lamontagne, Macey Menzies and Angelle Avery graduated in 2020. Grant Kocher, Shayna Fichter, Lyssa Strilaeff, Madison Hrywkiw and Brielle Wakely completed the program in 2021.
Some of these 2020 and 2021 graduates, who didn't have their last recital, also attended this year's event, where they were celebrated during the afternoon matinee.
Hunter Hildebrand was the assistant teacher and choreographer, and Brielle Wakely, Codie Lemcke, Emily Phillips, Shayla Gill, Jersey Long and Kate Schmidt were class helpers in the 2021-22 year.
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