As the number of COVID cases continue to rise in the island, most of my dance classes have moved online with an only few individual classes continuing in the studio. I am again challenged with having to stay motivated without a rigid schedule of technique classes sandwiched between rehearsals and workout sessions. I have however tried to stay consistent. I currently have ballet with the Deana school of dance twice a week via zoom where we do free work as well as RAD syllabus work. These classes have really helped me stay in tune with my technique and receive feedback from my teachers.

(Performing a pointe work exercise during an online ballet class, video by my mother)

In terms of Latin dance, while I am not able to attend class physically at the moment, I am constantly doing technique exercises and practising routines in my living room. I am working on improving my performance quality as well as my arm styling which something I constantly struggle with. 

(Jive practice session to Olly Murs “Dance with me tonight”, video by my brother)

I have also rekindled my love for pilates to strengthen and tone my muscles. While I had periodically shifted to doing at-home workouts that I found online I feel like many of them compromise my flexibility as with the increasing load of school work I find that don’t have as much time to have long stretching sessions. While I try to incorporate stretching sessions into my week whenever I can, I find that pilates offers the perfect blend of stretching and strengthening within a shorter time. It also helps me focus on my posture and maintaining correct form for which ties in perfectly with my dancing. I usually follow 45-50 minute pilates workouts on youtube. 

(time-lapse of a stretching session during an IB wellness day)

Another area I’ve been focusing on is my pointe work. I’ve worked on strengthening feet by doing exercises on a balance board. I usually play a song and try to balance on each leg for the duration of the song that is about 2-3 minutes. Then I do plies and frappes and balances on demi-pointe on one foot. In addition to this, I’m making sure incorporate calf raises into my routine. By doing these additional exercises I hope to strengthen my feet as my pointe work is definitely an area that screams for improvement. 

On another note, I have also been working on my CAS project which I am doing in collaboration with Rukshi from my class. We have been planning through the first semester and have decided to do a conceptual dance video. I will be working on the dance choreography and performance while she will be doing the technical side of things which involve filming and editing. I am currently working on developing the choreography and also finding locations to film at.