INVIGILATION TO PRESERVE THE BASICS FOR THE FUTURE
I think that when we talk about art and competition we need to also acknowledge the 'base' of our favorite activity, the social dancer. Medal level competition is the most logical stepping stone for those who are enthusiastic social dancers and who want to do more with their skills and talents. Medal level competition is the most logical starting point for juniors. As a foundation and as a starting point for for competitors, medal level competition is ESSENTIAL to continuing to grow interest and participation in ballroom and Latin dancing. As an ESSENTIAL part of ballroom and Latin competition, the medal level material requires and deserves clear definition. It requires trainers to KNOW it exquisitely well. It requires that INVIGILATION be implemented in all medal level competitions.
Invigilation is intended to prevent dancers at medal level from using figures deemed 'out of category.' USA Dance and NDCA require ALL competitions in the US to provide 'invigilation' for all bronze, silver and gold competition heats. The 'invigilator' watches for infractions. An infraction would be using a gold figure in a bronze heat, using creative choreography rather than just arranging the figures on the step list into a cohesive routine, doing American style figures in an international style heat.
Most dancers have very strong opinions about invigilation. Some dancers despise invigilation and blame it for stifling creativity and inhibiting progress. Those who are in favor of invigilation, tout the benefits of leveling the playing field by using invigilation to restricting dancers to using only medal level figures in competition.
My very strong belief is that invigilation is MUCH more than just leveling a playing field for comparison. It's also about maintaining a basic structure of elementary figures that the beginner dancer will take into his/her teaching career. It's about maintaining a language and an expectation of consistent language. It would be good to see more professional and amateur dance teachers studying, learning, using the same curricula. That would be the ISTD curricula. It is the ONLY dance material approved for medal level competition in USA Dance and in NDCA sanctioned events. [Allow me to qualify that statement regarding the NDCA using only ISTD material. They do not claim to use it, but their list exactly matches the ISTD lists for all international style dances with the exception of the quickstep figure, heel pivot.]
When a youngster dancing medal level events at the beginning of a competitive career is subjected to the requirement of dancing the actual written curricula of a dance society, he/she is learning a language he/she will share with his/her own students in the future. He/she is now involved in protecting and preserving the fundamental figures considered to be the 'basics.'
WDSF trainers are extremely proactive in promoting the growth and proliferation of world class competition. They were in attendance at the recent USA Dance Nationals and were complimentary regarding the invigilation that took place in the medal level events there. They see and appreciate the point of it. The point is the future. Limiting medal level competitions to recognized medal level material builds the potential possibilities for the future of competition. It does NOT stifle creativity; rather, it supports it by causing the dances to maintain recognizable form and character.
I think that when we talk about art and competition we need to also acknowledge the 'base' of our favorite activity, the social dancer. Medal level competition is the most logical stepping stone for those who are enthusiastic social dancers and who want to do more with their skills and talents. Medal level competition is the most logical starting point for juniors. As a foundation and as a starting point for for competitors, medal level competition is ESSENTIAL to continuing to grow interest and participation in ballroom and Latin dancing. As an ESSENTIAL part of ballroom and Latin competition, the medal level material requires and deserves clear definition. It requires trainers to KNOW it exquisitely well. It requires that INVIGILATION be implemented in all medal level competitions.
Invigilation is intended to prevent dancers at medal level from using figures deemed 'out of category.' USA Dance and NDCA require ALL competitions in the US to provide 'invigilation' for all bronze, silver and gold competition heats. The 'invigilator' watches for infractions. An infraction would be using a gold figure in a bronze heat, using creative choreography rather than just arranging the figures on the step list into a cohesive routine, doing American style figures in an international style heat.
Most dancers have very strong opinions about invigilation. Some dancers despise invigilation and blame it for stifling creativity and inhibiting progress. Those who are in favor of invigilation, tout the benefits of leveling the playing field by using invigilation to restricting dancers to using only medal level figures in competition.
My very strong belief is that invigilation is MUCH more than just leveling a playing field for comparison. It's also about maintaining a basic structure of elementary figures that the beginner dancer will take into his/her teaching career. It's about maintaining a language and an expectation of consistent language. It would be good to see more professional and amateur dance teachers studying, learning, using the same curricula. That would be the ISTD curricula. It is the ONLY dance material approved for medal level competition in USA Dance and in NDCA sanctioned events. [Allow me to qualify that statement regarding the NDCA using only ISTD material. They do not claim to use it, but their list exactly matches the ISTD lists for all international style dances with the exception of the quickstep figure, heel pivot.]
When a youngster dancing medal level events at the beginning of a competitive career is subjected to the requirement of dancing the actual written curricula of a dance society, he/she is learning a language he/she will share with his/her own students in the future. He/she is now involved in protecting and preserving the fundamental figures considered to be the 'basics.'
WDSF trainers are extremely proactive in promoting the growth and proliferation of world class competition. They were in attendance at the recent USA Dance Nationals and were complimentary regarding the invigilation that took place in the medal level events there. They see and appreciate the point of it. The point is the future. Limiting medal level competitions to recognized medal level material builds the potential possibilities for the future of competition. It does NOT stifle creativity; rather, it supports it by causing the dances to maintain recognizable form and character.