Did You Literally Create Competitive Dance In The 70's?

Responding To This Question From A Facebook Dance Teacher Group Post

At age 75 I decided to create an ALTERNATIVE to the current over saturated, plagiarized dance competition model and offer a new model with an added incentive, OWN IT YOURSELVES to dance teachers and studio owners who choose to do what I did in 1973 be a pioneer! As many know I do not think that studio dance competitions are worth it, financially or as a business model.

Keep it simple, follow what school districts in your area are doing. Stay away from those who only care about making bank on your efforts. Become a member of AADI and add a new income stream for yourselves. You can make up to $40K or more annually, a new income stream!

This is an historical outline of dance competitions in the northeast in the sixties and seventies. And in response to the young teacher, YES I DID!!! That's why you should come to a 44-Week Dance Studio Success Plan Seminar in the 2024-2025 dance season. Join AADI.

Back in the day, comps were part of the dance teacher organizations, I belonged to DMA 5 New England. The focus of these organizations was soloists, then as now. Groups, classes, and lines were limited. I was part of the executive board for Chapter 5, someone handed me a typed slip of paper and asked, can you fix this? The scoring back then was subjective, but a judge just put down the score he/she wanted. After one executive board meeting where one teacher was complaining that her competitor put in the local newspaper she won FIRST with a score of 76 and the ONLY entry in the category, and her soloist had a score of 92 out of 18 entrants, I suggested a more formalized scoring method, thus the first ADJUDICATED Score System was born.

I was working as a long-term sub in a 4th grade, so I suggested a score system based on a bell curve. I did add criteria for the scores, as I have now, but it was somehow lost along the way. The year was 1976, the score was first used without my permission in 1978. I was working for EAR Corporation; their legal department licensed it for me. The attorneys felt it was going to be big, I guess they were right. To date no one has ever paid me, they were somehow under the mistaken concept that all they had to do was change something and it covered them legally, it doesn’t.

Prior to this, Bev Fletcher, teacher of Michael Bennet of “A Chorus Line” fame had a private competition as did Richard DiSarno and Sam Fiorello called Dancing Deb, again the focus was on the soloists, titles. Richard later became the director for Dance America, the competition for the Art Stone Costume Company.

After an accident in 1990, I transitioned into public education full time. My competition, which I began in 1978 was called American Dance Invitational. There was another MA area comp called Terpsichore, started by three friends. One woman became ill with breast cancer, so the son of one of the other partners opened a comp called American Dance Awards which he later sold due to some sort of financial issue in 2003 after a national held in Boston MA. I kept my comp on a limited basis until 2006 when teaching English at the high school level, traveling for the Gates Foundation, and attending the Harvard Kennedy School for a master’s degree became overwhelming.

After attending multiple basketball games as the dance team coach, I began to think of a simpler way for dance comps to be one day, teams only with a specific score system based on the content of the routines. The Sport Dance Games® event was born. I felt there had to be a better way for dance studios to show their dance students could achieve, a simpler, happier outcome for those who do not want the intensity of what is currently being offered and something parents would understand in 2024 and beyond.

I feel that the current comp model is now in an oversaturated market. If you are looking for more info, read the blog posts, the programs offered, and send a message to me using the contact form.

VISIT OUR SEMINAR FORMAT FOR THE 2024-2025 DANCE SEASON

44-Week Dance Studio Success Plan® Seminars

Read Our At-A-Glance Brochure Includes Sport Dance Games Format® CLICK HERE

SPRING SUMMER BOOTCAMP SEMINARS

44 Week Dance Studio Success Plan®

One Day Bootcamps

Dates Available, Can Your Studio Host?

May 24, 2024               May 31, 2024

June 21, 2024             June 28, 2024

August 2, 2024           August 9, 2024

ALL July Dates Are Open Email Jann

Seeking Host Studios In:

RHODE ISLAND, MASSACHUSETTS, NEW HAMPSHIRE, MAINE, ANYWHERE EAST COAST USA FIRST PREFERENCE GIVEN TO NE STUDIO HOSTS

STUDIO HOST INCENTIVES INCLUDE:

Seminars Are Open To 2-3 Studios Of Like Minded-Individuals If Requested

Or A Studio May Host And Invite like-Minded  Friends 15-25 Attendees Required

Amazon Gift Cards Are Given To All Attendees

Fall 2024 LIVE In Studio Seminars

Following The UDMA Trade Show Calendar

2-Hour Seminar For AADI Members ONLY 

Overview Of Sport Dance Games ®

Chicago September 21-22, 2024

New York City October 5-6, 2024

Savannah October 26-27, 2024

AND

Costume Company Dates Weissman And Revolution

Revolution Chicago IL August 16-18 

Weissman St. Louis MO September 7-8

Are You In The Area Where One Of These Shows Or Events Will Be Held?

Contact Jann

info@janndaviscompany.com

Sport-Dance Games® are the ALTERNATIVE to current studio dance competition model offering teachers, studio owners, school dance team coaches, and after school enrichment programs event ownership. It is a competitive achievement for what you offer in your dance classrooms, based in proper ballet/jazz training for the four domains of dance education.

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©Jann Davis, May 10, 2024, All Rights Reserved

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