Folk Dance Part A: Getting Started

I shall now chronicle the folk dance journey. Fitting to do the day before I begin rehearsals for my final hoo-rah,the last tour I will go on representing BYU (even though I've already graduated).

As I noted in my Freshman year in a nutshell, I did try out for folk dance my very first semester. In fact, I'm pretty sure it was my second day of classes ever. That's gutsy. Especially for me as I am slightly phobic of large groups of people who I do not know. So the fact that I dragged myself to that audition was amazing! I am pretty sure I just got through because my sister-in-law Cammie had high hopes for me, and I knew her brother (and my kinsman) Rustin would be teaching and he would be a familiar face. She told me I would definitely see him because he was teaching at callbacks.

So I wore my cute grandma (Yorgason) orange poodle skirt and went to the audition sans boy (the posters always tell girls to bring one). But I was in luck! There was actually a boy there without a girl who came up to me and asked me to be his partner! And he was cute. I don't recall his name, but I do remember his smile, very happy guy. Anyway, so I dance in a circle for years. And then I didn't get picked for callbacks. I was kiiiiiind of surprised. I mean, we were doing run-run-run-hop's and the like and I'd been doing competition jazz for 15 years and I didn't make it? Whatevs.

That first Winter semester I took a World Dance class with my roommate Kiely. It was 170 (the beginning class that most folk dancers on touring teams...never actually take, oops) and it was once a week on Wednesday nights. Let's be honest, I didn't like that class. This was also the semester I started clogging with Greg, so that gave me an in for the folk dance world.



The next Winter semester I tried out for a team again. One of the main reasons being that my favorite boys from my first semester of TAing for clogging were on teams and so I felt more confident, knowing some folk dancers and all. And I made it! After grueling probably hour of hopping in a dang circle I got to callbacks where we did actual dance steps. All I remember was Israeli and I remember thinking, "cake! This is just like ballet light". So from there it was smooth sailing and I made it onto 10 WSC.

My first teacher was Emilee Wright. Our TA's were Emily (Carpenter) Park and Alan Babcock. Dears. They cracked me up. I remember one day when Emily and Alan were teaching us an Israeli dance and in one of the lifts the boy lifts the girl from her armpit. I can still hear Emily saying "Put your hand in my armpit Alan, put it in my armpit." Hilarious.

Some people that have remained in folk dance and went through milestones with me were on that team like Brian Jay Jacobson, I have known him by both names at different times. Also, Talia Klein who ended up on SPAC with me!

Others that I made friends with but didn't remain in the folk program are Lanae Carmichael (the only girl I know who is shorter than me. And oh man it was difficult having the two shorties have such similar names!), Liz Smith, and Jeff Suppes mainly. Oh and of course, my partner, Miguel Garcia. Here's the fun part, we did the Mexican Polka for Spring Festival of Nations and yes, my partner was Mexican. So basically we were front and center the whole time. But really. :)WE had some great inside jokes, mostly  I would pretend I could speak Spanish and say j/k but you know, in Spanish (jota-kah) and he thought that was hilarious. Jeff and I also had some inside jokes, mostly about ducks. Oh and one time when we were doing Halay apparently my thumb kept accidentally getting caught in his pants pocket, oops, thanks for not thinking I was a creep. Liz and I mostly bonded over how cool we thought Jeff was and how he couldn't be a freshman.

That spring semester I decided to take 270 with Rustin as the teacher. This was where we decided he was my kinsman, because it was the best term we could think of for our relation. I remember learning some awesome dances in this class that I'd seen at the one rec night I'd gone to for 170. And Javanese Salutation. And Christina and I bonded in that class for the first time even though neither of us can really remember what started it?

The next semester bore the most important fruit. I took Spanish dance from Delynne Peay. Yes. There we go. The first section of the class was just about jotas, which are very balletic. Perfect! I've taken ballet since I was 3. So after that whole class not only did I make new folk dance friends  but I was taking a class from THE gateway person in the folk dance program. You want to get somewhere? Delynne's gotta like you, almost 100% guarantee. Anydangway. I took Spanish dance and did great and when tryouts came around for Fall (in the form of a 3 day workshop where I was so sore I thought I'd die) I made one of the backup teams! 10 RB! Oh glory day!

On 10 RB I met three very important people who are still on PAC with me today. Sam Alva, Cody Phillips and Brittney Leavitt. Dears. I got especially close to Cody that semester, we often bonded over how busy we were and how much we loved things like learning and the Gospel and, oh, joy. Splendid times.

Also on 10 RB, we learned half a Mexican dance (its name eludes me) for the epicly long opener for the 50th anniversary of Christmas Around the World. I wore a gray dress which made my blue eyes pop. I also got a great profile picture out of it.

 

And then we learned, Tinikling. Lovingly referred to by my roommates as "the pole dance".

This picture doesn't capture the pure terror this dance gave me.

Tinikling is from the Philippines. For some reason Delynne chose me for the pole section instead of the balancing candles on your head section. It was in this dance that I sustained my first of many foot injuries and began to go to the Dance Training Room to see Ron, who is now one of my favorite people in the universe. If you look closely you can see flesh colored tape on my foot in the air.

Oh and Justin Kelly was my TA- talk about role reversal.

Some of my other favorite people in that class (from the top of my head, sorry if I forget people!): Missy, Nancy, Nate Mahler (who I totally thought was married for forever but no, a freshman, embarrassing), Kaycie, Michael Voge, Grant Mecham (my partner in the Tinikling picture), Janessa, Sarah, Jenny, Spencer...oh heck I just loved everyone.

It was in this team that I experienced my first Christmas Around the World which involves lots of rehearsals, epic openers and closers (especially that year, we all hated finger ribbons by the end yes?) and that year included Sto Mi E Milo, a song that is now dear to my heart. I also had Erin Maxwell Sorensen as a TA and that dear girl played a large role in the kind of folk dancer I wanted to be. She was always accepting and happy and supportive and inclusive. She always made you feel important and loved, which I feel is one of the most important and infectious things about the folk dance program, and why I decided to really try for it instead of other programs. I did audition for contemporary things as well, but I ended up pursuing folk dance. Obviously.

Phew. Part A=over.