Nationals 2011!!

Thanks to all of the studios that attended Nationals 2011 on Cape Cod helping us to complete another successful season!

The weekend was jam packed with FUN and EXCITEMENT!  We started the weekend off with Dance Team practice, including a warm-up sponsored by Flexistretcher and Master Teachers Peter Sabasino from the show So You Think You Can Dance and Sarah-Katarina Skooj Core-o Jerome of MTV's Static Noyze.

Moving onto Preliminary Competition and Nationals competition, with breaks for a Pizza Dance Party, Dance Team performances, and Master Classes!  Our Master Teachers included more alum from So You Think You Can Dance, in addition to Peter, tWitch, Kent Boyd, and Allison Holker were there as well!  We hope you all enjoyed the classes and competition.

Our staff had a great time with you all and are looking forward to starting the new season with Conventions in the fall and Competitions in the winter!

Shine at Nationals!

How to dance towards success at nationals this summer - Melissa Burns, President/Director of Turn It Up Dance Challenge, answered these questions to be featured in Danceinforma.  Visit their site here.

How can dance troupes best prepare for Nationals?  I think it is important to break down your routines starting from the beginning and fine tune your choreography.  All too often I hear of studios that continuously play thier song and keep reviewing their dances. This enables the same exact misktakes to be done over and over again. Make sure to break bad habits one step at a time from the beginning of your routine. This will help you get the precision that judges look for. 
What are the judges looking for? Many times I hear my judges say "that routine was very nice because it was DIFFERENT from the rest" . If choreographers and dancers can put themselves in the shoes of the judges they will realize that judges see many of the same styles, songs and even choreography throughout the year. Judges appreciate routines that stand out whether it is a great costume, a unique lift, or an unexpected twist on the theme of a dance.
What advice would you give to competing dance groups and soloists? I would say it is important to give 120% during practice time.  Work your hardest and feel like you are on stage every time you practice your routines. That way your body will already know what to do and you can enjoy yourselves on the day of competition. You will not have to worry about practicing in the hall or backstage because you will already know your routines perfectly. You will be able to wish others good luck and cheer on your friends! That is what is the most fun about competition.
What advice would you give to teachers and choreographers? Teachers and Choreographers may want to enhance choreography now that routines have been perfected. Maybe add in one thing that would help thier routine stand out from all the rest of the routines at nationals.

Reverence Partnering with Turn It Up!

Reverence Performance Dance Apparel will be sponsoring our Junior Dance Team costumes at Nationals!  They will be doing a broadway routine and Reverence has just what we need!

Click here to check out their website and click here to like them on Facebook!

Remember if you were invited onto the Dance Team at a Regionals competition you have until June 1, 2011 to let us know you are accepting your invitation!  

Looking for an Optional Competition in NC?

Come to Turn It Up in Winston-Salem on May 22, 2011!! We are holding a competition at the Benton Convention Center.  You do not want to miss out!  Come see how you can have the opportunity to work with participants from So You Think You Can Dance such as Peter Sabasino, or how you can win cash scholarships!  We will be giving away Turn It Up Dance Dollars to our Dance Conventions as well as raffling off some prizes like Flexistretcher!  

Call 617-283-8811 for more info today!!

tWitch at Nationals!

We are very excited to announce our newest Master Class teacher for our Nationals on Cape Cod this July!  tWitch, from the hit show So You Think You Can Dance, will be teaching some amazing Hip-Hop classes!!  This makes for an all-star line-up of Master Class teachers including: tWitch, Kent Boyd (Top Male Dancer in the most recent season of So You Think You Can Dance, tap professional Maud Arnold, plus more!  Not to mention our choreographers for the Dance Team, Peter Sabasino from So You Think You Can Dance and Sarah-Kay Jerome from MTV's Static Noyze!

We know Nationals is going to be a GREAT time.  We want you all to join us! Please let us know if you have any questions about Nationals, Master Classes or the Dance Team. Email Lora.b@turnitupdance.com

Donating to Dizzy Feet!

We are always looking to help out a good cause at Turn It Up and we really love what the Dizzy Feet Foundation has been doing.  Founded by Nigel Lythgoe, Adam Shankman, Carrie Ann Inaba, and Katie Holmes, Dizzy Feet Foundation strives to help underprivileged children receive dance education across the United States!  At each regional and national competition, we hold a raffle where we raise money to donate to this cause.

* If you are a dance related company and want to donate raffle prizes contact Lora at Lora.b@turnitupdance.com *

Turning It Up in Lancaster, PA!

This past weekend we had a GREAT competition in Lancaster, PA at the Marriott Hotel at Penn Square.  The dancers were all so talented!  We wanted to share a couple of photos from the weekend...we even had a special guest judge, Peter Sabasino, from Season 6 of So You Think You Can Dance!  We are so looking forward to returning to Lancaster on December 4, 2011 for a Dance Convention.  We'll be at the same beautiful venue in multiple ballrooms!  Thanks to everyone who came :)

If you have any pictures you want us to post on our facebook (like us while you're there) or on our blog, email them to me at Lora.b@turnitupdance.com and I will get them up for you!  We'll be Turning It Up in Springfield, MA this weekend, so remember to take lots of pics backstage and during awards so you can email them to us!