September Blog Challenge: Inspiring Video

Participating in this month's challenge?
Feel free to this bad boy to your post
so you can be official!

Back to School, Back to Dance

For many dancers, parents, teachers, September means one thing: Back to School!

While I'm sad summer is ending, a new dance season is always exciting and my time off has made me anxious to start teaching again.

I've spent the last few weeks searching for some new music and watching dance shows and performances for some inspiration.

September's Blog Challenge Mission:

Last month's challenge was to share the inspiration from books. For September, your mission is to share a video that inspires you.

Your video that you share can be a dance performance you find inspiring on YouTube or just you vlogging about why you dance, teach or just love dance. (Just don't go all eharmony cat lady on me about your love of pointe shoes or something!)

How to Participate:

If you have a blog, share or link to your inspiring video and post a few words on why you like it.  Then make sure you leave a comment with a link to you post so we can all read it!

Don't have a blog? No problem! You can participate by leaving a comment below, tweeting @thedancebuzz or posting to our Facebook wall a link to your favorite dance video and why!

Can't wait to see your inspiring videos!

July Blog Challenge: Dance Outside The Box!

Feel free to grab this badge for your blog!

Are you ready?  It's time for July's Dance Blog Challenge!  This month, our challenge is a simple and fun photo challenge:  

Dance outside and share a photo or video of it!

What To Do:  
1) Grab a camera and head outdoors.  You might want a friend or at least a self-timer.
2) Dance!
3) Blog about your photo & leave a comment below or post it to the Facebook wall

I'll be sharing my photos for the challenge later in the month and I look forward to seeing lots of fun photos!

Ready... Set... Go!

Updated 7/14/12 with this month's participants:
Dancing In Virginia from Rince Go Bragh
Leaping on the beach from yours truly

Share Those Performance Pics!

That's a lot of people out there...

With recital season for many North American dance studios upon us, don't forget to participate in May's Dance Blog Challenge:  Performance Pics!

My studio's recital is this weekend, so I will have a post for you sometime next month, but in the mean time, you can check out the two irish step dancing bloggers who have shared some recital photos with us:

Rince Go Bragh

On my Toes

Check 'em out!  And then share your favorite photos with us!

No blog?  That's ok - leave a link in the comments to your favorite performance picture.

April Blog Challenge: Dance Imagery

"Flip the pancake!" my ballet teacher used to say as we did our fouettes (jumps not turns).  "Pretend your pelvis is a bowl of soup... don't spill the soup!" was another one of her favorite metaphors.

This month's challenge is to share your favorite dance imagery--either sayings that you use as a dancer or teacher, or favorite visuals your teachers use.

Share a your dance sayings on your blog and then come back here and leave a comment with a link to your post so we can all share!

Blog Participants
Moira at "On My Toes" - Irish Dance perspective
The Dance Buzz - Illustrated Dance Imagery

If you don't have a blog, you can still participate!  Just leave a comment below.

Click here to see past blog challenges.

March Blog Challenge: Where Do You Dance?

Right click + save as to grab this for
your blog!

This month's challenge is a PHOTO / VIDEO challenge:

Where do YOU dance? 

Share a picture or video tour of where you dance on your blog and then come back here and leave a comment with a link to your post so we can all share!

Click here to see past blog challenges.

February 2012 Blog Challenge Update!

February's Blog Challenge, A Day In The Life, was a little more intensive than January's photo challenge, but that's what makes it fun.  Check out our participants so far:

• Cydny's Day In The Life (Releve Your Life)
• The Dance Buzz: A Day In The Life

So what are you waiting for?   Add your blog to the list and share what your life is like!  And remember, you can post any time (not just February).

Share your dance life with us!

Blog Challenge: Day In The Life

For those who work in the arts, every day can be so different from the next, but that's part of what I love about my job and what makes it so much fun.  It keeps me on my toes! (pun intended... groan.)

Here's one of my more 'typical' days:

7am - Wake up.  Contemplate exercising or yoga before I shower, but not today.. the blankets and snooze button are calling my name.  Shower, eat breakfast, remember that I am going to take pictures for "Day In The Life" post today!

9:30am - Drive to the studio - weather's looking a bit icy.. better keep an eye on it.

10:00 am - Admin time.  Pretend to be Beyonce much to the chagrin of my office manager... "I'm all up in these costumes like my job... admin time".  Follow up on some back-ordered costumes and work on handouts.  Dance party in the office to the hold music (hey Weissmans, at least you have some good tunes!).


11:00am - UPS delivery - hooray!  The first of our recital costumes have arrived!  Unpack, sort and label costumes.

February Blog Challenge: A Day In The Life

It's that time again... time for another Dance Blog Challenge!  If you want to read more about why I'm doing this, read this post. Then come back and join the fun!

This month's blog challenge is "Day In The Life" post.  Take one of your busiest dance days, bring your camera (or camera phone) and take lots of pictures from the moment you wake up until you return to bed.  Or if you're an overachiever, make a video!  

This month's challenge is a bit more involved than last month's, but that's what makes it fun.  I will try to vary the 'involvement' of each post so if you're not feeling quite up to the challenge this month, do an easier one like January's photo challenge or wait to see what March brings.

Post your photos or video (with or without narration... its up to you) on your blog and leave a comment with the link here!

PARTICIPANTS (UPDATED 2/26/12)

• Cydney's Day In The Life (Releve Your Life)
• The Dance Buzz: A Day In The Life

I can't wait to see what everyone's studios and dance lives look like!  And if you're not actively taking or teaching classes, you can participate too... I want to see what you do in your job or school everyday.  And snap a quick picture of an arabesque in the hallway while you're at it... the point is to have fun!

Just make sure if you do take pictures of other people that they are ok with you putting their lovely faces on the internet.  Or use photo editing software crop or blur their faces :)

Think your life is boring or need ideas of what to document?  Keep reading after the jump for ideas.

January Blog Challenge Posts!

Woohoo!  Check out all the blog challenge participants so far:

• Maria's Movers: The Class That Started It All
• Married To The Dance: My First Flamenco
• Nichelle (from Dance Advantage)
• Kim at Velocity Dance and Fitness

Answer this month's Blog Challenge: Personal "Dance Firsts" and add yours to the list!

January Blog Challenge: Personal Dance Firsts

Snag this bad boy badge for your own blog if you choose!
Right click + save as!

Attention all dance bloggers, here is your January Blog Challenge - we're starting off with a fun, personal one.

Your mission (should you choose to accept it) is to share a picture and story of one of your "dance firsts".  First class, first show, first shoes... whatever inspires you!

The Details

1. Choose one picture that represents your dance first
2. Share your story
3. Include a link back to this post (Permalink: )

If you participate, leave a comment below with the link to your post so we can share in the fun!

UPDATED JAN. 29, 2012 - Here are all the participants so far:

• Maria's Movers: The Class That Started It All
• Married To The Dance: My First Flamenco
• Nichelle (from Dance Advantage)
• Kim at Velocity Dance and Fitness
• Moira from On My Toes
• Sara from Rince Go Bragh

And with that, here's my dance first.... 

My first dance performance!

Happy New Year: Blog Challenge

This guy will kick your butt if you don't
participate!

Attention all dance bloggers - I am excited to announce that starting in January, I am going to be posting monthly blogging challenges called "Dance Buzz Blog Challenge".  I hope you all find a few that sound like fun to participate in.

WHY AM I DOING THIS?
I enjoy being part of a community of dance bloggers and I think it will be fun to get different perspectives or learn new things about the bloggers themselves.

I also enjoyed participating in Pas de Trois when that was going on, and I miss the inspiration.

WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU?
Hopefully these challenges will jump-start your writer's block, should you encounter that anytime soon.  The next time you're stumped at what to write about, you can check out all the challenges for inspiration.

And you get to add this sweet badge to your blog if you'd like. BONUS! (To add the badge to your page, save the image to your computer and upload it to your blog).

Blog Challenge:  So easy you could do
it while perched on a young man's
shoulder.

SO... HOW DO I PARTICIPATE?
After I announce the challenge question or theme, write your own blog post related to that theme. Then add a comment on the original challenge post (on this blog) so everyone can share.

DO I HAVE TO POST IN THE SAME MONTH AS THE CHALLENGE?
No.  Absolutely not.  I am doing it by month because I think that is a reasonable time period for me to come up with another challenge.  If you decide to do the January challenge in July, so be it - just please still add a comment to the challenge post so we can all share!

CAN I SUGGEST A CHALLENGE?
Yes!  Email me at thedancebuzz@gmail.com or leave a comment below.

SO WHAT'S JANUARY'S CHALLENGE?
You'll have to wait until January to find out...  but I can tell you that it is a fun one!