Tuesday 14 July 2015

7 Magical Ideas for Your Child’s Tinkerbell Themed Birthday Party

Giving your daughter the perfect Tinkerbell birthday party is one way to celebrate both her potentially infinite youth and the many ways that she grows every day. Putting together the ideal party can be intimidating, but choosing festive decorations, fun activities and meaningful keepsakes can help to make the experience into an adventure rather than an ordeal.

Begin by imagining the perfect setting and table. Never land was a beautiful place immersed in Nature and teeming with surprises. If possible, set your party outside in a park or other natural spot. When that is not possible, decorate your indoor space with elements of Nature, such as trees and flowers.

Once you have your natural setting designed, imagine the perfect the table. Your child’s cake should be simple and elegant. Opting for a single color cake in two or three tiers allows you to focus on individual elements like other edibles and toppers. Silhouette figures placed via toothpick create either a suggestion or a scene atop the cake, and this makes for amazing imagination play for guests and the honored lady.

Children’s parties almost demand favors, and you will want yours to be tops on every guest’s “Best Ever!” list. Keep the favors simple and elegant to continue your graceful theme and inspire imaginations. Incorporating a craft into the favors helps to provide entertainment, engagement and fun for the entire group. One really great craft is an easy-to-make magic wand. Guiding the children to construct theirs of a pencil, foam or paper star, glitter, ribbons, and other pretties helps to ensure that each guest leaves with something truly useful to remind them of the great time had by all.

Other great favors and crafts may include Pixie Dust, Painted Ribbons and Wings. These can be easily constructed of common items. Gather pretty, small organza or cello favor bags, ribbon, paints, construction paper, golden glitter, and glue. Help the girls to fill favor bags with glitter, paint ribbons for their hair or to help secure wings, and design, cut, and decorate their own fairy wings. These can be secured to the backs of shirts via safety pin, so long as no damage will be done to their outfits.

With so many fairies poised for the journey, you will want to inspire a flight around the world. Your little guests will love tossing a little Pixie Dust into the air, spreading their wings, and running through the party area to simulate flight.

With so much adventure interwoven through the party, your own Tinkerbell will light with joy. To organize a Tinkerbell birthday party in Holly Springs, please visit this website.

Marketing Misty: Missed Opportunity or Business as Usual?

The much anticipated announcement of Misty Copeland’s promotion to principal dancer at American Ballet....read more

5 Ways Dance Classes Can Help Your Child



Most parents would like to see their children become involved and passionate about an activity, but choosing the right program for your child is not always easy. Valuable time is lost when children are not introduced to exercise, engagement and art at an early age. Dance is one activity that can be enjoyed even by toddlers, and encouraging your child to dance pays off in many ways.

     1.       Children who participate in dance classes enjoy social interaction.

Dance classes are small, often tightly knit groups that meet for perfectly designed periods of social interaction, and these can help your child to learn to interact for more friendly communication.

     2.       Dance classes can help instill a sense of grace.

Among the things dancers learn are precision and agility, and this makes for more graceful movement throughout life.

     3.       Dance is excellent exercise.

Bodies in motion are healthier and more fit than others.

     4.       Lifelong activities such as dance give children a sense of accomplishment, purpose and belonging.

As interests build around dance, students come to associate themselves with the wealth of culture and art within the field.

Dancing to the Stars

Few things are as uplifting as dance. When hard work, perseverance, and ambition come together gracefully, the body demonstrates poetry in motion. Learning to bring these together seamlessly is a dance itself.


Friday 5 June 2015

The Diverse Origins of Tap

Modern tap is an amalgamation of a variety of traditional ethnic dance forms, most predominately originating from Irish, English and Scottish jigsand African tribal dance. Researchers believe that these disparate forms were first synthesized in urban areas, where a range of ethnicities lived closely in cramped conditions under the constant rhythms of the city noise.

By the middle of the 19th century, it had gained popularity, as dancers observed each other during minstrel shows and other competitions, learning a diverse range of new techniques and rhythms. Over time, additional methods began to develop and merge, incorporating an array of styles such as soft shoe (a limber, graceful method performed in soft-soled shoes), buck dancing (a early form using clogs) and buck-and-wing (a showy, quick derivation performed in wooden clogs).

The modern image of tap did not materialize until the 1920s when metal plates were fastened to the bottom heels and toes of soft-soled shoes, and the term, tap, was coined. As it progressed, it became particularly known for its dancers’ aptitude for creativity and innovation. These artists not only influenced the development of dance, but also greatly impacted the progression of music, as drummers mimicked the patterns created during performances.

As the 20s progressed, tap emerged as a commonplace talent in vaudeville variety shows, and dancers had to conceive more creative ways to distinguish themselves from the herd, incorporating more extensive acrobatics and using a wider range of props. Through the consistent presence of challenges and competitions, individuals continually found innovative ways to reshape the art form, creating variations such as novelty, eccentric, comedy, swing tap, class, military and rhythm. Even within each developing style, every dancer presented unique capabilities.

Throughout the following decades, as the popularity of vaudeville decreased, performers found new venues to showcase their talent, appearing at nightclubs and then later in films. From the 1930s through the 1950s, tap was a predominate fixture in feature films, even allowing African American dancers to begin breaking color barriers in the industry.

While the presence of tap in film and on stage declined after the 1950s, its popularity has withstood time on Broadway stages and in small dance studios across the nation.

As its history demonstrates, tap is a laudable art form that requires intense skill and on-going ingenuity, something that both experts and amateurs can appreciate.

Interested in learning more about a dance studio in Apex, visit this website for more information.

Wednesday 3 June 2015

Letter to a Young Dancer

You are the one amongst many who will make the leap from being a dance student to being a Dancer.....read more

Build Confidence With Dance Competition

Performing for an audience inspires many shy children to shed their inhibitions, developing courage, which can greatly improve their self-esteem. Dance companies cultivate confidence in their students as they prepare for competition.