Showcase Sign up 2024 OPEN

IT IS HERE!! TIME to start planning

We have in person and video options - if you cant be here for the live performance, or just shy, away at college, or want to be a part but live in say “the virgin islands”. (wink) Make sure to fill out the form so we can communicate with everyone.

Practice starts Week of Sep 8th - Performance is Nov 9th and Nov 10th. Due to the high demand we will have a Sunday Matinee for friends and public. Limited tickets will be available as we can only seat about 24 each show.

Student Showcase 2024

Details about the showcase will be sent after we finalize our list.

Showcase Sign Ups 2023 are OPEN

SHOWCASE SIGN UP IS HERE

Here is the form to fill out to JOIN our AMAZING students to show off all the work you have been doing. 

This is the initial form to gauge interest and how many pieces we will need to choreograph.   Yes we will also be featuring tweens, and our remote teachers and/or students that consider us their 2nd aerial home when they are in town. 

https://forms.gle/noFA8PGTiJWK3Z1B9

Add your name to the list if you are interested in being a part of our showcase this year.  We can’t wait to see who wants to join us this year.   This year we will be able to record our dress rehearsal night and perform live for our friends and family.  

Dates Sept 10 - thru Nov 11  

We will send out an email toward the end of the month with the details and casting information. You will be required to attend at least 8 practices and Dress rehearsal(s).

If you already know you are joining - you can register here - and still use the form above to send us the details.

Registration Fee of $30.00 placeholder on FITLI  is Sep 3rd.  This is to help cover setup, extra cleaning, choreography time, etc… 

Live in Person - 8:00 am - is the placeholder for sign up

https://app.fitli.com/business/aerial-fun-fitness/schedule#session-2554921

Remote Performance - 9:15am is the placeholder for this group

https://app.fitli.com/business/aerial-fun-fitness/schedule#session-2554922

 * There may be a small additional video fee, but we try to keep that cost down for everyone.

Showcase Reflections

** Teacher Tidbits Corner - Laura Rafferty - December 2021
------------------------------------------------------------

Showcase Reflections

There's a great quote that says, "If you want to know where your heart is, look where your mind goes when it wanders." For me, when I daydream or right before I fall asleep, I am always thinking about how to string together hammock or lyra poses to make different flows. Zina knows what I'm talking about! After telling her about my aerial nerdiness last year after completing my level 3 test out, I think I said, "If you need another teacher to help choreograph for the showcase, I would love to try it." Fast forward months later and Zina asked me if I wanted to choreograph the Hammock Level 2/3 piece. I had never choreographed anything before in my life and was really honored that she trusted me to do it. Thank you, Zina for giving me this opportunity and for all your guidance along the way! It was more challenging than I thought it would be, but I loved every minute of it and learned a lot. Here are 10 things I learned from my first choreography experience...

10) Timing is really important. Like, really, really important. If the timing is off, it can make it look like everyone just decided to freestyle their own routine.

9)  You believe in your group and see their potential even when they are frustrated - we should all feel that way about ourselves too.

8)  It is okay to stop the music and say, "What was that?!" As long as they think you are kidding, it still gets in their heads a little and helps them focus.

7)  There is a magical practice that happens and makes you feel like everything is gonna be alright.

6)  Unfortunately, that magical practice happens much later than you hoped.

5)  There's also a practice that makes you feel like you wanna walk to the bar next door and become a regular.

4) You become so proud of your group and all their hard work, and when they nail it in the final performance, you feel like they are your children and just graduated high school.

3)  Videos during practices are extremely helpful in seeing the "big picture"...and also helpful to point out their mistakes..mistakes that are sometimes being made over and over again. Of course, say it very nicely and follow it with, "You got this!" They won't know you really wanna pull your hair out.

2) Choreographers also can get nervous when filming the final performance.

1) Everyone should always carry confetti in their pocket at all times, just in case the moment should arise.

It is time for Showcase!

** Teacher Tidbits Corner - Kelsey DeMonte - September 2021
------------------------------------------------------------
You’ve signed up for the Aerial Fun and Fitness Student Showcase this year... so now what?

The student showcase is your opportunity to show your friends, family, and yourself how far you’ve come with your aerial skills. This year, due to COVID, we will be holding the showcase via a live Zoom viewing party mid-November! You might think November is awfully far away, but
here’s a quick breakdown of how we plan our student showcase:
* Students were given the month of July to sign up for our student showcase via Google Forms survey, and the survey closed on August 1st.
* During the month of August, Zina and Kelsey will be working together to assign all students into group pieces and choreographing those pieces. You will hear from us in August with your assigned group and rehearsal time!
* Showcase rehearsals will start during the first week of September. Groups will rehearse once a week, and additional rehearsals may be added as we get closer to the showcase as necessary.
* The first week of November, all group pieces will be professionally filmed. Our wonderful videographers will take the footage and edit it prior to our live viewing party.

Are you new to the student showcase or looking for some tips to make this process as fun and successful as possible? Here are our keys to success in the student showcase:
* Attend as many of your scheduled group rehearsals as possible! This ensures that you have enough time to learn the choreography and commit it all to muscle memory so that when the time comes to perform, you are not as stressed about remembering each step. This also builds comradery within the group and allows everyone to work together cohesively.
* Figure out what your best way of learning is! We tape and share rehearsal videos so you can refer back to them as needed. Some of our favorite memory strategies are watching the rehearsal videos over and over, recording your own voice saying the steps over the music, writing down the sequence of steps, etc. Find what works best for you!
* Go into showcase rehearsals with an open mind and positive attitude! Remember- we have plenty of time from the start of rehearsals until our viewing party to learn and perfect our pieces. They might not look or feel great right from the start, and that is 100% okay! The learning curve for every student will be different, and we promise that with time and practice, all of you will look great by November and have the greatest sense of pride in your hard work.
* HAVE FUN! This is our favorite time of the year not only because you all get to show off all of your hard work, but we get to know all of you so much better. We always talk about how we at Aerial Fun and Fitness are truly an aerial family, and this is magnified during showcase season!

What is Showcase?

** Teacher Tidbits Corner - Ann Marie Savini  - November 2021
------------------------------------------------------------
It’s Showcase Time!

Here at Aerial Fun and Fitness we offer students an opportunity to show off what they have learned.  Our annual Student Showcase allows students to express themselves using the skills that they have learned in our aerial fitness classes.

During class, our students learn many poses that increase their strength, flexibility and improve their balance. The poses are often woven together to form flows which are not only fun but help the students to understand how to transition from one pose to another.  So what does this have to do with our annual Student Showcase?  Well, in our Showcase we put together several flows to music so that our students can participate in an “aerial dance”.

All students are welcome to join our Showcase regardless of ability. Everyone has something that they can contribute whether they are a beginner or an experienced student.  We work with each student so that they can be proud of their performance.

We rehearse for several weeks prior to the Showcase.  It is hard work but a lot of fun!  It is really inspiring to see it all come together.  After the first couple rehearsals, you wonder if you are ever going to be able to memorize the routine.  And then there are changes to the routine along the way.  But somehow by the last couple rehearsals, everything seems to come together.  It is so rewarding to see the final result. In addition to participating in the Showcase routines, you get to know the other students in a way that you would never get to know them by just taking a class together.  During rehearsals, the students often get to know each other better and develop friendships.

There is so much communication during rehearsals.   We encourage participation and students are encouraged to make suggestions or provide input to the routines.  Our students have a lot of great ideas and often make significant contributions to the final routine.

Even if you chose not to participate in the Showcase, we encourage you to watch the show.  You will not be disappointed!

It is showcase time.... Ann Marie summed this up so well. Performers remember to breathe and as Kelsey would say "if you mess up, mess up with confidence". My favorite part is how all these different types of people come together. I love watching all this happen. So proud of the teachers for inspiring students, students working together as a team, and all of this coming together to create our version of Aerial ART! - Zina