Balling Out in the Room: A Weekend Ballroom Competition
Ronnie talks about ballroom competitions FOR THE LAST TIME :0
Ronnie talks about ballroom competitions FOR THE LAST TIME :0
It is no secret that I am on Carleton’s Ballroom and Latin Dance Team. If I had to recommend you to try any club at Carleton, it would be ballroom (and I’m saying that as the commodore of our Sailing Club). But you might be wondering, what do you even do? How does competing even work?
Getting Ready
People that choose to compete spend all term prepping for competition: practicing techniques, learning new moves, and having fun.
An important part of the “official” ballroom uniform is our hair, costumes and (optional) makeup.
Ballroom hair presents a unique challenge because it is not supposed to move, even after dancing all day.
Getting to the Venue
U Dance Fest is a two-day collegiate ballroom event, hosted by the University of Minnesota. It’s in the Twin Cities, so we have to drive there! We usually use campus vehicles for this.
Dancing
The point of a dance competition is that you dance. I only do two styles, latin and standard, but there is also rhythm and smooth. Plus, we have some parts that are purely for fun, like team match. For team match, each team chooses a pair for each style and sends them out to “compete.”
Watching People Dance
No one dancer can dancer every single level, so there is a lot of time spent watching other dancers and cheering on teammates. This is always one of the most fun parts of competition.
Eat (and Snack)
Dancing takes a lot of energy, so it’s important to stay fueled up!
More Dancing
After dinner we return to Union Depot for even more dancing!!!!! It’s kind of a packed schedule, but soooo much fun.
Sleep
For two-day competitions, we spend the night in the cities. This time we were in a hotel right across from the dance venue which was very convenient!
Repeat
As a two-day competition, there is a second day!!!! This is usually when we take the most pictures, but are also all quite tired.
Return to Campus
All good things must end. Ultimately, we are students and not professional ballroom dancers, so we have to return on Sunday for classes on Monday.
And now I have a life-long love for dance. I know that when I graduate I will continue to dance, and hopefully see my fellow team members at other dance competitions!
Ronnie (they/she/he) is a senior Biology major from Oak Park, IL. Outside of blogging, she is also an Admissions tour guide and a Student Ambassador for Alumni Relations. You can usually find them in Cowling Gymnasium with the Ballroom Dance Team, practicing for the next competition or chatting with teammates. They also have very strong opinions about food on campus (especially LDC eggs and Burton fried tofu). She is also the commodore of Carleton’s sailing club and a DJ for KRLX, the student run radio station.