Day 8: Closing Night Banquet & Ceremony

The final day in Anaheim was a fun one.  This girls slept in until after 10am.  They sure needed that.  Then they spent some time at the pool playing with their friends in the afternoon while the parents had a few cool beverages and talked about the week.  That evening everyone got all dressed up for the closing banquet.  First was a cocktail reception with lots of picture taking, then a fabulous dinner followed by a performance where all the top numbers from the week performed.  Zoe and her junior team along with the senior girls performed Harry Potter.  It was also a special night for Miss Shely.  She was voted in as the new President of Dance Masters of America for the next 2 years.  Debbie Allen- dancer, choreographer and actress- was the honored guest at the banquet and gave a very inspiring speech.  It was a wonderful evening with lots of family there to celebrate a great week and final night of the competition.  Now the final set of pictures.

Lots of family at the closing party!

Memere and Pepper

Grandma Kenlynn

Granddad and Gramma B

Pat and Helen

Miss Shely

Miss Grace

Jackie

Junior Team

Petities and Juniors

Jas and Zoe stretching before final performance

Lynnette made the costumes!  So cool!!

Day 7: High Score awards and Grand Nationals

Late night pizza (11:30pm!) after Grand Nationals (and Daddy is asleep)

Today was a very exciting day.  At the High Score awards today Zoe got 3rd place overall in Division 2 for her solo!!  Girl totally rocked it!!  She was up against some really tough competition.  So proud of her!!  Alice and Harry Potter both made it into Grand Nationals which is the Top 5 numbers in each categories. We were all very surprised and excited about that!  And an even bigger surprise was that Alice got second place and Harry Potter got first place.  So the girls will perform ONE MORE TIME tomorrow evening at the closing night banquet.  Whew!!  One more time to do hair and make-up then Mom is ready for a break!!  Here's a few pics from today.



High Score awards



Zoe gets 3rd overall in division 2 solos!!

Hair and make-up.......again!

Watching the video of Alice so Grace can give pointers for improvements before Grand Nationals

Good night everybody!

Good night Anaheim!!

Day 6: Last Day to Compete Unless.........

Today was the last day for Zoe to compete a group number.  They competed Chinatown and got a Platinum award!  Totally unexpected since they had some mistakes in the number.  But it is a very cool routine with lots of acrobatic tricks in it so obviously the judges liked it.  They also got a special judges award for it called "Artistry".  Tonight is the Miss and Mr. Dance of America competition where Matty will compete.  There are 30 girls and 17 boys competing.  That makes 47 solos in a row.  WOW!  That's alot of solos in a row (read between the lines here people!).  Then tomorrow at 9am they will do the High Score awards and announce which numbers will make it into the Grand Nationals Competition tomorrow evening.  Zoe is hoping for a High Score award for her solo.  There were 88 solos in the 12 and under category and the Top 10 get High Score awards.  The Top 5 go to Grand Nationals tomorrow evening to compete for 1 overall 12 and under winner.  Of course, will blog to let you know how it goes. :) 

Here's a few pictures from each if their numbers (except for one number cuz I didn't get any pictures of it!).

Little ballerinas

When She Loved Me

Skaters Waltz

Violet Hour

Zoe and Jas

Jordan Cat

Big smiles

Zoe's signature leap



Zoe is the "Panche Princess" (a previous judges award she got!)



Layout during solo

Alice

Chinatown- Zoe is in the center on her elbows

Harry Potter finale

Day 5: Happy 4th of July!!

Today started w/ a Hip Hop workshop at 8am for Zoe then it was time for the usual preparations- hair in a bun and make-up on for the Harry Potter group number that includes all the junior team as well as the senior team.  They did a fabulous job and got a Platinum award!  The first Platinum award for the junior team.  This afternoon the girls had time for some "downtime" and played in the pool with their friends for 3 hours.  I had a chance to relax w/ a lovely margarita complements of Bonnie.  Yummy!  This evening we went to the Teeen Miss Dance of America competition that Gabby was competing in.  She killed it!!  Competition doesn't get over until 11:30pm tonight but we left early to get the girls to bed.  Zoe has an early competition in the morning so we will be up at 6:15am.  Daddy arrived just in time for the girls to see him before they went to bed.  They were so happy to see him!!  I slacked off a little on taking pictures today but here's a few.

Harry Potter here we come!

Hillary and Talitha stretching

Rehearsing the number w/ Miss Grace

Zoe was all smiles after the the team got a Platinum award!

Zoe and Jordan dressed in their 4th of July red for the Teen Miss Dance competition

Day 4: Big Day of Competition

Today was a very exciting day.  Jordan's group got Gold with Everyone Wants to be a Cat.  And they also got a special judges award called "Simply Irresistible".  And Zoe's group numbers Alice, Got No Strings and Skaters Waltz also all got Gold awards.  And Alice got a special judges award called "Great Performance".  But the big excitement of the day was Zoe's solo. She competed in Division 2 Lyrical Solo.  And the competition was amazing.  The talent was incredible and the girls in the division were doing all kinds of acrobatic tricks. I was a nervous wreck and just hoped Zoe would be make it through and be happy with her performance afterwards.  We had 12 family and friends there- Granddad, Grandma B, Memere, Pepper, Aunt Donna, cousins Noah and Andrew, Dwayne and Mary, Pat and Helen and my great friend Elise.  Zoe ended up getting one of only 3 Platinum solo awards and she got 2nd place overall.  And she also got a special judges award titled "Look Out World, Here Comes Zoe!".  Zoe was thrilled and we were all so proud of her.  She has worked so hard this past year.  It was an awesome day!  Now, some pictures.

Zoe stretching for Alice

Girls getting a group shot with the photographer after their Alice performance.

Junior team before competing "Got No Strings".

Yeah- Aunty E is here!!

Memere, Aunty E and Granddad

Dwayne and Mary sitting w/ Pepper and Grandma B came to see the girls perform.

Zoe rehearsing her solo in the dressing room.

Zoe, Kira and Callan before their lyrical solo competition.

Close up of the girls.

Day 2.5 plus 3: Opening Ceremony & Competing

                               

Zoe ready for Opening Number performance.

Last night's Opening Ceremony and Party was awesome!  Zoe performed in the opening number of the show w/ girls from all over the U.S.  It was a fast paced upbeat number to Footloose and it got a standing ovation!  Pretty amazing for them just learning it the evening before.  Zoe had a blast doing it!  Then the girls danced the night away to a DJ at the party w/ all their friends.  Today Zoe did a ballet and then a jazz dance workshop in the morning an then Jordan and Zoe both competed one group number each this afternoon.  Zoe and Jordan's Memere and Pepper and cousins Andrew and Noah, along with Granddad and Grandma B were all there to see them perform.  This evening Jasmine (from Zoe's group) competed for Petite Miss Dance of America.  She did amazing!!  Competition still not over yet so not sure how she did yet.  Had to bring Jordan and Zoe back to the room before it was over so they could go to bed.  Jordan could not keep her eyes open any longer.  We need to be up at 7:30am tomorrow for a big day of competing.  Zoe competes 3 group numbers as well as her solo and Jordan will be competing her second and final group number for the week.  Gonna be a busy day for sure!  And of course, the pictures.....
          

Jordan ready to boogie at Opening Party.

Opps, not quite ready yet! 

Gabby and Jasmine- our Teen and Petite Miss Dance of California contestants!

Girls having fun at the party!

Grandma B's good friend Joan was in So Cal. & came to see Zoe in the opening number!

Jordan's group stretching w/ Miss Grace before the competition this afternoon.

All the family was there to support the girls!!

Now time for awards.  Both numbers got a Gold award!!

Zoe and Jordan going to see Jasmine compete this evening for Petite Miss Dance of America

And here she is proudly representing Chapter 13!!

And here she is again.  This girls can jump!!

Picture from yesterday.  Ending pose from Cat routine w/ my little Jordan pie in the middle!!