What
to expect the day of the Feis
Most competitions begin at 8:00 a.m. which means that you need to be
there at 7:00 a.m.
Some families
choose to stay at the hotel where the competition is being held. There
are special feis rates for this. Bella will have the information at
the time you sign up for the feis. Give yourself extra time for traveling,
parking and unloading. Make sure you have money for parking, admission,
a program (optional) and vendors/food.
Upon arrival,
check in with Bella and she'll have the number
card your child will wear for the competition.
The back of the card lists all the dances that she/he will be dancing.
If you cannot find Bella, look for other O'Connor families to find out
who is passing out the numbers.
Bella
will have already given you a dance
schedule in class before the feis. This will tell
you which stages your child will be dancing on and the approximate time
the dances will begin. The stages are posted with the competition numbers
and which competition is currently dancing. As each dance is completed,
the numbers are crossed off (it is your responsibility to make sure
that you know what is going on). It is not uncommon for the people running
the stage to forget to mark off a dance that has been already danced.
Have a
look at each stage on which your child will be dancing, and note the
area next to the stage where the dancers line up. There will be a feis
staff member there checking in the dancers for each event. Children
should check in for each event as soon as the dancers in the preceding
event walk out on stage. Direct your child to the person checking in
the dancers. Pay attention to the announcements; they will announce
which competition is about to take place.
NOTE:
Events are grouped by age and skill level. Brand new dancers may dance
their solo events one after the other on the same stage, but there is
no guarantee this will be the case. (This does not include special events,
such as a "First Feis Special," which may take place later
in the day on a different stage.)
In solo
dancing events, each dance is judged and awarded separately. Depending
on the number of dancers, they are lined up with 10 dancers per line.
There will be a staff member on stage that will start them. They will
do their dance and then line back up at the rear of the stage. When
the judge (Adjudicator) signals that she/he is done with the scoring,
they will ring a bell to dismiss the line. The dancers will bow to the
judge and musician and walk off the stage. There is one judge sitting
at a table in front of each of the stages.The dances are danced in the
following order for each group: Reel, Light Jig, Slip Jig, Single Jig,
Hard Jig, Hornpipe, and St. Patrick's Day (Traditional Set). It is Bella's
discretion on how many dances that your child will start off with. Eventually,
your child will be doing all of these.
In addition
to the above, each feis offers: First Feis Special (for first time dancers
at their first feis), Slip Jig Specials for girls and Reel Special for
boys.
Results
are either announced or posted. Awards are distributed differently from
feis to feis. The most common way is posting the results. If it has
been announced that they will do awards on stage, the dancer should
be in their full school costume. If you child has placed in their competition,
they are eligible for a trophy or medal which can be picked up at the
award's table. They will need to have their number with them in order
to collect their award(s). If your dancer has placed in any of the dances,
please write these on the card or on a separate piece of paper and give
it to Bella at the next class.
If your child is dancing in figure categories (group dances with one
or more partners), remove the solo number for the figure dances. New
numbers are worn for the figure dances - one number per team per event,
worn by only one dancer. Bella will give you the number for your child
if she/he is to be the one wearing it.
When your
child is between dance competitions, have them cover their dress with
a dress cover. No eating in the dress!! Obviously with a white dress
it will and does manage to collect dirt no matter how careful you are.
Expect
Delays! The amount of time it will take to complete a group
of events can only be estimated. Estimates are based on the number of
entrants, but it is often the case that schedules must be determined
before all the entries are submitted. Thus, you may have knocked yourself
out to get your child there, ready to dance at nine o'clock in the morning,
only to find that the preceding events have not yet begun. The complexity
of feis planning and the large number of involved parties make these
types of delays unavoidable. On the other hand, as dancers are required
to be ready one half hour before their first event is scheduled, it
has happened that events began before the scheduled time. In other words,
plan on spending the whole day at the feis.
Water
is usually provided for dancers, but it is a good idea to bring water
for your family. Some feis will allow you to bring small coolers, most
do not. Check with Bella. Bring snacks that can be packed in a backpack/purse
for quick energy boosts.
Children
must be supervised at all times. It's a good idea to bring things that
will entertain siblings while your child is dancing. In consideration
of the dancers and those who are watching, crying babies should be taken
out of the ballroom or away from the area where the dancing is taking
place.
DO
NOT BRING A VIDEO CAMERA. VIDEO TAPING OF THE DANCING IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED
- NO EXCEPTIONS!
Each school
owns the rights to their school's choreography and therefore it is protected.
You are also not allowed to use flash photography, as this distracts
the dancers.
