What is the Dance Team?

The dance team is a group of dedicated young dancers who love to dance, want to improve their skills, perform for others, compete in dance competitions, perform community service, and be a part of a wonderful extended family.

Auditions will be held Saturday, August 29th, 2009 at the following times at MNR:

Jr’s Age 11 and under: 11:00am-12:30pm
Sr’s Age 12 and up: 12:00pm-1:30pm

Attire: Tan or Pink tights (they can be convertible tights), black leotard, black jazz pants or black bike shorts.
Bring jazz, ballet and tap shoes. Hair tied neatly in a bun.

Location: MNR Dance Factory11606 San Vicente Blvd Brentwood, CA 90049

Parents: You need to fill out paperwork prior to your dancer auditioning. Click on the link to the forms to bring with you on audition day.

Team Contract 2009/2010
Team Form for Audition 2009/2010

Dress:   Tights, black leotard, black jazz pants or bike shorts.
Bring jazz, ballet and tap shoes.   Hair tied neatly in a bun.

Hope to see you there.
Roni and Marianne

Dance Class Requirements?

Age 4: One Combo class plus one team number rehearsal

Age 5 & 6:
Two Combo classes, or one Combo class and one other class (jazz, tap, hip hop)

Age 7 & up:
Two ballet classes, one jazz class, Jumps and Turns and choice of either a tap, musical theater or Hip Hop class, and one group rehearsal. All soloists under 15 must also take a 3rd ballet which can be one level below or above their current level (there is no charge for a 3rd ballet class).

What extra commitments are expected?

There are up to 5 competitions each year (see calendar).  There are also multiple special performances and benefits, and the year-end opening number recital rehearsals.  Opening number rehearsals for the annual recital usually start 6 weeks before the recital on Saturdays with extra rehearsals on the 3 Sundays before recital.

Although many of our dancers are talented in other sports and areas, we ask that if you decide to be on the dance team, you make the 5 weekends that we have competitions your priority and limit missed rehearsals to no more than 3 times before you are put on probation and risk being replaced without refund.  

At the discretion of the choreographer, a dancer who misses multiple rehearsals and does not learn choreography from another dancer, before the next rehearsal, may be replaced or lose their spot.  There will be no refunds for competition or rehearsal fees paid.  Don't mean to be harsh :o) but it is not fair to those that have made the commitment. You may also schedule time with the choreographer at the private rate if you need extra help.

What about Competitions?

You will be given the dates of these competitions, no later than October 1st of each year and should make sure that you do not make any unbreakable plans during these weekends.  At least one week prior to each competition we will have the final schedule and be able to let you know what day and time your numbers will perform within a 2 hours period.

Frequently we have parents come to us 3 weeks prior to a competition and say that they never knew there was a competition coming up.  Make sure you know these dates.  If they change for any reason you will be notified by email.  Everyone must have a current email address on file as this is how we communicate with you.

Traditionally, most competitions separate the Jr. levels & Sr. levels so that most dancers only have to come to one day of competition, but there are exceptions.   Obviously if you are in only one number your weekend commitment will be much shorter. If you are in a solo, duet/trio, you will most likely have to compete on multiple days.

Special Conventions and Nationals:

Each year we may participate in a convention for ages 8 and up, and one Nationals.  We recommend that everyone try to go to nationals. We will give you the date for Nationalsl as soon as we confirm which Nationals we will be doing,

We try to choose a Nationals that will be fun and can be combined with a family vacation in either  Las Vegas, San Diego, Disneyland, New York, Hawaii, etc.  Participation in the Nationals is not mandatory, but it is recommended.  More importantly, we need to know your intentions on Nationals by April 1st, to make groups selections, choreography changes and submit the entry's.  There are always costs for late entry's and changes.

What actually are these additional costs?

There are additional costs for rehearsals, costumes, competition fees and props. Please note that these fees are approximate and have not been updated for this year yet. We are working on a formula which will be very close to these numbers.

Classes:  Team members must meet the minimum class requirements per week. See above under Class requirements. In order to help defray the cost of multiple classes needed to succeed on dance team, we have a special class discount for our team members as long as they take the class requirements.

Rehearsals:  Rehearsals for groups last from 25-45 minutes at least once per week on a specific day per group number. Additional rehearsals may be called in order to fine tune the dances prior to competition. There is no additional cost for extra group rehearsals that are called at the request of the teacher. 

Costumes:  Range from $125-165 per routine.  We will include a deposit of $125, per routine, into the per group fee, and we will adjust any differences in the final payment. If we use a costume that you already purchased for recital, we may make some alterations or add stones which will cost between $15-$40.

Competition Costs: Costs depend on how many and what kind of dances your dancer is in.  Below is the annual average cost per person based on last years fees and is included in the Total group/duet/trio/solo fee above

Approximate Annual Competition Fees - for all five Competitions: (Convention Costs and Nationals are not included).  These costs will included in the the group, solo, duet fee.  

Each Group x 5:	$175 for year, $35 each
Each Solo x 5:	$430 for year, $86 each
Each Duet x 5:	$250 for year, $50 each
Each Trio x 5:	$190 for year, $38 each

Average Annual Costs Groups: Total average cost per large group number ranges from $550-$650 for the entire year which includes the rehearsal fee, choreography fee, competition fees and a $125 costume deposit.  Small groups of 4-9 dancers runs from $700 to $800. Discounts will be given for additional groups added by each dancer.

Team Uniform and Warm-ups:  For all new team members there is a mandatory Team Warm up which costs $100.00 for child sizes and $125 for adult sizes.  Returning members: If you have grown out of your team suit you must order a new one.

The team uniform for special events is a black skort, black jazz pants and a DF top.  This eliminates the confusion when we are doing special performances and cuts down on costume changes and possible damage to expensive competition costumes.  New members, the initial cost of this uniform is $210.00. (Skort, Bike Short, Baseball Jersey, Tank Top & Jazz Pants) purchase of a MNR Dance Factory Garment Bag is also required for $35.  Returning members, please let us know if you need any replacements for any of the items.  Otherwise we will only order for new team members.

Props:  Annual Prop Fee $25 per dancer.

Payments:  In order to help reduce your monthly costs, we will combine all class fees for the entire year, include recital costume fees, competition fees, costumes for competittion, choreorgraphy, add the calculated team fees together and divide by 11 months.   A credit card on file is required in order to participate on the dance team.

A team deposit due September 12th of $400 for dancer only doing group numbers, and $575 for those dancers doing Solo's, Duet/Trios.
Click here to open worksheet to estimate costs.

Are there any requirements of the Parents?

Each family is required to sign up for a job during the year.  We will have a sign up sheet at the Audition for you to sign up.

Props - Load props on truck Friday night and unload Sunday of competition weekend
Recital - Take tickets, make flower arrangements, work the concession booth, sell tickets, etc. 
Costumes - Help with measurements, alterations, accessories, etc.

Help your dancer be organized:  Be on time for rehearsals & competitions, have all costumes, shoes and makeup at all competitions, please do not rely on your dancer, let them pack and you double check, you will be the one driving home to get the left item.

Practice:  Encourage your dancer to practice at home and prepare for each rehearsal.  Rehearsals are not productive if the teacher has to repeat choreography and moves learned the previous week.  Reinforce commitment by not allowing your child to miss rehearsals for party’s, movie dates, play dates, etc.

IF YOU HAVE GOTTEN THIS FAR AND STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND PLEASE SET UP A TIME FOR US TO TALK VIA EMAIL (MARIANNE) :O)

Just a couple of Extra Tips: Especially for New Team Parents.

1) Please make sure your dancer is dressed and ready, warmed up at least 15 minutes before the scheduled rehearsal, and be prepared for the rehearsal to end up to 20 minutes after the time listed. There are times when a choreographer is trying to work something out and the creative mind can't be cut short by a silly thing like TIME....:o)>
We will do our best to be courteous with your time!

2) If your dancer has regular classes on Saturday (most dancers do) they may have some time off between classes and rehearsals. Make sure you know your class times and rehearsal times and schedule lunches, parties, etc accordingly. The schedule will be posted on the door of the A studio (the largest one) by 10am each Saturday and online on the team news webpage. If there are any major changes to the Saturday Schedule less than 2 days before, you will be emailed and /or called. Please make sure your dancer has water, snacks or lunch if needed. This time is a real bonding time for the girls and is almost as important to them as the actual dance class. Feel free to ask questions.

3) If you are interested in a Small Group in addition to the large group, please let us know. We will be starting the small groups after we get the 1st set of groups started.

4) Everyone will be charged a Team Deposit of $500 ($700 if you are doing a solo/duet or trio, which will be applied toward your total annual fee, by September 12th. We will have your Monthly payment calculated as soon as you confirm your classes and by October 1st when the first payment is due. We will give you a breakdown of all fees. Convention fees and Nationals Competition Fees, if any, are the only charges that are not included in the Annual fees as we never know the cost in advance.

5) All team members are required to have a team uniform which includes a MNR Dance Team Warm Up, Black jazz pants, black MNR Leo, black Team Skort, black biker shorts and team garment bag. We will be measuring all the dancers in the next couple of weeks to determine their sizing. If your items still fit from last year you do not need to buy new ones.

That's it for now.