end of the dance semester

J's first semester of dance classes wrapped up last week. Here he is during his last ballet class, rehearsing their dance for the Sleeping Beauty ballet they are performing during their Spring Show this coming Saturday:

Here is his final jazz/hip hop class, practicing their dance to "Hit the Road Jack" for the show (you can guess who "Jack" is!):

And here he is during his final Musical Theater Class, working on a dance to the song "Seasons of Love" from the musical Rent:

All in all, this was quite a learning experience for us. He originally started out wanting to do Broadway and hip-hop, signing up for ballet just because he felt he should have a foundation in it to help with the rest of his dancing. While he had a lot of fun in the Musical Theater class, and really enjoyed jazz/hip-hop, he surprised himself by falling madly in love with ballet. And turns out he's got a real talent for it. He was asked to perform a role in the Sleeping Beauty Ballet, sort of big deal for a 1st semester student. Here he is rehearsing his part, dancing the role of the Big Bad Wolf during his dance with Little Red Riding Hood:

Stage rehearsal was last night, and was QUITE an experience, I assure you. He was totally wowed and loved every minute of it. I was pretty close to completely overwhelmed and wondered how the heck we ever got involved with this. But it's what he wants to do, so I'll just suck it up and roll with it. Who am I to stand in the way of budding talent?

Hopefully The Map Man can get some video footage at the recital so I can post some clips. I'll be backstage helping J with his costume changes and making sure the boys use the right dressing room. (Ahem.)