June, 2011 - Ayako School of Ballet

June 2011
Ayako School of Ballet
517-E Marine View Avenue Belmont, CA 94002
(650) 592-7272 www.ayakoschool.com
Summer Is Here!
The teachers at Ayako School of Ballet are very much looking forward to practicing with so many of you this
summer. After a brief Summer Recess, classes will begin again on Tuesday, July 5th. In the first 2 weeks of
August, you will have the opportunity to join us for our August Intensive - more information about the August
Intensive is below.
In this summer newsletter, we would like to highlight some of the competitions that ASB takes part in. A
healthy part of dance is the art of competition, and we enthusiastically encourage all who are interested to
join us on stage at some of the many dance competitions that come to the Bay Area and beyond.
Thank you for another wonderful year, I have enjoyed it so much. We look forward to seeing everyone
around the studio this summer!
~ Ayako
Important Dates
• June 25th: ASB Showcase 2pm @ the San Mateo Performing Arts Center
• June 22nd - July 4th: Summer Recess
• July 5th - July 30th: Summer Session
• August 1 - August 13: August Intensive
• August 13th @ 5:30pm: Studio Performance for August Intensive students & parents
• September 6th: Fall Session begins
June 2011
Competition
Competition is an extremely fun and rewarding aspect of dance with benefits that stretch far beyond what
some may think.
~ Practice Makes Perfect ~
We all know that you will become better at something if you practice. A considerable amount of time is involved preparing for, practicing, and dancing in a competition. The time spent refining dance skills is extremely valuable to any dancer of any level.
Dancing in front of an audience can sometimes be intimidating, but the more times a dancer performs on
stage, the more comfortable he or she becomes. Dancers can take this confidence outside of the dance
studio to their family, school, and social life.
Confidence ~ Happiness ~ Energy
The social aspect of competition is by far the most fun! We dance as locally as San Mateo, and plan on attending a competition this summer in beautiful Lake Tahoe. The relationships our dancers build while supporting each other, and the quality times spent with friends during competitions, are priceless.
~ The Joy of Dancing ~
Each January the parents at ASB get together and, based on location and general interest, decide which
local competitions we will participate in. Please keep this in mind, as we will announce the start of competition season next year and would love to hear your input and see new faces join us!
Listed below are the competitions that ASB has participated in so far this year. We are so proud of all of
our dancers, teachers and choreographers for their huge achievements.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Youth America Grand Prix
• Senior Age Division Top 12 .....Mariko Ishikawa - both Classical and Contemporary categories (Ayako and
Mariko Takahashi)
• Junior Classical Category - 3rd Place .....Karina Eimon (Ayako Takahashi)
American Dance Awards
• High Score duo/trio age 7-9 3rd place .....Fancy Foot Work, Kristine Kwan and Nico Levy (Mariko
Takahashi)
• High Score Extended Production 1st place .....Yes We Can Can (Kirstie Briones)
June 2011
• High Score Primary age 12 and under 2nd place overall .....Fancy Foot Work, Kristine Kwan and Nico
Levy (Mariko Takahashi)
• Dancer of the Year 4th runner up .....Ashley Lu for Awakening (Maria LaMance)
• Junior Dancer of the Year 3rd runner up .....Elexi Kourtoglou for New Soul (Mariko Takahashi)
• Young Dancer of the Year 3rd runner up .....Alyssa Muna for Harlequinade (Amy Briones)
• Young Dancer of the Year 4th runner up .....Sophia Kourtoglou for Napoli (Amy Briones)
Showstoppers
• 6th Place Junior Jazz duet .....DJ got us dancing - Sophia Kourtoglou and Alyssa Muna (Amy Briones)
• 4th Place Mini Large Group .....Winter Wonderland (Kirstie Briones)
• 6th Place .....Sea Dogs - Elisa Eimon and Laura Ozorio (Mariko Takahashi)
• 7th Place .....Fancy Foot Work - Kristine Kwan and Nico Levy (Mariko Takahashi)
StarQuest
•Top Teen Solo:
5th .....Karina Eimon - Black Swan (Ayako
Takahashi)
11th .....Tracy Wheelwright - Giselle
(Ayako Takahashi)
13th .....Charlotte Keefe - Le Jazz Hot
(Mariko Takahashi)
17th .....Erica Spievack - Don’t Stop Believing
(Mariko Takahashi)
• Top Senior Solo .....1st Place - Mariko Ishikawa - Esmeralda (Ayako Takahashi)
• Top Teen Large Group .....2nd Place - Lotus (Michael Lowe)
June 2011
• Top Teen Line .....3rd Place - Alice in Wonderland (Ayako Takahashi)
• Choreography Award .....Alice in Wonderland (Ayako Takahashi)
• Teen/Senior Production Award .....Alice in Wonderland (Ayako Takahashi)
• FDC People’s Choice Award .....Lotus (Michael Lowe)
Starbound
MARCH
• Top 10 Junior Soloist .....10th Place - Alyssa Muna - Harlequinade (Amy Briones)
JUNE
• Top 10 Junior Soloists .....3rd Place - Erica Spievack - Princess Aurora (Ayako Takahashi)
• Top 10 Teen Soloists .....
2nd .....Karina Eimon - Black Swan (Ayako Takahashi)
3rd .....Karina Eimon - Kitri from Don Quixote (Ayako Takahashi)
• Top 10 Senior Soloists .....
3rd .....Mariko Ishikawa - Bel Esprit (Mariko Takahashi)
6th .....Mariko Ishikawa - La Esmeralda (Ayako Takahashi)
7th .....Ashley Lu - Awakening (Maria LaMance)
• Top 5 Super Senior Soloists .....
1st .....Heather Ngai - People Move On (Mariko Takahashi)
2nd .....Heather Ngai - Slow Dancing in a Burning Room (Mariko Takahashi)
• Top 5 Junior Duet/Trios .....3rd Place - What I’ve Done - Elexi Kourtoglou, Erica Spievack (Mariko
Takahashi)
• Top 3 Teen Duet/Trios .....3rd Place - Count on Me - Hana Okai, Charlotte Keefe (Mariko Takahashi)
• Top Production/Line .....Alice in Wonderland (Ayako Takahashi)
International Dance Challenge
Awards for Juniors
• Overall Duo/Trio 2nd Runner up .....”What I’ve Done” Erica Spievack & Elexi Kourtoglou
• Overall Line Dance 1st Runner up .....“Yes, We Can Can”
• Best Precision in Juniors .....”Jewels” Olivia Chow, Julia Evans, Alyssa Muna
June 2011
Awards for Seniors
• Ultimate Challenge Champions
(highest score in all group entries) .....”Lotus”
• Winner of Entertainment Challenge Champion
• Best Choreography Award for Michael Lowe
• Overall Production winner
• Ultimate Challenge Champions 2nd Runner up
.....“Alice in Wonderland”
• Special Award - The Oscar Award (The complete package with technique, costumes, props,
characters, and a storyline)
• Overall Production 1st Runner up
• Senior Solo Challenge Champion .....Mariko Ishikawa for “La Esmeralda”
Mariko Ishikawa was also awarded:
1. Best Technical Execution for “Esmeralda” in Seniors
2. “My Star of Tomorrow” Special Award - For professionalism and quality of movement & expression
• National Danceweek Centerstage Award .....Karina Eimon for “Black Swan”
Karina Eimon was also awarded:
1. Senior Solo Challenge Champion 3rd Runner up “Kitri from Don Quixote”
• Senior Solo Challenge Champion 2nd Runner up .....Charlotte Keefe for “Kiss Me”
Charlotte Keefe was also awarded:
1. “The Pointe Award” for “Harlequinade”
2. For excellent training and technical execution on pointe
• Senior Solo Challenge Champion 3rd Runner up
.....Karina Eimon for “Kitri”
• Duo/Trio overall 2nd Runner up .....”Count on Me”
Hana Okai & Charlotte Keefe
• Best Costume in Seniors .....”Pharaoh’s
Daughter” Ashley Lu
• More Senior Solo Platinum Award recipients:
“Bel Esprit” Mariko Ishikawa
“Giselle” Tracy Wheelwright
“Awakening” & “More than Any One”
Ashley Lu
Ayako School of Ballet was also awarded: Senior NYC Drawing Entry
June 2011
ASB August Intensive Workshop
Taking place at the Ayako School of Ballet Studios, this year’s workshop goes from August 1st 13th and offers a class schedule that runs for two weeks, Monday - Saturday, with a studio performance included at the conclusion. Registration forms can be found on our website
www.ayakoschool.com or at the studio office.