ALL ACCESS PASS: THE PULSE On Tour, Atlantic City

Vicarious | Jan 19, 2009 | 0

The Pulse Faculty

Upon first entering the convention center I knew I was in the right place. Dancers EVERYWHERE..... mothers, teachers, students, dance squads, people with headsets directing traffic. Oh yes, I had made it to one of the biggest dance events of the New Year.

2,030 students registered, the largest crowd of the tour, but it was like homecoming for the Pulse, since New Jersey was where it all started. Read more about my experience at the event. A breakdown of the classes, some fun pics and "the dish" after the jump

Brian Friedman Adv/Pro Class

Wade Robson Adv/Pro Class

Tony & Melanie Adv/Pro Class

Tyce Diorio Adv. Class

Wade Robson Adv. Class

There were four divisions offered (they added a new division for the large number of students); Intermediate (ages 11-14) Intermediate/Advanced, Advanced (ages 15-17), Advanced/Professional (18+).  

Saturday they started off the morning with the Faculty Introduction.

Wade Robson
Dave Scott
Tony & Melanie (in for Laurieann who couldn't make it because of a video shoot)
Cris Judd
Tyce Diorio
Mia Michaels
Brian Friedman

I had to pinch myself.  Before me stood some of the most recognized & talented choreographers in the business and they were here for US, a starry eyed congregation of dancers with the highest aspirations of what the weekend will bring.

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DAY TWO

Let me start off by saying, "Wow!!" The Pulse staff & directors really take care of everyone during the event.  They had a special parent lounge and for the first time offered a parent ballroom dance class with Tony & Melanie completely free of charge!!  They catered lunch for all of the teachers and had pitcher after pitcher of ice water for the dancers!  Pulse staff, you're awesome!

Class One
Advanced/Pro with Mia Michaels
Song: a slow John Mayer song

The crowds flock to Mia Michaels.  No matter what or where she is teaching, they (us dancers) will come.  She immediately plunges us into an intense emotional extra-terrestrial experience.  She kept emphasizing we should feel & act alien, which was exciting and challenging.  We were all throwing our arms around, cocking our heads, and leaping to the choreography of Queen Weird (I say that in the best way possible).  I didn't realize till close to the end of the dance that we hadn't danced it to music.  She taught us all of the choreography before putting it to music... I found this interesting.  Then she puts on this slow John Mayer love song and I understood why.  She was never going to get those alien like movements from us unless we understood not to lend our movements to that type of music.  Mia Michaels brings her stories to life through much deeper means than the music laid before her.  

Towards the end of her class she gave us all a beautifully inspiring speech about how we're all unique and no matter what there will never be another the same as you.  She emphasized that it is of dire importance we focus on being ourselves and knowing ourselves.  She never looks for the perfect dancer with the perfect technique; she looks for an imperfect individual who knows who they are and expresses it.  And after the speech she divided us into groups and let everyone freestyle after completing the dance.  We were instructed to do NO choreographed movements, NO tricks, only dance what comes from our soul.

Class Two
Advanced with Tyce Diorio
Song: Lauryn Hill - Just Like Water

Tyce brought a nice contrast from the other choreographers with his Broadway/Jazz routines.  I think his dances definitely required the most space with all of the kicks, spins, and turns!  He kept emphasizing the ever-important Nike slogan, "Just do it!"  "Whatever you think the move is- just do it! Just go with it! You cannot wait!"  That resonated with me a lot because I am one of those people who wants to get it exactly right in my head before executing it, and in this industry you often just don't have the time!  

Class Three
Advanced/Pro with Cris Judd
Song:  Ne-Yo - Miss Independent

Cris Judd is smooth like a magic trick.  His routine made me feel like a magician myself.  With the twist of a hand or turn of the head, we'd be half way into the next move, which flowed into the next, and the next.  It's all the little details that make the difference.  He has such a flow to his dances; he definitely makes it look easier than it really is.  He instructed us to step and dance softly as if we were sneaking around, as he so effortlessly demonstrated on stage.  I don't know if he usually does this, but in between our dancing he entertained us with his Christopher Walken impression.   I initially thought Dave was the comedian of the group, but I think Cris as Christopher Walken won.  

Creative Connect with The Pulse Faculty

I could tell you all of the question and answers from the Creative Connect lunch but not one Q&A compares to the question asked about what it's like working with celebrities.  The question started off directed at Brian who's worked with Britney Spears, among others, but Tyce (I will leave the details to your imagination) quickly took over sharing his opinion of working with one celebrity personality this last year.

Essentially he said working with her is "living hell".  "There are celebrities, and then there's (insert name here)..."  "Ten minutes with her is like a year of being drug behind a car by the neck."  Yes, I'm serious; he meant every word of it!  He had the whole room rolling with laughter.  I don't think anyone could believe he was really spilling the beans!

Brian added an insightful comment, "They have no clue how twisted they are, and it's our job to tell them they're normal."

Moral of the story is some misbehaved celebs can be "very hate-able".

Mia Michaels thanked her big butt for where she is today; after not being able to get gigs as a dancer, she decided choreography was what she was to pursue.  And I must thank Mia's big butt as well, for she has inspired and uplifted the dance community to record breaking heights.  It's not about being the best dancer, it's about creating and being an artist; expressing yourself and living up to your potential. Mia, along with Brian Friedman, serve as the Creative Directors for The Pulse, and without them this amazing weekend would not have taken place.  My sincerest thank you to Mia, Brian, Wade, Dave, Cris, Tony, Melanie, Tyce, Pam, & Mary for the life changing ultra inspiring Pulse weekend I will never forget!

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Jazz, Hip Hop, Modern, Broadway, Ballroom, Teacher, Enthusiast, Parent, Competitions & Conventions, Performance, Atlantic City, So You Think You Can Dance, The Pulse, Workshop (all tags)