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Sat, Sep 07 2024, 17:07:48 [ Login ] [ Contact Forum Admin ] [ Main index ] [ Post a new message ] [ Search | Check update time | Archives: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ]

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Date Posted: 13:18:58 07/06/24 Sat
Author: -Adult dancer
Subject: I sure hope you are! (more inside)
In reply to: …. 's message, "OMG am I still going to be doing this when my dancer is 30? More inside…" on 11:13:02 07/06/24 Sat

I'm going to go through this line by line:

"Isn’t the ultimate goal of competing at NANS to recall and hopefully qualify for Worlds."
The ultimate goal of competing at any competition is to win the competition. U8s and U9s do not WQ at NANS either, nor do overseas competitors.

"I'm perplexed as to why a 30-year-old adult would still want to wear poodle socks, tanner, and wigs"
There is no upper age limit for senior ladies, who are the ones wearing the "poodle socks, tanner, and wigs." Adult divisions, for reasons that I don't quite understand, have to wear tights. Wigs, like in any division, are optional. I choose to wear one because it's a heck of a lot easier than doing my hair.

"and complete for what? To win?"
People generally enter competitions hoping to win them, yes. It's why people compete at local feises and other countries' regionals where they cannot World Qualify, or why people from Ireland and even Australia come to the US for NAIDC.

"What drives ex-OCs to continue competing? Is it a quest for validation or external affirmation of their skills?"
That depends on the individual ex-OC. I am not an ex-OC, as I grew up in an Irish dance desert, but I am an adult competitor at the prelim level. I did not think I was going to compete when I first signed up for beginner class in my mid-20s, but after a few months I signed up for a local feis to see if it was going to be my vibe. I loved it. It's the same reason people sign up for 10ks or compete in Masters swimming: because they like the sport. I hate running, I like dancing.

"While I understand their passion to dance, seeing these adults still in wigs and costumes next to the kids is weird."
This is a personal opinion of yours, and one I disagree with. Also, it's certainly no more weird than seeing 6-, 7-, 8-, 9-year-old children with fake tanned legs and zero face makeup on. Irish dancing is weird as heck, regardless of the age or competitive level of the person doing it.

"Surely, there are alternative ways to nurture their passion for ID, such as performing at Irish bars or shows?"
Why don't you ask your dancer if (s)he'd be okay with never competing again and just performing at bars or in shows? Some people love competition. Other people hate it. Some people love performing. Others hate it.

"I get the money grab but at some point or age the competing should end, right."
Why? Because you said so? Should people stop doing road races at a certain age even if they're perfectly capable of completing it? Should people just stop doing other hobbies once they reach a certain age? A competitive drive doesn't just stop when you turn 25.

-
Now, with your title of "OMG am I still going to be doing this when my dancer is 30?"

I hope you are. I hope your dancer is in a good enough mental and physical health to continue a hobby that (s)he clearly loves (given that you're on an obscure message board to talk about it and you just traveled to Texas in the middle of the summer to partake in) at the age of 30, and I hope (s)he has a great dance community that will continue to support them as they age. Plus, by that point, your dancer will be the one paying for classes/comp fees/costumes -- you can sit back with them and enjoy a beverage or two before awards and laugh about how ridiculous all of this was when (s)he was a little kid with a wig and fake tanned legs and no face makeup on.

Irish dance does not have an age limit. Only attitudes like these do. I wish you well.

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