Detroit International Feis 2014, PC/OC Review

Posted by:What The FeisonJune 9, 2014   0 Comments

b7516be3d6a350f0bb91a148aef24a62The Detroit International Feis was held on June 7th, 2014 at the Ultimate Soccer Arena, in Pontiac, Michigan. I wrote a review for this feis last year, and with the exception of the date and one or two other items, I could pretty much copy and paste that here. I suggest reading that review as I am going to just annotate the differences here. It is good to see how things change.

Venue

Still love it. Probably one of my favorites. LOTS of room to literally run around if you want.

Stages & Seating

Stage setup was exactly like last year but this year since we were on one of the PC/OC stages I was able to figure out the stage size, which was 32 x 32. This feis, if I am not mistaken, has the biggest stages of any feis I have attended. Even the grades level stages are big at 24 x 32.

There was quite a bit of complaints from both parents and dancers about how slippery the stages were however. I heard from 3 separate parents on different stages as well as witnessed some of this myself. I did not see any falls, but there were lots of slips.

Contrary to last year, the feis team did not appear to be up on stage maintenance. CAVEAT – I left the building at lunch and cannot say if there was any mopping done then. Otherwise, I only saw one stage being swept. We took the precaution of using gaffers tape on TGC’s hard shoes, and we dampened her soft shoes with a wet towel before she danced and she did not seem to have any problems.

Seating was the same as last year, bleachers for stages 1 – 4 and lots of chairs for stage 6. I did not take note of how many chairs there were for stage 5, but there was plenty of room around the stage to set up your own chairs or blankets. Overall, seating was no problem.

Some people did complain that it was cold inside the venue, but I personally thought it was pleasant.

Camping & Access

Camping? Lots of it!, not all necessarily close to ‘your’ stage, but there was lots of room in the bleachers and if you were up to it, there was a ton of room where you could spread out behind stage 6.

Access did get a bit tight between the grades stages and the bleachers as people chose to stand in that area to view or have chats with their firends, but generally you could get through without too much issue.

Awards & Results

Grades results were posted on the far wall behind stage 6 as they were last year.

For PC/OC awards, the podium was set up in a far corner. Lots of room for viewers and dancers, and the distance from the stages didn’t cause any distraction for the stages. Great setup!

Parking

Seemed to be plenty but it filled up quick so you might have to park out in the boonies and hike in. They did provide a “shuttle” out to your car after the feis, but that didn’t help with your arrival necessarily.

The other thing they have done the past two years I have been to the feis was block off the circle up to the door. It would have been nice to have that for pickup and dropoff, especially for older spectators and others with mobility issues.

Judges

We had no problems with the judging. 3 judges for the stage we were on and they all seemed attentive. It was at this feis last year where I mentioned the ‘distracted’ judge after having seen him judge at one other feis. I think he is the one that got me started watching judge actions a bit closer. This feis though, no issues.

Music

Each stage had their own musician and from where we were sitting, I could not hear music from the other side of the room, so distraction was not an issue, at least on the far side of the venue. I cannot speak to the Grades levels where the stages where closer together.

There was one musician there that I heard playing, and admittedly I don’t dance, but I thought the tempo was off as he played. I did not hear any complaints at this feis, but I have heard issues with this particular musician in the past. This time I heard it for myself.

Food

OK, here is what many consider THE issue for this feis. On the feis website it states quite clearly:

  • NO COOLERS are allowed inside the facility, there is plenty of reasonably priced food available in the venue

WRONG!

Last year the setup was much better, with two concessions. This year, it had changed with the removal of the smaller concession and the addition of a Starbucks (or maybe I didn’t see that last year).

Food lines were outrageous, and food delivery was slow. They ran out of food and was able to scrape up just a pretzel for one of our school parents. I can understand the rules, but make sure you are able to back up the rules.

The saving grace was that the venue is a short drive from a major intersection with at least 5 popular fast food chains. We literally drove out, bought, came back and had a nice lunch (outside) before some people got their food in the line we had tried in the venue initially.

Vendors

Very similar, is not exactly like the past year. A nice selection of items, including knit and Guinness wear. You can see the list here. Sadly, no Irish M&Ms :(

Results

As mentioned above, the results for grades were posted on a far wall, away from the stages, and they could pick up their awards right next to the results display.

The PC/OC had their own corner for the podium and it was roomy and remote. Thought it was well done.

Feis Flow

It seemed like a very long day. Like last year, the lunch seemed to take forever and there was grumbling among the masses. We knew we probably wouldn’t start until after lunch, and that is exactly what happened, but you know as well as I that you can never really be sure, so we got there at 10am.

TGC did not dance till mid afternoon and her comp (which was kind of big) finished in about 30 minutes. Her awards were announced about 75 – 90 minutes later, which seems close to what we have experienced at other feis lately.

Scoring

If you have been reading my reviews for a while, you may have realized that I didn’t score the individual sections. It seems to me that the scoring does not always capture how I really felt about the feis, and either way, will probably differ from how the person next to me felt about the feis. I have chosen instead to list the facts and just tell you how I would grade it. As always, you can add your rating below :)

Overall, not a bad feis. Nothing was terrible and even the food and slippery stage issues had workarounds. And as for the long day, I was the one that got there early, and that is not the feis’ fault.

So, based on all that, I give this feis an 8.5

Don’t even need to think about whether we will be back or not, we will.

What Say You?

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Hearing this just really really bugged me…

Posted by:What The FeisonJune 4, 2014   6 Comments

medium_mompicAfter a recent feis, a friend of mine sent me a message on Facebook that kinda, sorta, really really irritated me.  I like ‘smack-talk’ just as much as the next guy, but I think this goes beyond way good-hearted ribbing, especially from someone who teaches our children.

I really debated as to whether to post this or not, but it irritated me so much that this attitude is out there, I decided to post it hoping the people involved might see this and catch the hint. The message from my friend is posted below with any identifiable information about the teachers and my friend removed. There is a bit of language, sorry, quoting verbatim.

‘[the teachers] were standing behind me watching one of their girls during the TJ. It was the last dance she[the teachers girl] needs a 1st in to move up to 500. When she was done, [one of the teachers] told her parents, “that was totally first place. All the other dancers weren’t worth shit.” I was so ticked I turned around and let [the teacher] know that MY dancer was one of the girls out there and [the teacher] smugly shrugged and said “truth hurts”‘

The good news is my friends dancer placed higher than the girl referred to by the teacher. Good for my friend and her dancer, not good for the other dancer. I don’t know the other dancer, and I don’t want to wish ill will on any dancer, even those competing against TGC, and it is not fair to that dancer that my friend rejoiced in her lower placement, because her teacher was being an asshat. And I am not faulting my friend, I would have felt the same way.

Really don’t know where I was going with this, or what outcome I expected from posting this, but if these are your teachers, it might be time to consider a move to a new school. And if they are your teachers and you think their actions were acceptable, go ahead and stay at that school, but just think of the message you are sending your children. Oh and don’t worry, karma is like Santa, it will find you wherever you live.

Oh, and don’t bother asking me for the identity of anyone in the story. I have tried to ‘anonymously shame’ here to give people the benefit of the doubt. You decide whether they deserve that benefit or not.

Holy Angels Feis 2014, PC/OC Review

Posted by:Maeve SayersonMay 29, 2014   2 Comments

holyAngelsThe Holy Angels Feis was held on Saturday May 10th in Charlotte, North Carolina. Originally, the Preliminary Champions were scheduled for Friday the 9th but after some feedback and people wanting to travel to the event, all events were changed to Saturday. This was a welcomed change and in glancing at the competitor list, many traveled from Florida, Virginia, Georgia and Maryland.

Intro

This feis had a lower cap with 150 PC/OC dancers and 250 grade level dancers. It appeared to be capped primarily because of space limitations since the school/church where the competition took place was not that large. Parking was free which is always nice!

We arrived in the late morning and found more than adequate parking. Looks like we got there about the same time that the beginners and advanced beginners were finishing up which helped with potential congestion with the PC/OCs arriving.

Venue

The event was held at St. Gabriel’s Catholic Church and school in their cafeteria. Unlike last year, there was plenty of seating. The organizers removed the round tables at the back of the room and put additional rows of chairs which alleviated much of the ‘camping’ and bottlenecks witnessed last year.

Food

The concessions were run by parent volunteers and some of the older dancers. There were plenty of selections including premade sandwiches, fruit, granola bars, and homemade baked goods. It was nice not to be overcharged for a bottle or water or a banana. You could also bring your own food in which is always a plus!

Stage/Music

There were 3 stages in the morning for the grade levels with one musician. In the afternoon for the PC/OC level, the tape was removed and it became one stage. The stage was not raised and was made of plywood and was not covered in any marley.

Judges

As always, the PC/OC competitions had three judges. The judges seemed very attentive to the dancers even after a long morning of grade level competitions.

Vendors

This was a small feis so I didn’t expect an elaborate selection of vendors. The one there did have a great selection of all the basics and then some.

Results

The results for champions took a little longer that what I expected since the grade levels were done but then again, it can feel like an eternity when you have a bunch of dancers standing around full of nervous energy!

Thankfully, they posted a recall list which I am learning is not always the case. This alleviated the stress for the dancers and the parents when the awards were called. The presentation of the awards was about 15 minutes after the recall list was posted in the atrium of the school. There was not a formal podium instead there were numbers taped to the floor. That was quickly overlooked when the dancers realized that the top 3 were going to get sashes!

Awards were given for individual rounds as well as the overall placement. The dancer placing in the individual rounds were given a nice angel clip board which went with the Feis Name, Holy Angels. The championship awards were a silver tray and for the top three, itunes gift cards and a sash.

Conclusion

This was really a no frill feis but it accomplished the basic purpose which is to provide an opportunity for children to dance, gain feedback from the judges and for the lucky few advance. Over all, I would rank this feis an 8.5.

What Did You Think?

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eat, play, whine™

Posted by:What The FeisonMay 29, 2014   0 Comments

After the immense popularity of eat, pay, drive, and at the request of many (well 2) followers, I have created the non-dance sibling version of the idea. Did I get it right?  ;)

art-epw-IDSiblings-Circle

Eat, play, whine is a trademark of What The Feis and is subject to copyright laws.

Explaining the Hair

Posted by:What The FeisonMay 27, 2014   1 Comment

I am sure you have all been ‘there.’ Maybe it was on the way to a feis when you stopped for a bite to eat, or had to stop at the store for a last minute item on the way, or walking into an airport bar, yes that happened, but I digress. The stares, the awkward smiles, the hushed tones, but you know what they are all thinking and saying, ‘what is with that hair?’

Happened to us again this weekend, when TGC and I stopped at a Starbucks in Memphis on the way to the Memphis Feis. The conversation went almost exactly like this:

Barista 1: [awkward smile]
Barista 1: “Oohh, I love your ringlets. That must have taken forever to do.”
TGC: “Thanks”
Me: “It’s a wig.”
Barista 1: “A WEEK!?”
Barista 2: “Did you say a week? What, did you do a few hours a day? Did that look ok?”
Me: “I said its a wig.”
Barista 1 & 2 in stereo: “Oh!”
Barista 1 & 2: [awkward smiles in stereo]

There was more to it, but that was the jist. I think I need to take a lesson from TGC and next time just say thanks  ;)

Memphis Feis 2014, PC/OC Review

Posted by:What The FeisonMay 27, 2014   0 Comments

The Memphis Feis was held on May 25th, 2014 at  Christian Brothers University’s De La Salle Canale Arena and Theater.

This feis is a Southern Region feis, and it was not what TGC and I were used to, not bad, in fact, in some ways better, but for any of you Mid America feisers who venture south, you may be in for a surprise. You may want to see the intro, and people who often feis in The SR can skip that part.

Intro

We got to the feis right about 830 and there were only about 30 cars in the parking lot. At start time, we are used to trying to find a parking spot any where close to the venue, so were surprised, and a little confused to see so few cars. But, we saw other people parking and heading in so we just went with the flow.

The campus was beautiful and it was less than a 2 minute walk from parking to the venue. The next part that was a bit surreal was that there were only about 100 people in the venue. Where were the hundreds, ney, thousands of people, dance bags and zucas? Realizing we were only seeing half of the stages, we went down the long hall to the auditorium, where the remaining stages were, that had to be were everyone else was, right? Nope, only another 50 people or so. What the…?

Other big difference was that there were no camping areas. Only option was to stow our gear in the viewers chairs, but there was lots of chairs, so we went with the flow. I can tell I went to Catholic school with nuns, what I was doing wasn’t wrong, but I still felt guilty ;)

The last difference I noticed was that there were no anthems played. Not sure if this is the norm in SR or not, but I have never (that I recall) been to a feis that did not play the anthems.

Venue

Christian Brothers campus is really nice. If we hadn’t had an 8 hour drive after the feis, I would have enjoyed the opportunity to walk around and see more of it.

Stages & Seating

There were 4 stages in two separate areas of the Canale center. Stages 1 & 2 were in the gymnasium for grades level dancers, and 3 & 4 were in the auditorium for PC/OC, and as I understand it, grades level later in the day, but we did not stay to see that.

Stages 1 & 2 were actually one big stage with portable dividing barriers down the center. It was hard to tell how big they were as the plywood was covered with that black flooring material. I have never been a fan stages that are literally attached, but since comps are smaller in SR, it did not seem to be to much of an issue. Seating for these stages were the gym bleachers that were set up on three sides of the stage, and seemed more than adequate for the number of people there.

Stages 3 & 4 were on the auditorium stage, also covered with the flooring material, and split down the middle with the movable barriers. For the PC/OC comps, the barriers were removed and the stage was a good size for the dancers. The seating was the auditorium chairs and there were plenty early in the day, but seemed to fill up later when OCs were winding down, and PCs were ramping up. This seating ‘issue’ was compounded because the feis held up awards for all PC/OC comps until they were all done.

Camping & Access

There was no camping, at least the type I am used to, so people used the viewers seating for stowing their gear. This was fine early in the day but as the morning progressed and more people arrived, it did start to get a bit congested in the auditorium. The gym seating ‘appeared’ to be adequate the entire time we were there.

Awards & Results Areas

Grade level awards were posted at one end of the gynasium on the second floor overlooking the stages. It was easily accessible from the gym.

Champ level dancers used the same stage they danced on in the auditorium for awards, and a podium (actually podium pieces) was brought in when it was time for the awards. Plenty of seating and fairly easy access for dancers to get to the stage when their name was called.

Parking

Parking was very plentiful, and free.

Venue Score: 9

Judges

As always, the PC/OC comps had three judges, with the same three for all the comps except one or two when a fourth judge gave one of the judges a break. They seemed very attentive and while I watched, gave equal attention to both dancers on stage.

Judge Score: 9.5

Music

There was one musician for each set of stages and the separation between the two stage areas was sufficient to eliminate any musical confusion.

TGC did say that the musician on the auditorium stage was playing too slowly, and I had one parent make a comment about the quality of the music, although I did not get which area the musician they referred to was playing in.

Musician Score: 7.5

Food

This venue only had a small college snack bar with pizza, hot dogs, wraps and a few other items. The food was not bad considering, and the prices were VERY reasonable. There was, as I understand it, an outrageous BBQ place within walking distance of the venue. I did not try any, but it smelled really good.

Food Score: 8

Vendors

Very limited selection. Two ‘hair’ items vendors, but one also had shoes and other necessities. There was also the tshirt guy (it is never the same guy, but it is always the same guy, if you know what I mean).

Refeis That Dress was also at this feis. I had met the proprietor last year at the American Pride Feis. I thought the idea of a dress consignment was pretty cool, and was impressed to see that she now also offers dress rentals. That is, IMHO, a really good idea.

Unfortunately, the vendors where ‘vendors of necessity’ and not really ‘fun’ vendors. You shouldn’t even have to ask about the Irish M&Ms  :(

Vendor Score: 6

Results

Results for champs, as mentioned above used the stage in the auditorium. It was a nice presentation area and was up a bit higher so everyone could see well. If I could make any comment, it would be to maybe break after OC and do their awards, and then do PC when their comps are complete. This would allow OCs to head out sooner and reduce some of the auditorium congestion.

One of the judges read the results and went through all the OC and PC comps fairly quickly. The reading was a bit different, by which I mean they did not read the hard and soft shoe results before the overall for each comp like I am used to. This proved to be nerve-wracking, because when you know the individual dance results, you may have a gauge for the overall results. Needless to say, every number that was not TGCs when they were being read was both a relief and a new opportunity to stress until the next number was called.  ;)

Results Score: 8.5

Feis Flow

This is where I think the biggest issue with the feis was. TGCs comp did not get started till 2 hours after its scheduled start time, and although they kept things moving, this two hour (and maybe a bit more) was never made up. Champ awards were supposed to be announced at lunch, and it as at least 2 before it actually happened.

Feis Flow: 7

Scoring

Two part scoring with a Feis Score consisting of Judging, Music, Results and Flow, and then the overall consisting of everything.

Feis Score: 8.125

And the WTF Rating is 7.93… Not bad, and I think we would consider doing this feis again, but we would plan maybe an extra day.

EDITOR’s NOTE: There was a rumor that this may be the last Memphis Feis, but I can neither confirm nor deny said rumor.

Where You There? What Did You Think?

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Akron Feis 2014 Grades Review

Posted by:Mam rince na hÉireannonMay 26, 2014   3 Comments

The 38th Akron Feis was held on May 24th, 2014.

This was our first trip to Akron and I can honestly say we won’t be going back. My head is still spinning from the day. I just don’t get why so many like this particular Feis.

Venue

Yes, we all know that it is held in a barn-like structure on the fairgrounds, but it was so dusty and dirty that our skin was gritty by the end of the day. For anyone who suffers from allergies this is not the place to be hanging around for hours on end. Camping was so crowded and it was hard to move around without walking through another families’ area. It did not help that every 10 minutes an announcement was made threatening disqualification of your dancer if you failed to stay within the blue tape boundaries. There was not enough space for the amount of people in proportion to the size of the venue.

Parking

The parking lot was all loose gravel and it made it difficult to pull or push anything with wheels. We ended up carrying the Zuca and the cooler (along with all the other stuff).

Feis Flow

Our stage (novice dancer) was super fast. The pace was a bit much for many of the girls around us and many parents were complaining that they needed to slow down. We started at 11:00 with the LJ and were done with all 6 dances by 12:15. There were no chairs or clear staging area for the dancers to check in and wait to take the stage. They were standing the whole time on concrete intermixed with parents who were standing side stage watching or camping.

Judges

Awful! We only saw 2. Most of the girls (mine included) had the same judge for 5/6 dances. Judges were rotated once while we danced. The first judge started the stage and judged every dance for the 200 and 300 level dancers and was there for the 400 LJ’s and group A of the RL. He rotated out and another sat down for the remainder of the 400 level’s 4-5 dances. I noticed that the same judge returned to that stage after lunch break while we were waiting on results.

Results

We finished dancing at 12:15 and results for all 6 dances were posted by 1:00. Not bad. We only had to wait around for the TJ and TS results once we walked over to the results area. The boards were very hard to read and there were a lot of mistakes with some dances being listed 2 times in multiple age groups. Lots of crossing out and tiny writing over the cross outs that were hard even for someone with 20/20 vision to read. The 2 people working the results table had to take dancers cards and then go read the boards to tell dancers if they placed or not for a few of the dances.

Awards

They were pretty cheap for the grades. 1st-3rd place received tiny pin on ribbons with a small medal attached. 4th-6th received skinny ribbons. My dancers 2nd place medal fell apart and broke in the car on the way home. She was quite irritated. One of her 4th place ribbons was already starting to fray on the ends.

Food

No review. We didn’t eat there and left as soon as we picked up awards.

Summary

My dancer did not enjoy this Feis at all and has asked that we not go back. I completely agree with her. We will skip this one in the future.

What did every one else think?

Did you go, do you agree? Rate the feis below.

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Cape Cod Feis Review 2014

Posted by:Boston Feis DadonMay 14, 2014   0 Comments

The Cape Cod Feis hosted by the Forbes School, Haley School, Hansen Keohane School, Heavey Quinn Academy, and Nevin Academy was held on Saturday May 10th and Sunday May 11th at the Resort and Conference Center in Hyannis, Ma.

Venue

This Feis was held at a conference center which had ample free parking. The comps were held over 2 days, with my daughter dancing on Saturday. There were 7 stages spread amongst 4 different rooms. My daughter danced in the largest room which was home to 4 stages, with 2 sets of 2 stages each. Stages were of good size, only negative was that they were not clearly divided. There were PLENTY of seats for spectators, and camping in the seats was not a problem for this reason. There were multiple locations with free water for the dancers and spectators which was a nice touch.

Judges

My daughter danced 4 times for 2 different judges. Typically she seems to dance all 3 soft shoe dances for the same judge, and her hard shoe for a different one. But here she danced 2 dances each for 2 different judges, so better than most feisanna. The judges also provided helpful comments with the marks we received.

Musicians

In the room that my daughter danced in there was an accordion player and a pianist. They were both set up in middle of the 4 stages, and were only playing for those 4 stages so there was no bleeding from other musicians. This was about the best set up we have seen since we began feising..

Food

There was a good selection of food for both lunch and dinner, i.e. bagels, muffins, fruit and yogurt for breakfast, and sandwiches, soups, hot dogs , and chips for lunch. Though the prices seemed quite high to me, $3 for a can of soda, $2 for a piece of fruit or small bag of chips, and close to $10 for some of the sandwiches.

Vendors

There were quite a few vendors here, more than most Feisanna that we have attended. There were multiple shoe vendors, hair accessories, wigs, Irish jewelry, Irish apparel, made to order t-shirts, dress bags etc..

Results & Awards

The room we danced in was literally across the hall from the results/awards rooms so most results were available quite quickly, some even before all dances in a particular age/level was done with all dances.

Feis Flow

Feis flow was very good with all things being in one small area, but managing not to feel cramped at the same time. The only issue I had would be with the comps running about an hour behind, but that is certainly not out of the ordinary.

Scoring

This is probably one of my favorite feisanna so far. Nice venue, well run, great results for my dancer : )

With all this in mind I give this Feis an 8.