Holy Angels Feis 2014, PC/OC Review

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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™

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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.

eat, pay, drive™

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A t-shirt idea, based on a book I never plan on writing, that I posted about on Facebook. Would you buy one?   😉

art-epd-fd

Eat, pay, drive is a trademark of What The Feis and is subject to copyright laws.

Explaining the Hair

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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

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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

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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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FE • IS • P • E • C • T

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queenofsoulAnother post for Antonio Pacelli, which started as another mini-rant on Facebook. This months topic, showing respect at a feis. Read the post on respect over on the AP site.

Cape Cod Feis Review 2014

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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.

Lynn Academy Spring Feis 2014 Review

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The 7th Annual Lynn Academy Spring Feis was held on Sunday May 4th 2014 at the Stamford High School in Stamford, CT.

Venue

This Feis was held at Stamford High School, which was a very large school. The first problem when we arrived was that the entry doors to the Feis were not clearly marked. We parked on the side of the school and went around to the front to find the main doors locked, and still no signage pointing to where we did need to enter. We continued to walk around the outside of the school and gathered a few more confused souls before we luckily found a random door open. Once in the school signage was no better. We happened to get lucky and found a helpful volunteer who walked us to where we needed to be.

The feis had 8 stages in 3 different places. My daughter danced in the large gym which housed stages 1-5. The school was so expansive that I didn’t even see where the other 3 stages were located. In the large gym there were 3 connected stages on one side, and the other 2 were connected on the other side of the gym.

My biggest concern with this Feis was the way that the comps were run. My daughter danced 4 dances, on 3 different stages. This was done to rotate through the judges I believe, instead of having the judges themselves move. My daughter started on stage 1, danced and then had to wait for 2 comps on stage 2 to run before she danced there. It was the same way between each dance. There was quite a bit of downtime in between each dance, which is hard with a young kid who is easily distracted. It took her about 1.5hrs to get through her 4 dances. By far the longest of the 15 or so feisanna she has competed in.

Despite it being a large school it appeared that most camping was done in the gym with the comps, there were people and bags EVERYWHERE, making it difficult to get around, especially after having to change stages between each dance. Also, there was not a single chair to be had. All spectators had to view the ground level stages standing up.

Judges

My daughter danced 4 times for 3 different judges due to the stage rotation that I mentioned above. One issue I had with the judges was that they arrived late, which in turn got the comps off to a late start. The judges did provide decent comments with their marks.

Musicians

In the gym that my daughter danced in there were 2 musicians for the 5 stages that were in there. One for the 3 combined stages, and a second for the other 2 combined stages. Because of the setup the music was bleeding from one area to another and it seemed to cause some regular issues with the dancers.

Food

The only food I saw was dipping dots, though having a mid morning start meant we didn’t go in search of food. However, the dancers each got a chocolate pop with their medals which the kids enjoyed.

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 etc.

Results & Awards

Results for most of the dances seemed to come out after an extended period, which I will attribute mostly to the great distance that the runners would need to travel from stages to the tabulation room. Honestly, about a 5 minute walk. The medals themselves were nice, with different colored ribbons to distinguish placement.

Feis Flow

The flow was not very good. As I said from the start it was a constant battle to figure out where you had to be, and the distance between the stages and the results and awards was quite far. The comps got started off late, and certainly didn’t catch up throughout the morning.

Scoring

With some changes I feel that this could be a much better feis. More(any) signage, no stage rotation, and results/awards closer to comps.

With all this in mind I give this Feis a 6.

Bluegrass Feis PC/OC Levels Review 2104

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bgFeisThe Bluegrass Feis was held at the Lexington Convention Center on Sunday, May 11th, 2014. This is the second time we have done this feis and you can see my previous review here.

As has become my habit of late, this review focuses on the PC/OC levels. If you have comments on the grades levels, please add them at the bottom of the review or contact me and I can add them for you.

Venue

Second time at this venue, and after having read last years review, apparently I am not as big a fan this year.

Stages & Seating

As it was last year the venue had 7 stages, with 1 – 6 actually being 3 big stages divided down the middle by tape, making two roughly 16 x 24 foot stages that were literally connected. This made for cramped standing for bigger comps and cramped dancing for everyone except the more beginner dancers.

Stages 1 – 6 were for grades, and stage 7 was for PC/OC. Stage 7 was about 24 x 32 but was not divided as the others were. Later in the day, stage 5/6 became just stage 6 and had some PC/OC comps on it. Stage 7 did have some maintenance issues shortly after we got there and dancing came to a halt while they fixed what I was told was a loose screw.

Seating wasn’t bad, but the people who were so courteous the prior day in Cincinnati decided to leave it in Cincinnati. You can see there were a few complaints (here and here) and seating due to these people was not adequate.

Camping & Access

Camping was very cramped, a lot worse than I remember last year. I wonder if the number of competitors was increased. Very tight camping area, little room to move and very crowded walkways made the whole thing seem claustrophobic. There were areas on the far end of the venue that could have been used better. I think I made the same observation last year.

Awards & Results Areas

Grade level awards were posted at one end of the venue on a large wall, with awards fairly close.

Champ level dancers had their podium stuck in between stages 7 and 5/6. No seating and lots of noise from the stages on both sides.

Parking

Free and plentiful, but could involve some walking.

Venue Score: 7.5

Judges

Judges seemed very attentive again today and rated TGC about the same as the previous day (1 judge was the same both days). So maybe it is TGCs skills evening out 🙂 I also thought the judges did an excellent job of keeping things moving.

Judge Score: 10

Music

I really cant speak to the music for the entire venue, and to be honest, since we stayed on stage 7, I am not even sure if the merged stages (1 – 6) had there own musicians (6 different) or each merge shared 1 (3 different). Can somebody help me out with that one?  The musician on 7 seemed fine and I heard no complaints.

Musician Score: 8.5

Food

Only saw a Italian Ice/gelato stand inside the venue, but a short walk in the same building brought you to a food court with a variety of options, all reasonably priced. There were also options close to the venue.

Food Score: 8.5

Vendors

Feis vendors were pretty much a repeat of who was in Cincinnati at Queen City. Here is the list, but alas, still no Irish M&Ms.  🙁

Vendor Score: 7.5

Results

Results for champs, as mentioned above was jammed in between two stages. No seats and music competing with the announcer from both sides. It took about an hour and 15 minutes from the end of TGCs comp to announcements, so slightly worse than QC.

Results Score: 7

Feis Flow

From start to finish, both PC dances and got awards in about 2 hours. That part was good. I also noticed that by 130ish, it seemed like things in the entire venue were starting to wrap up and at least one stage was being torn down.

Feis Flow: 9

Scoring

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

Feis Score: 8.625

And the WTF Rating is 8.3… Not the highest for the weekend, but it had its high points. Good job Bluegrass!

Were You There, What Did YOU Think?

Polling software still on sebaticle. Would love to hear what you thought, so can you do it in the comments below? It can be anonymous  🙂  Thanks!