Your sleepy team-mates after a long day competing at Indiana on Saturday!
Hi team,
Here’s this week’s announcements!
- Get hype for OSB, it’s only a month away! The Ohio Star Ball is coming up quickly (Nov 23rd-24th) and it’s the most action packed, fun weekend of dancing and camaraderie you’ve ever seen. Ask some older team members for their favorite OSB stories and you’ll quickly discover why it’s the highlight of the semester! If you are interested in attending OSB (and you should be!), please fill out this interest form so we can start planning for the big weekend!!! Questions about OSB? Ask your ballroom buddy or your lovely Away Comp Chair Natalie (natfox)!
Alumni Michelle and Kevin destroying the competition in the OSB team match!
- Wisconsin competition: The deadline to sign up for this competition is this Friday (October 25th). Newcomers, if you’d like to try out a competition before OSB this is a good one to go for! More details will follow in an email from your Away Comp Chair Natalie (natfox) in the next couple of days, but here’s a rundown of the essential details:
November 2nd: Badger Ballroom Classic
- Partner Search: We’ll be holding another guided partner search this Tuesday for the last part of newcomer lesson in the CCRB (10.30-11pm). You don’t need to be a newcomer to attend!
- Newcomer lessons this week: In addition to our usual Saturday lesson and Tuesday review lesson, this week we’ll have our first guided practice of the semester on Thursday, 9-11pm CCRB 3275! During this guided practice we’ll cycle through music for all the dances we’ve covered in newcomer lesson so far this semester. While you’re dancing, the upper-level team members assigned to the practice will work round the room and spend time helping everybody on an individual basis. You can come with a partner or show up solo and find one at the practice!
- Bronze American lesson: Steve and Susan are running another special Bronze American lesson at their studio 7-9pm on Monday October 28th! This lesson is free to attend and you don’t need to come with your regular partner. The lesson is open to A-PreC teams, please sign up here by Saturday October 26th.
Team members plus a random adorable baby having an a-maize-ing time at our corn maze social last week!
- New Facebook group: because our old Facebook group was causing a lot of people difficulty to join, we’re migrating to a new group this week! We’ll be posting in both groups for the next couple of weeks, but after that the old group will be archived. Check out our new group and request to join here – no umich email required yayyy! Don’t forget to also follow us on Instagram @michiganballroom for way more cute photos than I can fit in Week at a Glance!
- Team socials this week: We have not one but two socials this week, a chill team board game night and a Halloween party! You can find more details in the schedule below :)
- Bone Marrow registry: A campus ambassador for Gift of Life Bone Marrow Registry has asked our team if our members would like to be added to the registry. They are working to get as many students in the registry as possible to maximize the chances of finding matches to save lives! Their overall goal is to eliminate blood cancer completely by getting everyone in the registry. This is a a great philanthropic opportunity for everyone. They will come to DTS on November 4th to swab any interested members. They just need to swab the inside of your cheek to add you to the registry, and being added to the registry is not an obligation to donate bone marrow! You will only be contacted if you are a match. Please fill out this form by October 31st if you plan to come on November 4th so we can get an accurate estimate of numbers.
- John Durbin: Finally, I’m sad to announce that the original owner of DTS, John Durbin, passed away a few days ago. John was a very important person in the history of our team: he is the reason that we are currently allowed to use DTS to practice and so our team would not be the same without his kindness. His family have set up a fine arts scholarship in his memory, and if everyone on the team contributes a few dollars we will be able to make a substantial group donation to the fund as a way of saying thank you for being able to use DTS for so many years! Please donate via Venmo @UMBDT, PayPal (friends and family to ballroom-exec@umich.edu) or in cash at DTS/practice space this week. If you donate online, please label your donation “Durbin fund” so we know what the money is for. Thank you!
Monday 10/21
7-9pm: Silver American lesson at Steve and Susan’s studio, open to A and B team! There will be a Bronze American lesson (open to A-PreC teams) the same time next week (Monday 10/28) so mark your calendars!
8pm-midnight: Open practice space in the League Ballroom! Come and practice your standard, we only have the ballroom a few more times this semester…
No DTS, come to the League instead!
Tuesday 10/22
9-10.30pm: Newcomer review lesson in CCRB 3275
10.30-11pm: Partner search in CCRB 3275! You don’t need to be a newcomer to attend!
10pm-midnight: Open Practice at DTS
Wednesday 10/23
9.30-11.30pm: Open Practice at DTS
Thursday 10/24
9-11pm: Newcomer/Pre-C guided practice in CCRB 3275! Come and get help from upper level team members as you practice all the dances you’ve learnt so far this semester! You can bring a partner or find one at the practice.
10pm-midnight: Open Practice at DTS
Friday 10/25
9pm-???: Ballroom Game Night in 3333 Mason Hall! Some games will be provided by the board, but you can also bring your own board games and snacks for a fun chill evening hanging out with your teammates!
Saturday 10/26
Last day to sign up for the Bronze American lesson (A-PreC teams)
4.30-6pm: Newcomer lesson in CCRB 3275, taught by Steve and Susan! Upper level team members, remember that S&S strongly encourage you to attend this class to work on your basic technique and help out the newcomers :)
10pm-???: Ballroom Halloween party! Dress up and party the night away with your teammates! You can find the location in the WAG email.
Sunday 10/27
Club is in the League Ballroom this week, check out their website here for more info.
| 5-6pm: | Advanced American Waltz |
| 6-7pm: | Beginner International Rumba <- Newcomers come to this one to learn a new dance! |
| 7-9pm: | Open Dance |
Happy dancing,
Lizzie
More highlights from the corn maze!!!
