Don’t forget to order your ballroom apparel this week!
Hi Team,
I hope everyone had an amazing week of dancing! It was great seeing so many of our new and returning members in the CCRB today to learn the rumba, tango, and mambo!! We have lots of fun and important things coming up this week and in the near future, so read on for all the important ballroom updates for the week :)
Some things for new members:
- What is Week at a Glance??? I’m glad you asked! Week at a Glance (WAG for short) is our weekly newsletter containing information about all our upcoming events for the week, including lessons, practice space, socials and much more! Week at a Glance is your best source for all things MBDT, so please take the time to read through it thoroughly to ensure you don’t miss out on our events. Our lesson and practice schedule sometimes deviates from normal to accommodate special events, so please check the schedule below before turning up at the CCRB!
- Partner Search: Get hype for our partner search event coming up on Monday (1/31) from 8-9 pm in Mason Hall 3437!! This is a great opportunity to talk to your fellow dancers and find a potential dance partner! Can’t make the partner search? Check out and add your information to our partner search spreadsheet here 🙂
- Apparel: It’s time for ballroom apparel! Be on the lookout for an email from your wonderful PR chair Manasi’s (manasia) about all of our offerings for the semester! You can view all our available listings on our apparel page. Apparel orders are due this Sunday (2/6) by 11:59 pm!
- Rounds: This Thursday (2/3) we will be hosting orounds leading up to MSU during the normal newcomer review lesson time (9-11 pm) in the CCRB! During rounds we will go through each of the dances in all 4 styles, just like we will at a competition. We’ll practice walking onto the floor, and dancing for a whole ’round’ (~1.5 min of music) with everyone in your heat on the floor at the same time. During this time you can work on moving around the room to make sure your number can be seen by judges standing around the floor, as well as practice doing moves all on your own without the structure of a set routine!
- Practice Space: This week Dance Theater Studio (713 N University Ave, between Panera and Walgreens) is back on the normal schedule! Reminders about DTS: NO street shoes are allowed in the studios, wear either your dance shoes (with heel caps for follows!) or socks when in the studio space, clear liquids only, do a chore before you leave, wear a mask at all times, and most importantly DTS is a privilege, please be respectful of our space and your fellow teammates!!!
- MSU Competiton: If you signed up for the MSU competition please check your email for the important Rooms and Rides updates and submit your vaccine information via the attached form that your awesome away comp chair Lauren sent out today! Reminder: all competitors and spectators must provide proof of full vaccination or a negative covid test taken within 72 hours of the competition to enter and everyone must be wearing a N95, KN95, or medical mask at the competition, cloth face masks are not allowed!!
- Check out our newcomer guide! The password is in the email you just got with the link to this page. Click here to access.
- Calendar: The team has its own Google calendar, available here, which you can use for reminders for all our events during the week and to see what competitions are coming up!
- Ballroom Board: Your team board is always happy to answer your questions! Find info on each board member here, and you can contact the whole board by email at ballroom-exec@umich.edu or using this form on the website
- Team GroupMe: To help keep everyone up-to-date on all things ballroom this semester we have two GroupMe chats! Our serious chat is for updates on all things ballroom, such as lesson/practice updates, competition information, and other reminders. We also are introducing a fun chat this semester for all your ballroom memes, jokes, and general shenanigans. Here are the links for both groups: Serious Chat and Social Chat 🙂
Looking Further Ahead…
- Guys, Gals, Pals, and Vals Night: Save the date for the biggest night for ballroom coming up on Saturday 2/12! Guys, Gals, and Pals Night is our traditional welcome to the team party to welcome our new members, and this semester we are combining it with our Valetines Day celebration. Get ready to face off in the dance off, try out some social dancing, and generally have an amazing night 🙂 More information will be going out next week with specific details of the event!
- Mark your calendars for the Arnold… The Arnold Youth Dancesport Classic, the sister competition to OSB, will be March 5-6th, which is the last weekend of spring break. Not only is this competition as big and awesome as OSB, the points we earn from Arnold add on to our next OSB score, thus making it essential for defending our title next year! Be sure to arrange your spring break plans so you can dance for the Terminator himself, who makes an appearance every year in the ballroom!!!
- Consider running for board: We will be electing our new board at this semester’s EOS celebration in April! If you are considering running for board – which I definitley think you should ;) – and have questions feel encouraged to reach out to any current board members about their experiences!
Upper Level Team Members:
- A, B, and PreC: reminder that there are no lessons this Saturday (2/5) due to MSU comp!
- A, B, and PreC: Please fill out this team intro form by Saturday (2/5) so that we can start doing team introductions in the WAG! Only one person per partnership needs to submit a photo, but both partners should submit the form with their other information!
This Week’s Schedule…
Monday 1/31
8:00 pm: Partner Search in Mason Hall 3437!
9:30-11:30 pm: Open Practice at DTS
Reminder: Masks must be worn at all times at DTS and only wear dance shoes or socks in the studios!!
Tuesday 2/1
9:30-11:30 pm: Open Practice at DTS
Wednesday 2/2
10:00 pm – 12:00 am: Open Practice at DTS
Thursday 2/3
9:00-11:00 pm: Rounds in CCRB 3275
NO DTS! Come to rounds instead ;)
Friday 2/4
Order some cool ballroom swag if you haven’t already before the order closes on Sunday :)
Saturday 2/5
Good luck to everyone competing at MSU today!!
A, B, and PreC fill out the Team Intro Form if you haven’t already!
Sunday 2/6
3:00-5:00 pm: Newcomer Lesson in CCRB 3275!
11:59 pm: Apparel Orders Due!!
Happy dancing,
Autumn <3
MBDT President