Welcome to Reel Treble #43!
In this issue we meet Wildwoodflower, a.k.a. Kimberly, a MidAmerica dancer from the Mayer School of Irish Dance.
Name: Kimberly
Dance.net Name: Wildwoodflower
Member since: November 4, 2007
Years Doing Irish Dance: 2 and a bit
Age: 22
Dance School: Mayer School of Irish Dance
Organization: An Coimisiun
Competition Level: Advanced Beginner &overs but, I've only feised twice
Region: MidAmerica
What is the story behind your DDN name?
Its from a June Carter Cash song. I don't remember the reasoning behind it really, other than its pretty.
How old were you when you started Irish Dance and how did you get started?
I was 20 when I started, at college, and it was something I always wanted to do, and my mother would always say, “no.” I called around looking for a dance school, in central Illinois, that would take adult beginners and I found the Flynn School of Irish Dance. I am eternally grateful to Peggy for taking me as a student.
How many classes do you have a week?
Just 1 for now, but I work nights so its hard.
How often do you practice at home?
Constantly – and at work – but formally probably 2 hours a week.
Did Irish Dancing come naturally to you or did you have to work at it?
Some things came very naturally, especially rhythm and timing and dancing musically. And posture, surprisingly. But crossover... grrrrr.
Does Irish Dancing get in the way of your school work or social life?
Not really, I'm out of school, and my co-workers find it very amusing. They ask me to dance pretty frequently. It has probably helped my social life, especially when dancing a few steps gets me a free round at the bar.
What do your friends think of your dancing? Do they support it?
Oh they love it! They want to get together a fan club for my next feis. I think I need to remind them that air horns and foam fingers will probably be frowned upon.
Do you do figure dances?
I don't any more, but I really miss it. I learned 7 or 8 at Flynn's but I am too much older than the girls in my class at Mayer to dance figures with them.
What does your dress look like and who made it?
Right now I have the Mayer school dress, blue with black and silver and silver lining. When I get a solo I will probably be making it myself, but sending it out to get embroidered since my machine can't do it well.
What brand of softshoes and hardshoes do you wear?
For practice I wear Pacelli Gazelles with really cushy insoles, and Celtic Creations crazy arch support for performances. I have super narrow feet and they look awesome. I have Rutherford hard shoes, the light flexis with the tan sole. I love their narrows, they actually fit without slipping on my heels or sliding and bunching when I do toe work.
What is the farthest you've traveled for a feis?
So far about 30 miles, but I will be going to Milwaukee Feis, so that is about 100 miles. It will be my first overnight feis.
What is your favorite feis and why?
I have only been to two, but I like my schools feis – Prairie State Feis – a lot. Really I liked helping set up, and helping out our younger dancers more than I did dancing.
Have you ever been to a major championship?
Only to watch, which was a ton of fun.
Do you get nervous before you compete?
Nope, I don't really know why. My thought process is something along the lines of, “Okidoke, hornpipe, here we go, Oh I like her dress, I wonder what school she dances for, I should ask her when we're done, oop point on 7 up on 8 and doodely do dee do dee doo and doodely do dee do de doo I like this song, I wonder what it is, and watch your turnout here, doodely doo dee do de doo, I'm kind hungry, and doodely do dee do de doo and change and down and don't fall here and treble hop back and doodely doo and time to bow, ok catch your breath, bow to the judge, bow to the musician, give him an extra smile, he was really good! Oh that was fun!!”
"Don't take anything too seriously, that's when you start to grow up." --Wildwoodflower.
Do you have any rituals you do before you dance?
I have a track on my iPod I made in Pro Tools its enough music to do my usual warm up including stretching (Different Drummer by Black 47) and then enough music to do my light jig, then reel, then slip jig, then treble jig, then hornpipe and it ends with Welcome to Canada by Five Iron Frenzy, just to rock out and be really silly. It's all one track, so I can't go back and stress over everything, and it ends with me in a very good mood.
What is your greatest accomplishment in Irish Dancing?
Dancing. Period. Between many knee surgeries in high school and how hard it was to find schools that take adults who want to dance seriously I didn't think it would ever happen. But it has has. And I love every minute of it.
What was your greatest disappointment in Irish Dancing and how did you overcome it?
I haven't ever really been disappointed. My last feis I came in dead last in all my dances, but I danced my best. A few of the older girls from my school watched and they were sure I should have gotten all my dances into novice, but the judge apparently disagreed. I don't think about placements much because the girls I'm dancing against are 13 or so, and I feel like I should be mature enough to not be disappointed by something as silly as medals, but sweet cream cheese I want to get into novice!
What are some of your short term goals?
Get into novice, fix the end of my slip jig, design a solo that looks better without a wig than with one.
What are some of your long term goals?
Worlds, preferably before I'm 35. I secretly want to be pregnant at the same time just to set a whole new trend – maternity solo!!!
What is your favorite dance and why?
I am remarkably in love with the Blackbird. We just learned it in class and there is something about it that is just so fun, probably because it is easy and I can just enjoy dancing it.
What is your least favorite dance and why?
The Walls of Limerick, it.... never.... ends..... AAAAAH!!!
What move took you forever to master?
Double switches. I don't know why because its not all that complicated, but it quite frequently resulted in me on my butt.
What is your favorite move?
Treble hop hit hop treble hop back. Not really a move but hey. It love the rhythm of it, especially when I'm bad and let it swing just a little. Digga da dum da digga da dum!
Do you ever want to take the TCRG exam and teach?
Most definitely, not any time soon, since I feel like I have a long way to go in my own dancing first, but some day I do want to.
Who do you admire the most in Irish Dancing?
My friend Jo. She started dancing in her 40s and is now in her 60s, still dancing, and still loving it!
If you could take a free workshop with any dancer as your teacher, who would you pick and why?
It may sound kinda crazy, but that old lady in the Youtube video. She has to be in her 70s but her dancing is still amazing. I could just imagine the stories she would have about how dancing has changed, and what dancing means to her, that she is still doing it after all these years.
Tell us one of your funniest or most interesting feis stories.
At the Halloween feis, I was in the line up ready to dance with a ballerina on one side, and a cowgirl on the other. I spent the rest of the dance trying to make up a joke that the three of us could be the punchline. Ok, maybe that wasn't very funny, but it still amuses me.
...I was wearing a flipper.
What was your most embarrassing moment in dancing?
St Patrick's day last year I broke my toe on stage. I was wearing a brand new pair of soft shoes, not even broken in, because I broke a lace so borrowed someone's shoes. In retrospect that makes absolutely no sense; why didn't I just borrow the lace?? We were dancing at a bar, and I hopped back and felt this sharp pinch and nearly fell over. I couldn't figure out what was wrong, but I knew something wasn't right when I couldn't feel my whole foot and finished the show looking a bit like I was wearing a flipper.
Are you close with fellow Irish Dancers?
As close as can be expected. Its more of a big sister/little sisters relationship since the girls in my class are all in grade school and the oldest are in the 7th grade.
What's in your dance bag?
Oh, lots of junk. 2 pairs of softs, hard shoes, spankies, notebook, pen, checkbook, lip gloss, Mayer school pin, red and green hard shoe buckles (1 pair each, but I was wearing a red one and a green one last Christmas), tissues, hot pink pre-wrap, tape, 5 socks (none of which match), water bottle, umbrella, shorts, ouch pouches, an assortment of toe spacers, ballet skirt, ballet flats, over the knee pink monkey socks with the toes cut out, a couple gum wrappers, a pointe shoe ribbon???, a bobby pin, and an old pair of pink tights that are very very dirty.... ewww. Those are no longer in my dance bag.
Do you do any other types of dance?
Ballet and some Victorian social dance.
Do any of your family members Irish Dance as well?
Sadly no.
What other hobbies do you have?
Civil War Reenacting is the big one. I also knit, quilt, love working on my car, and have something just shy of an obsession with comic books.
Tell us something your friends would find surprising about you.
I am incredibly afraid of escalators. I will always take stairs if they are an option.
Quick Fire Questions:
Hardshoe or Softshoe: Hardshoe
Reel or Slip Jig: Reel, although slip jig music is much prettier
Hornpipe or Treble Jig: Hornpipe
Wig or Bun: Neither when I can get away with it
Feis or Show: Show
School Dress or Solo Dress: I only have a school dress at the moment, but I love my old performance dress.
Kimberly, it was lovely getting to spend some time with you today. Thanks for stopping by to chat with us. --Reel Treble
