A Special Thanks!

Just when I thought my night couldn’t get better, GEO and Beth surprised me with an amazing gift…business cards for being ICON OF THE YEAR!! I love them! It was so nice and thoughtful of them to think of me. I am soooo thankful!! If you see me at the studio, ask me for a card!! In addition, Elizabeth Barry, ICON’s very own PR representative, sent me the most thoughtful card and a book called, “Live, Love, Laugh, Dance.” It truly made me feel so special! I put it all, along with some business cards, in a special box I have that I call, “My ICONic Memories!” It’s filling up so fast!  This weekend I actually had to get a new box!  Yup, at ICON, the special moments and memories just keep on coming!! …I love it there!  

Talk about a workout. NICK Gonzalez is Crazzzzzzyyyyyy!!! (In a good way!) LOL

   Thursday, September 16^th at ICON was crazy! First, that night was my first CHEER FUNK class, so I was so psyched! Then, at 8:30pm, the craziness started. Nick Gonzalez was in the house, running the first open class of the year. Everyone has been so excited about new classes and new dances all week, but I don’t think anyone was ready for what was in store in the next 1 ½ hours. We started with some really fun warm-ups. Then he began teaching a routine. It was sooo crazily fast, fun, and full of energy. The whole place was literally sweating! But nobody could stop dancing! Nick kept the energy level so high, we all just wanted to keep going and going with the routine. At open, there are so many different aged kids and adults, and all dance at different levels. Nick brought EVERYONE in the house to the advanced level. You had no choice!!...LOL! It was just so funnnnn!  It’s really exciting when GEO comes into the class and we can show him what we learned. I think he was impressed!  Don’t worry GEO, as much as I enjoyed Nick, nothing beats your opens!! 

Was anyone there that night?  Have you taken any master classes here or at your dance studio? Tell me about it!

OOOOMMMMGGGG! CHEER FUNK!!!!

Ok, so, I like begged my mom for the past 2 years to take CHEER FUNK, and she always said I had a packed schedule and it was enough. Well, this year she FINALLY let me take it. OMG!!!!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!  It was so fun!  Beth started with a really fun warm-up. We worked out, did some jumps, and then the real excitement began. She put on a song called “Getting Over You” and started teaching us the coolest dance! It was so fun and so energetic!!!! I will NEVER listen to my mom again!! LOL!!  I will be signed up for CHEER FUNK forever. Anyone else feel the same? Let’s chat about it! Hmmmm… what song do you think Beth will pick to dance to next week?

The First Week of ICON. It was a Blast!

Well, the year has begun at ICON and I LOVE it!! My week started with Hip Hop with Geo and ballet with a new teacher named Casey Hill. Geo’s class was, of course, soooo fun as always! Casey is so nice and pretty and totally knows her ballet! I’m so excited to perfect my skills with her. Jumps, Leaps and Turns and Acro with Brant was another plus this week and I look forward to strength training in these classes and improving all my technique.  Lyrical with Giselle, Contemporary with Chris, and Jazz with Beth, were all awesome classes too! I can’t wait to start learning new dances! This week I had my first ever Contemporary class and I truly loved it. We learned that there are several different kinds of Contemporary dances and I’m looking forward to learning each one.  This week was Contemporary Hip Hop, so we ALL loved doing it! Overall, it was a fabulous week of DANCE!! Do you go to ICON?   What was your favorite class? Tell me about it!

10 More Days til ICON Opens for 2010/2011!! SOOOO CAN'T WAIT!!

It’s been only about a week since I’ve been in ICON, and I’m just dying to get back there.  A week feels like a year when you love something so much!  My dance schedule is all set and I can’t wait to start learning, dancing, and improving my skills.  I can’t wait to see who is in all my classes!  It’s almost like school starting on the first day.  Except with ICON, I can’t wait to go back!  With school, I can’t wait til summer already...LOL!!  I know it’s going to be a fabulous year with ICON (and school  ).  I’m actually happy September is here to get started on all the new adventures for the year ahead.  I’m actually already signing up for The Pulse Workshop on January 8-9!  That is going to be an awesome weekend!  I can’t wait to go back to Atlantic City and just literally DANCE the whole weekend.  Every minute, every hour, every day…ALL DANCE…soooooo can’t wait!  Have you ever gone? Tell me about it!

"Bieber Fever" at ICON!

Yes, we all had the Bieber Fever on Saturday, August 28 at ICON Dance Complex. Justin Bieber’s tour dancers, Kanec (a.k.a. Anthony Carr) and Mike Vargas taught an amazing master class! The line was out the door when we arrived, everyone was so excited! The class was great and everyone enjoyed the dance that was taught. A bunch of the dancers at the workshop were then headed to Newark, to see the Justin Bieber concert. The day psyched everyone up for the night!  Justin Bieber ROCKS!! Did anyone see the concert? How was it? And how were his back-up dancers

We Danced on Broadway! Literally!

Geo and Beth once again gave us dancers an opportunity to dance and do our thing for another great cause. On August 26, at the Symphony Space Theatre, NYC, on Broadway, ICON truly represented, as our boys performed their “ICONic Boyz” routine, and the ICONic Company perform, “SCREAM!” All the dancers in the show were amazing, and some were semi-professional dancers! I hope one day I can be as good as them! Most of the dances were contemporary dance, and we rocked the crowd with our Hip Hop!Each performance was dedicated to someone who has been touched by cancer. Our performances were dedicated to two amazing moms from ICON who have recently fought the battle of cancer. It was another great night for all! When the bus pulled in at almost 12:00at night, we all got together and sang Happy Birthday to my mom, who was turning 40 that minute, on August 27^th! It was really a fun night! I hope we are asked to do it again next year!  

FLASH MOB!!!

It was an amazing day at the Freehold Mall in New Jersey on August 18^th! It was time for a Flash Mob!! The day before, Geo had an open call for anyone to come and learn a dance that we would perform the next day, while Ashley Loren and Roy Hamilton III sang at the mall. It was a really fun Hip Hop line dance. I was so psyched!! The morning of the big day, my family and I collected all the jeans we had around our house, to be donated to the local Head Start program. ICON and the Freehold Mall were working together to gather and collect as many jeans as possible to donate to a great cause. I actually collected 27 pairs!! (I have 3 siblings…we accumulate a lot!!...LOL!) It felt great to donate!

I was so proud to be able to represent ICON, as ICON of the YEAR, at this event. I collected the jeans, and took many pictures with lots of the people and children who were donating jeans. Ironically, I even signed some autographs!! This was a first for me! I thought it was pretty funny! Some of my best friends lined up for an autograph, we were all just laughing! 

When it was time for the Flash Mob, Ashley and Roy began to sing “New New”, and we all began the line dance! It was so exciting to just be out there, be part of a great cause, and at the same time, entertain an unsuspecting crowd. It was overall, a great night!! Geo said in the end, 500 jeans were donated to the Head Start Program! I hope we do more of these special events! Got any ideas? Let me know!