To the Editor:

Dance: To move rhythmically to music, typically following a set sequence of steps.

That’s Google's definition of dance.  To be honest, Google is missing quite a few details.

Here is my definition.

Dance: Classified as a performing art, the art of dancing has been around for many centuries.  Dancing has gone from a party pastime to a competitive sport many people have dedicated their lives to.

The goal of a dancer (trying to become professional) is to be able to dance for a living.  All dancers trying to make it into the big leagues just want to dance for fun.

But it’s not an easy task.  Only 3 percent of the people who have ever gone to dance become professional.  Professional dancers are truly dedicated to dance to be able to go that far.

Many people say dance is not a sport.  All other dancers and myself would disagree.

I am a competitive dancer who understands how much work it is to prepare for competition season. I know about the long eight-hour choreography practices, rehearsing for hours on the weekend, and the 10-hour days on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at competitions.  And it doesn’t ever stop.

Practice may slow, but it will never stop.  The Rockettes rehearse for six weeks before opening night — six days per week for six hours each day.

It takes time for a dancer to perfect her (or his) routine, just like it takes an athlete time to perfect his (or her) game. The truth is, dancers are athletic. To execute difficult choreography, you have to be.

If you're wondering how Maddie Ziegler makes her performance look so effortless, it's because she has stamina.  Dancers train like athletes.  The jumping jacks, crunches, planks, push ups, high knees — we've seen it all.

What makes dance different from a sport is it being opinionated. Your dance team’s scoring at one competition could be completely different than at another competition.  Every judge has a new fresh pair of eyes and different views on dance.

Dance is based mainly on perspective because it is judged by judges. However, isn’t gymnastics judged by judges also?  If you have ever seen a gymnast's floor or bar routine (which I have; my sister is a competitive gymnast), you’ll notice there are parts of dance incorporated into them.

In between all the flips and tricks, there are moments when those gymnasts are dancing. Gymnastics is just as opinionated as dance.

Now, let’s move onto the other side of dance — the artistic one.

“Dancers have to make an emotional connection to choreography to be a vibrant dancer,” said Sonya Tayeh.  I couldn’t have said it better myself.

A dancer without feelings is like an ice cream sundae without whipped cream.  Emotions are the finishing touch to a dance. Without them, the routine a choreographer has worked so hard to put together is lost.

Facial expressions are half of the emotional part of dance. If you go on stage blank-faced nobody will believe you.  You wouldn’t believe actors (or actresses) if they didn’t portray an emotion throughout their show, right? Well, I’m guessing you wouldn’t believe a dancer either.

Then there’s choreography.  A choreographer is the author of a two-and-a-half minute number.  They are the ones who come up with the story their dancers will portray.  If a dancer is not holding that story close to her (or his) heart, it won’t come to life.

Dance is both a sport and a performing art.  There are so many aspects of it, you can't describe dance in one sentence, let alone one word. It is complex but simple at the same time.

So here is our new and improved definition of dance. Dance: I couldn't possibly explain all of it.

Rya Vallabhaneni

Farnsworth Middle School