Planning Your Next Competition Or Performance

As some of you may know, I competed in the recent Canada East Pole Sports Org Competition. This was my second time ever performing in front of people. It was a little nerve-wracking, but it was an incredible experience I hope to do again. I wanted to share with you some things I learned about preparing for a competition or showcase. Today I will go over preparation and planning.

I have to give Pole Con International credit for the original creation of this plan. Read their blog post about How to make a competition training plan. Always check your competition’s schedule as soon as possible for information on your submission deadlines. Below I’ve also included the costume and prop-making steps in the plan.

As always, start early if you can. The recommendation I always hear is 3 to 6 months out from the competition. This will give you time to work towards any strength or flexibility goals and train new moves you may want to include in your piece. I signed up for the October 1st competition at the beginning of August. It was tight, but with this plan I made it work.

The Plan

3+ Months Out

• Training new tricks.

• Start thinking about songs, characters and themes.

• Start thinking about your costume &...

• Contact a costume designer for a quote.

2 Months Out

• Work on any combos you want to include in your routine.

• Pick your song.

• Start Developing your routine.

• Think about any props you want to include. Use placeholder items or the unfinished prop while running your routine until you have your finished pieces ready.

• If you’re making your costume, start now or…

• Have a Design Meeting with your costume designer. Bring your song, character inspiration, and any design constraints, including what grip points must be acceptable, if pieces need to be tear-away for strip routines, etc. Work on your costume starts when the first invoice is paid.

6 Weeks Out

• Cut combos that aren’t there yet and pick ones you know you can nail.

• Any props should be finished or close enough to finish so that they can be used in every run of the routine.

• Do costume fittings and pole testing - this is time for any final changes to the costume.

1 Month Out

• Have your routine 100% choreographed.

• Run it a few times a week.

• Continue doing your normal workouts and pole training.

• Pay your final invoice so we can deliver your…

• Costume: The costume and props should be done at this point. Do at least a few runs of the routine in full costume. Depending on the materials used, it’s not always a good idea to do all your runs in full costume, as this will wear out faster. Make sure to do a pass of any tricky combos or parts where the costume could impact your grip points.

2 Weeks Out

• Run routine 3x a day, 3 times a week.

• Continue with your regular workouts

• If any pole tricks are not working at this point, cut them. You’ll thank yourself later.

• Test your hair and makeup. Do a dress rehearsal run and record it or have a friend watching at the approx. distance your audience will be. They can give you feedback on if the details will be read on stage. Remember, the stage lights are bright and your audience may be further away from you than in your practice space. Costuming details and makeup will have to be more exaggerated than you're used to.

• If you’ve done a few runs of the routine in your full costume and it’s starting to smell, now is the time to clean it. Always spot-clean any makeup or strains right away. Your costume designer (at least if it’s me anyway) will give you instructions on how to care for your costume. A safe option for many pieces is to flip them inside out, spray them down with alcohol and let them fully air dry overnight. This is an old theatre trick.

7 Days Out

• Run routine 2x a day, 2 times a week.

• Do at least 1 full dress rehearsal with costume, hair and makeup.

• Keep it to light workouts.

• Rest, eat and take care of yourself.

2 Days Out

• Rest, eat and take care of yourself.

• Try to avoid working out.

• Pack your competition bag and costume!

Bonus Packing List (Click here for a Printable version of the Packing List!)

• Costume

• Accessories

• Props

• Makeup & brushes

• Hair styling tools & hair product

• Pasties or sock tape, if applicable

• Dancing heels/shoes if applicable

• Warm-ups (zip-up sweater, sweatpants, leg warmers)

• Training polewear

• Yoga mat & any stretch aids you like (massage ball, etc.)

• Water bottle

• Your song backed up on a USB

• Your song on phone & headphones

• Phone charger and battery bank

• Lots of snacks (ie. Dried fruits, mixed nuts, protein bars, apples, bananas etc.)

Day of Performance

Have fun, meet new people and take lots of pictures & videos!

And there you have it… How I prepared and competed in a competition in just under 3 months. Did I make mistakes? Yes. Did I learn a lot? Also yes. But I also had a lot of fun and I hope to see you at the next one.

Signing Off,

Ash