· MANDATORY DRESS REHEARSAL: Thursday, June 12^th for dancers in The Big Show. Note: there is no dress rehearsal for dancers in the Twinkle Stars Showcase which consists of Twinkle Babies ages 2-3, and Twinkle Star Dancers ages 3-4 and 4-5.

· TWINKLE STARS SHOWCASE:

o Twinkle Star Showcase #1 – June 14^th, 10 a.m.

o Twinkle Star Showcase #2 – June 14^th, 11:30 a.m.

· Big Shows: June 14^th – 1:30 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Where: South San Francisco High School; 400 B Street, South San Francisco, CA 94080.

Dress Rehearsal Info (Applicable only to Big Show Participants): We work very hard to ensure that the dress rehearsal process is enjoyable and stress-free; however, it is always the most difficult part of the show. While we have given dancers ages 2-5 their own show (Twinkle Stars Showcase), The Big Show may still be the first “rehearsal” experience for many children and parents so there are a few things you can do to prepare yourself.

Please read the following to find out what time your dancer needs to be at dress rehearsal. If your child is in only one show, make sure to locate his/her class day and time to confirm what time to come.

IMPORTANT: Dancers must arrive 30 minutes prior to their scheduled start time dressed and ready to perform. With the exception of the first group of the afternoon; we need all dancers to remain in the audience until 10 minutes prior to the time for them to be backstage. This will help alleviate congestion and confusion when groups are changing. If you have more than one dance, come dressed in the first costume that will rehearse. We sometimes run ahead of schedule, so don’t be late. Make sure to allow time for afternoon traffic to the theater. There is always traffic.

You may leave immediately following the completion of your child’s rehearsal. Due to time constraints imposed by theater crew, we will not wait for late dancers, and we will not re-run dances if a dancer was missing.

*If you are unsure at any time, after reading this entire document, about when, how, where or why; please don’t hesitate to ask us. We are here to help you understand the process, as well as ensure that you are properly informed.

DRESS REHEARSAL SCHEDULE: To see the schedule please go to www.tiffanydance.com or see the bulletin board inside the dance studio. Please find the name of your child’s dance and the correct day, time and location of your child’s weekly class. You will then find the “Start Dance Time”.

Dress Rehearsal Procedures: All dancers will be required to check-in at the backstage area or wait in the audience until approximately 10 minutes prior to your “Approximate On-Stage Start Time” – see attached Dress Rehearsal schedule. Parents will sign their child in with the appropriate volunteers at their appropriate dressing area and go sit in the audience. Parents who are not volunteers are not allowed backstage at any time during the dress rehearsal and/or the show. If there is a problem with any child, we will go and notify the parent in the audience. Dancers should come dressed and ready to dance. They should bring one bag with any belongings, all labeled with their names. After the dancer dances the parents may come backstage and sign their child out and take them home. They are welcome to videotape and take pictures during the dress rehearsal, although both of those things are prohibited at the show.

The BIG DAY!!! Saturday, June 14, 2008

Twinkle Star Showcase #1: Showtime 10:00 a.m.

All dancers arrive backstage at 9:30 a.m.
Showtime 10:00 a.m. – no intermission
For your convenience, drinks, snacks and special Tiffany’s Dance Academy Roses with Ballerina Bears will be available prior to, during and after each show.

Show Procedures for Twinkle Star Showcase #1: Dancers go directly to their dressing area when they arrive at the theater. Dancers wait in the dressing area until it is time to perform. Parents sign them in and go wait in line for the house of the theater to open. After the dancers perform they will be escorted to the lobby area by TDA Staff. Parents will come to pick up their dancer in the lobby. Parent and Dancer may return to your seat if you wish, or you may leave the theater if you don’t want to watch the rest of the show. If a dancer wants to watch the show, please purchase a discounted dancer ticket for your dancer in order to enter the audience.

Twinkle Star Showcase #2: Showtime 11:30 a.m.

All dancers arrive backstage at 11:00 a.m.
Showtime 11:30 a.m. – no intermission
For your convenience drinks, snacks and special Tiffany’s Dance Academy Roses with Ballerina Bears will be available prior to, during and after each show.

Show Procedures for Twinkle Star Showcase #2: Dancers go directly to their dressing area when they arrive at the theater. Dancers wait in the dressing area until it is time to perform. Parents sign them in and go wait in line for the house of the theater to open. After the dancers perform they will be escorted to the lobby area by TDA Staff. Parents will come to pick up their dancer in the lobby. Parent and Dancer may return to your seat if you wish, or you may leave the theater if you don’t want to watch the rest of the show. If a dancer wants to watch the show, please purchase a discounted dancer ticket for your dancer in order to enter the audience.

Big Show #1: Showtime 1:30 pm

·        Saturday, June 14^th, 2008

·        South San Francisco High School Theater

·        All dancers arrive backstage at 12:30 p.m.

·        Showtime 1:30 – One 20 minute intermission

For your convenience drinks, snacks and special Tiffany’s Dance Academy Roses with Ballerina Bears will be available prior to each show and during intermission.

Show Procedures for Big Show #1:

Dancers go directly to their dressing area when they arrive at the theater. Dancers wait in the dressing area until it is time to perform. Parents sign them in and go wait in line for the house of the theater to open. After the dancers perform they will come directly back to their dressing area and wait until the finale of the show. All dancers will go onstage again for the finale. Parents may only pick up their dancers at intermission or at the end of the show. Dancers will not be released to parents at any other time for security purposes. If a dancer is picked up at intermission and wishes to watch the second half of the show, they may not wear their costume into the audience. They must also purchase a special discounted dancer ticket in order to enter the theater.

Big Show #2: Showtime 5:00 pm

·        Saturday, June 14^th, 2008

·        South San Francisco High School Theater

·        All dancers arrive backstage at 4:00 p.m.

·        Showtime 5:00 p.m. – One 20 minute intermission

For your convenience drinks, snacks and special Tiffany’s Dance Academy Roses with Ballerina Bears will be available prior to each show and during intermission.

Show Procedures for Big Show #2: Dancers go directly to their dressing area when they arrive at the theater. Dancers wait in the dressing area until it is time to perform. Parents sign them in and go wait in line for the house of the theater to open. After the dancers perform they will come directly back to their dressing area and wait until the finale of the show. All dancers will go onstage again for the finale. Parents may only pick up their dancers at intermission or at the end of the show. Dancers will not be released to parents at any other time for security purposes. If a dancer is picked up at intermission and wishes to watch the second half of the show, they may not wear their costume into the audience. They must also purchase a special discounted dancer ticket in order to enter the theater.

Frequently Asked Questions and General Rules:

1.       Who supervises my child backstage? All classes of dancers ages 8 and under shall be supervised by an adult parent or teacher volunteers during the entire run of the show. The volunteers are responsible for all dancers while they are backstage. All parents must sign their child in and out of the backstage area, where they will remain throughout the entire show.

2.       What does my child do backstage? A closed circuit television is located in the dancers dressing area, so that they can watch the show as it is happening. Dancers will only leave their dressing area to go on-stage. They will come directly back to their dressing area after they perform.

3.       Does my dancer need to stay for the entire show? There are two answers to this question. One applies to Big Show dancers and one applies to Twinkle Stars Showcase dancers. Big Show: For security purposes, and also in consideration of audience members and performing dancers, we recommend that all dancers stay backstage until the very end of the show. All dancers will go back on-stage for the finale of the show, where they will have their name called and take one final bow. Twinkle Star Showcase: After the dancers perform they will be escorted to the lobby area by TDA Staff. Parents will come to pick up their dancer in the lobby. Parent and Dancer may return to your seat if you wish, or you may leave the theater if you don’t want to watch the rest of the show. If a dancer wants to watch the show, please purchase a discounted dancer ticket for your dancer in order to enter the audience.

4.       Where do I pick up my child?

·        Big Show: You will pick up your dancer where you dropped them off – backstage. Please do not attempt to pick your child up from the stage area. If you choose to leave before the finale, you may sign your child out at intermission ONLY. Please do not come back stage before this time, as it is disruptive when audience members leave in the middle of an act. Please let your parent volunteers know if you will be signing your child out at intermission. If you would like to see a list of parent volunteers, they are located on the bulletin board in the studio hallway. Following the finale, all dancers can be signed-out at their dressing area. *Special Rule: As a request from the backstage volunteers, only one parent may enter the dressing area to drop-off or pick-up their child. No extended family or friends in the dressing area. This is in order to avoid too many people in one place, so that we can best supervise the dancers.

·       Twinkle Star Showcase: pick your dancer up in the lobby immediately after they leave the stage.

5.       No food or drinks inside theater or stage area.

6.       No running or playing inside any areas of the theater.

7.       For the safety of the performers, NO personal video cameras or flash photography during the performances. You may take pictures and video at dress rehearsal! Our photographer’s equipment is top-notch and he shoots dancers for a living…so his photos are superb.

8.       No flash photography.

9.       Out of respect for the performers, please refrain from entering or exiting the theater during a performance.

10.   There will be a 20-minute intermission between Act 1 and Act 2 of the Big Show.

11.   Absolutely no dancers in costumes or tap shoes allowed in the audience during the shows.

12.   If you choose to purchase a special discounted dancer ticket for your child, you must change them out of their costume before entering the theater (except Twinkle Star Showcase dancers).

13.   Dancers may not be signed out of the dressing area until intermission. No exceptions.

14.   If the dancer wants to take part in the finale at the end of the show, they may not sit in the audience at any time during the show.

15.   Only certified volunteers may be backstage during the performances and dress rehearsal.

16.   All dancers can be signed out after the finale in the “Dressing Area” only. Please do not try to pick them up from onstage, to avoid mass chaos!

Professional Recital Video and Professional Action Photos: We at TDA understand precisely how important it is for each family to preserve their dancer’s recital memories via video and still photos. We do not allow video cameras or personal cameras into the theater during the actual performance for the following reasons: 1) People taking video or shooting pictures of their child on stage block the view of and distract audience members seated behind and to the sides. 2) A video taken from the audience with a non-professional camera rarely turns out to look very good due to the challenging lighting, shakiness, and heads of audience members that block the view of the camera. 3) Flashes from cameras are distracting and dangerous to the dancers on stage.

No personal video cameras are allowed at the shows; however, they are allowed at the dress rehearsal. Each Big Show performance is professionally photographed, videotaped and edited with high end equipment. Our professional photographers and videographers do a wonderful job and are highly experienced in shooting and filming dance performances at conventions, competitions, and recitals. They produce excellent quality high definition videos. TDA does not prohibit video cameras and cameras so that we can earn extra money selling videotapes and pictures. In fact, 100% of the proceeds from video and picture sales are donated to Bay Area Dance Company. We prohibit these items exclusively for the reasons listed above and since we prohibit them, we have provided a solution for each dancer’s family to preserve their memories on video or still photos. You may order a video on tiffanydance.com. They are truly precious keepsakes for the years to come.

Class Picture Day: June 7^th at the SSF TDA. To view the schedules go to www.tiffanydance.com and click on the Photo Schedule 2008 link, to see what time your class is scheduled. Arrive no more than 10 minutes before and no less than five minutes before your group’s photo time. All dancers wear full costume, shoes and hair. Purchasing pictures is optional, but even if you don’t purchase a package we would like you to be there to be in your class picture that will be displayed on the studio walls for years to come. All soloists (and anyone who can’t make it to their group picture) may drop-in at their convenience at any of our studios during their picture day to have their individual photo taken.

**Picture order forms will be handed out in class and available in the office 2 weeks prior to picture days. Try to have your packet completed before you arrive for your picture time to help reduce the chaos! Each group shot requires a different and separate envelope. All payments are due in full at the time of the group picture. Memory Makers accepts credit cards and checks. Have dancers “picture” ready (costume, hair, make-up perfect) when they arrive. There will be NO room to dress or do hair and make-up.

Note: Pictures will be handed out at your recital (unless you order digital products – i.e. magazine covers, magnets etc…which take longer to produce). If you do not pick up your pictures at the recital (or if you have digital products) a $6 shipping and handling fee will be added to your account and we will mail them to the billing address on file.

PICTURES ARE NOT AVAILABLE TO PICK UP AT THE DANCE STUDIOS!!!

Dancers without a costume may not participate in the group photo for their class. Dancers who are not participating in the recital or have a late order costume may arrive at any time and take an individual picture in their dance class attire (or whatever attire they desire). “Buddy Pictures” are also available – they require a separate envelope.

Memory Makers is staffed with 10-15 experience dancers and photographer assistants to help pose dancers.

Parents – refrain from entering the photo shoot areas and rooms while your child is being photographed.

Do not take photographs or snapshots of dancers in photo shoot rooms or areas.

Directions To Theater: To the South San Francisco High School Theater from Tiffany’s Dance Academy in SSF…

Directions Distance Total Est. Time: 3 minutes Total Est. Distance: 0.96 miles

After parking, follow signs to dancer drop off area.

1: Start out going NORTHWEST on MOSSWOOD WAY toward HAZELWOOD DR. <0.1 miles

2: Turn RIGHT onto HAZELWOOD DR. 0.1 miles

3: Turn LEFT onto EL CAMINO REAL / CA-82 N. 0.6 miles

4: Turn RIGHT onto W ORANGE AVE. <0.1 miles

5: Turn RIGHT onto B ST. <0.1 miles

6: End at 400 B St
South San Francisco, CA 94080-4425, US Total Est. Time: 3 minutes Total Est. Distance: 0.96 miles