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Saturday, July 12, 2025

Time 3:00pm

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Lakewood High School Auditorium

4400 Briercrest Ave, Lakewood, CA 90713

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Parents and Students,

We are so happy to be able to share the numerous benefits that kids can gain from participating in a dance recital or performance. As a form of physical activity, dance offers many advantages for children's physical, emotional, and social well-being. Through participating in a recital or performance, children can develop confidence, discipline, creativity, and teamwork skills.

Dedication to recital commitments is the responsibility of both the student and their parents. We’ve created this handbook in an effort to clarify what we expect from you in terms of commitments and responsibility to the annual recital, the school, and other students and parents.

YOUR CHILD SHOULD ARRIVE

AT 2:15PM WITH MAKEUP DONE

DRESSED IN 1ST COSTUME,

AND READY TO DANCE.

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Act I - Once Upon A Christmas Movie

 

1. Believe - Acro Mon 5pm Adv

 

2. You’re A Mean One Mr. Grinch - Hip Hop Thurs 7pm

                                               

3. Christmas Of Love - Wed 4pm/Sat 11am

 

4. All She Wants To Do Is Dance - MBD Team

 

5. Rockin Around The Christmas Tree (Home Alone) - Thurs 6pm

                                                                        

6. Run Run Rudolph (Home Alone) - Wed 7pm 

 

7. Nightmare Before Christmas - MBD Team    

 

8. Soda Pop - K Pop Groovers

 

9. Power Rangers Hip Hop (Victoria, Eliana, Odyssey)

 

10. Home Alone - Acro Mon 5pm Int

 

11. Sisters (White Christmas) - Madison & Makayla St James

 

12. Mele Kalikimaka (Christmas Vacation) - Tiny Toes Tues 6pm/Thurs 5pm

 

13. Jingle Bell Rock (Home Alone 2) - Fri 6pm

 

14. Pennies From Heaven (Elf) - Mini Team

 

15. Where are you Christmas (The Grinch) - Acro Tues 5pm 

 

16. You Don’t Own Me - MBD Team

                                          

17. Oogie Boogie - Tiny Toes Wed 6pm

 

18. Cool Jerk (Home Alone 2) - Jazz Minis

 

19. Blue Holiday - Hayden Vega

 

20. Boots Made For Walkin’ - Wed 7pm

 

21. All I Want For Christmas Is You - Anna Victoria Sanchez

 

22. Polar Express - Mia Diaz & Makayla St James                                          

 

                                                         

 

15 Minute Intermission

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Act Two - Mini Nutcracker

 

Overture

 

23. The Party

 

24. Clara’s Dream and The Battle

 

25. Waltz Snowflakes (Wed 7pm/Thurs 6pm)

 

26. Hot Chocolate (Audrey, Hayden, Dahlia)

 

27. Candy Cane (Fri 6pm)

 

28. Tea (Tues 6pm/Thurs 5pm)

 

29. Coffee (Mia, Makayla, Camilla)

 

30. Mother Ginger (Wed 4pm/Sat 11am)

 

31. Marzipan (Wed 6pm)

 

32. Waltz Flowers (Mini Team)

 

33. Sugarplum Fairy Solo (Allison)

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Costume rules

• No jewelry (including dangling earrings) is to be worn with costumes. Small studs are acceptable. No bracelets or necklaces.

• Please use undergarments that are not visible. underwear and bra straps look unprofessional sticking out of costumes.

•  Tan body suits can be purchased from Discount Dancewear for recital as an alternative to underwear.

•  Only nude or light pink Nail polish should be worn.

•  Temporary tattoos should also be removed.

Costume care
You should  label all costumes, and dance shoes,  with your child’s name in permanent marker on tags not directly on costumes. Place the costumes in a garment bag with your child’s name on the outside. Hats should be stored in a hatbox or similar container to prevent damage. Keep all costumes clean and wrinkle free, prior to the the performance. Please do not wash costumes in your washing machine (check the care label); dry clean them only (after the recital)

 Remove any tags that could hang out of the costume.
 If costume straps do not have snaps or are not attached, please sew them prior to picture day. Please inquire about how straps should be attached.
 Many costumes come with headpieces or hats. 
NOTE: To ensure that there are no costume damage, students should not wear their costumes, accessories, or tights prior to the recital.

Costume Cover-ups
Students can wear a cover-up when in costume but not performing. A bathrobe or sweats work best. The cover-up helps keep the muscles warm and prevents costumes from becoming soiled. Students should not be in audience, and definitely not with their costume visible. We strive to teach professionalism to our students as well as performer etiquette. 

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Tights, Shoes, Hair, and Makeup
Tights - Footed Tights in skin tone

Acrodance Students -  Convertable Tights

                      (We have color samples in the studio)
To ensure that there are no discrepancies in color and style, students are required to purchase specific colors. You may purchase tights from us by pre-ordering with the order form we provided. If you missed ordering tights from our studio, you may also purchase from a local dance store. Tights are available from dancewear stores such as Elite Dancewear in Los Alamitos, Target and also at Amazon. Please purchase new tights for the recital, and do not wear or wash them before the performance. (Note: Having a second pair of tights on hand offers students and parents a great sense of security.) Balera brand are the best ones you can buy from Amazon.

ACRO DANCE STUDENTS- Footless TIghts (Convertible) These students will need bare feet to perform, and it will be easier, because these tights can also be pulled back over the foot for other dance styles.

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Shoes -
Be sure that all shoes are cleaned prior to the recital. 3-6 yr. old girls tap shoes may have matching bows that accompanied your costumes. In that case please attach to your child's Tap Shoes.

Tap Shoes should be Black

Ballet Shoes should be ballet pink or nude.

Jazz shoes should be tan or nude.

All upper level class and soloist, shoe colors will be noted  specificically via parent.

NOTE : Not all Costumes came with shoe bows.

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Recital Make-Up & Hair Tips

BUNS FOR EACH CLASS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

Tiny Toes & Taps 3-4 Yrs. Tues 5pm/Thurs 6pm - High Bun / No part

Tiny Toes & Taps 3-4 Yrs. Wed 5 & 6pm -High Bun /No part

Ballet & Tap Combo I Wed 4pm - Low Bun / No part

Ballet & Tap Combo III-IV Wed 7pm - Low Bun / Will discuss part

Ballet & Tap Combo II Thurs 6pm - Low Bun / No part

Ballet & Tap Combo I Friday 6pm - Low Bun/ No part

MBD Allstar Dance Team Fri 7pm -  Low Bun (Part TBD)

Ballet & Tap Combo I Saturday 10am - Low Bun / No part

Acro Dance I Tues 5pm - Low Bun / No part

Acro Dance 2-3 Mon 5pm- Low Bun

Jazz Minis Tues 4pm - Low Bun / No part

HAIR PIECES SHOULD BE ON RIGHT (dancers' head)

OR AS DISCUSSED IN CLASS​

Unless it's a Tiara or Bow, which should be centered.

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STAGE MAKE-UP

The following Make-Up tips are recommended only, but not required. Tiny Toes students 2-5 years at the least, apply blush and lip gloss.  I’m providing these tips for those of you who are hair and make-up challenged. If your dancer does not have on stage makeup, they will appear on stage—as a faceless dancer. Theatre, concert hall, and auditorium stages are huge. These stages are also elevated and are a distance away from the audience.  The distance from the stage to the first row can be up to 100 feet. Whether you and your family are sitting in the 13th row or in the balcony, you want to to be able to see their face.  Stage makeup will help your dancer’s facial features look bigger, brighter, and more pronounced on stage.  If your dancer does not have on stage makeup and they are performing on a stage with bright, shining lights, their face and facial expressions will be washed out and hard to see.

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Make-Up Tips:

Dancers need to wear special makeup when performing  Distance of the performer from the audience can cause the facial features to fade with distance

How-To Do Makeup on Children

1) Skin -- Foundation

With large powder brush, smooth translucent loose powder over entire face

2) Cheeks –

a. With blush brush, apply peach/pink or rose blush starting at hair line and pulling color forward and blending up

b. Contour hairline and under jawbone with cheek color.

3) Eyes –

a. With shadow brush, highlight brow bone with white (or beige) eye shadow

b. Apply secondary (brown) shadow in crease

c. Apply darkest brown shadow with makeup brush, darkest at lash line gradually fading up into crease.

d. Apply darkest shade of brown shadow along lower lash line, but keep the line thin to avoid “raccoon eyes”

4) Lips – Hot Pink 

a. Line and fill lips in with Pink Lip Liner. Use a q-tip to blend, if necessary.

b. Fill lip in with Lip Stick or Lip Gloss (pink) No RED.

Visit the Link below for a full Tutorial: THIS TUTORIAL USES RED LIP COLOR, BUT WE LIKE PINK! THESE TIPS IN THE TUTORIAL ARE SIMPLY SUGGESTIONS. YOU MAY USE YOUR OWN COLORS TO MATCH YOUR CHILD"S SKIN TONE.

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 CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW FOR A VIDEO TUTORIAL

Recital Make-Up Tutorial

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Hair Tips: How to do the Perfect Bun

The bun keeps hair from flying in a dancer's face; it also creates a clean, elegant line for the dancer. Follow these steps to make the perfect bun:

Materials List:

Hair donut (Bun form)

Hairspray or hair gel

Bobby pins

Elastic Ponytail Holder (2)

Comb & Brush (fine tooth comb preferred)

1. To start the process, wet your hands and the hair with water. This will give you better control over the hair. Gather the hair and pull it back to the nape of the neck. Apply hair gel if you need more control over the hair.

2. Use a hair brush to smooth out rough or uneven areas. Form a pony tail by brushing the hair from the jaw line to the nape of the neck. This will form a low bun and will not conflict with dancers who are wearing hats. The placement of the pony tail determines the placement of the bun.

*For high buns adjust pony tail level.

3. Use an elastic hair band to secure the pony tail. A tidy pony tail with hair drawn snugly back is the key to making a good bun.

4. Apply more water or gel to keep the hair neat, and twist the pony tail.

5. Coil the pony tail, by twisting it until it starts to form a circle around the base of the ponytail.

6. Use a second elastic pony tail all around the coil to secure it and then use bobby pins to secure the bun to the rest of the hair. Slide each pin through the outer part of the coil, then into the base of the bun.

For extra hold, when the bun and hair are all secure, use LOTS of hairspray.

If your dancer’s hair is too short for the bun, please have the front half of the hair pulled up and secured so it is out of the dancer’s face. 

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CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW FOR A VIDEO TUTORIAL

Please keep in mind, the "Bun" that your child is assigned (High or Low), when using the "tutorial" below.

It is a guide only for the purpose of instruction, but the bun height may be diffeent in the video, then what you were assigned.

Hair Bun Tutorial ​

Planning

BE PREPARED! Gather all costumes, accessories, shoes, and makeup several days in advance so you know if something is missing or isn’t right. Make a checklist of your child’s routines, listing the costume, tights, shoes, and any accessories, and refer to it to make sure you have all your supplies before going to the venue

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                                         Snacks
Please do not send your child to the recital with snacks or beverages that could stain their costumes. Crackers, energy bars, apples, carrot sticks, and string cheese are good choices. Water is the best beverage; please do not send juice boxes or other sticky beverages. Please never give them chocolate!

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►►►ALL STUDENTS SHOULD ARRIVE

NO LATER THAN 2:15PM ◄◄◄

Dancers are to arrive in their first costume, with their hair and makeup done, as there will not be enough time to complete it when they arrive.  

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Only Lead volunteers are permitted onstage during recital. Please do not come up and take your child off the stage at the end of the FINALE.

ALL STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO STAY FOR THE DURATION OF THE SHOW, AND WILL RETURN TO STAGE FOR OUR BIG FINALE AND CURTAIN CALL. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE YOUR CHILD AND LEAVE EARLY, AS IT IS EXTREMELY DISRESPECTFUL TO THE OTHER PERFORMERS. EVERYONE DESERVES TO HAVE A GOOD ROUND OF APPLAUSE, WHEN THEY FINISH EACH OF THEIR DANCES. 

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GENERAL INFORMATION

 Dancers are to arrive at the LAKEWOOD HIGH AUDITORIUM BY 2:15 PM. Seating will open to the public at 30 minutes prior to show time, and  will begin promptly at 3:00 PM.  The recital will be approximately 2 hours (if there are no glitches). All dancers  will need  to remain  with their class, in assigned dressing rooms and should not be wandering around. We DON'T want them to miss their dance! We will have class moms assist overseeing them as they await their turn on stage. When dancers arrive, they will check in with their room mom. You will sign in your dancer and also need to sign them out when picking them up from their class moms. 

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AUDIENCE ETIQUETTE

Allowing children to run around or otherwise disrupt the performance is not fair to other audience members or the dancers. Parents who bring infants to the performance should quickly exit the seating area, if the infant begins to cry or create a distraction for the audience. Also, please be mindful of picture taking and video taping, and do not not stand in front of other audience members, while doing so. Please sqat down, or stay on the side.

        TICKET SALES & SEATING

Recital tickets will be available for purchase until Friday, December 12th.  They must be paid for immediately in person at the Front Desk.

• Please remember that every guest who occupies a seat, including children, who cannot sit on a lap, will require a ticket to attend.

• Guests will be able to enter the Auditorium at 2:30 PM and the show will begin promptly at 3:00 PM. We encourage our dance families to let their guests know this in advance.

• Please also remind your guests with wheelchairs, to arrive and find there place in the ADA seating early, so that there will be no disruptions during a dance routine. This is not only disruptive for the other guests, but also can distract young dancers on the stage, since the ADA area is directly in the front row.

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ARRIVAL TO THEATER &

CHECK IN/ CHECK OUT PROCEDURE 

• Check in with your designated "Room Mom", who will have a Clipboard with your class' name and costume pics on it.  

• Check in with your "Room Mom" by signing their child in.

• Only room moms will be escorting their class down to the dressing rooms.

• Please bring them to the right side of the auditorium, by the metal gait. PLEASE DO NOT FOLLOW YOUR CHILD'S CLASS THROUGH THE GAIT. If your child is crying or having difficulty, you may take them with you to the audience. They must either sit on your lap, or please use the top balcony seats to sit with them. 

• Here is the procedure for dancer dismissal:

• PLEASE LISTEN FOR THE LAST ANNOUNCEMENT AT THE END OF THE SHOW.

1. After "Finale/Curtain Call" we will keep the students seated on the stage with their class, and will be releasing 2 classes at a time.​

2. The parents who signed their dancer in, should stay in the auditorium for the announcement for their child's class dismissal.

3. Once you hear your class announced for dismissal, please proceed to the area near the right side of the stage by the Parent Release Gait.

4. We ask that you tell your family and friends with flowers and gifts to wait in front of the auditorium away from the gait area, as we will be consecutively releasing all classes in that area.  This will help to keep that area clear for the other parents picking up and signing out their dancers.

• The parent/guardian who signed them in when you arrived, MUST sign them out before you depart.  THIS IS IMPORTANT!  PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THEM WITHOUT SIGNING THEM OUT. 

 

Your child’s safety is very important to us. Please help us keep our students entirely safe by respecting and following these rules.

 

IMPORTANT!!!!

ALCOHOL, DRUGS, CIGARETTES, VAPING AND SMOKING ARE STRICTLY PROHIBITED ON SCHOOL GROUNDS!!!! LAW ENFORCEMENT WILL BE CALLED IF NECESSARY. LAKEWOOD HIGH STAFF WILL BE ENFORCING THIS!

 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR YOUR DANCER

• Please ensure that your child has thd "proper" shoes and tights for Recital day, as they will stand out and not look uniform with their class.  

• Snacks will not be needed, and children should be fed before they arrive at the Auditorium.  Please allow at least 45 minutes prior to performance for your child to eat, so that we don't have any upset tummies.

• Dancers Name should be on all of their belongings, and kept in a garment bag attached to their costume hangers. We need all parents to have all of their dancer’s things together for each dance. Since some of our dancers have several dances & costume changes, please have your child organized. Dancers should have all costumes, headpieces and shoes with them for recital. Please have your child arrive in their first dance costume, We highly recommend that you make a "To Bring" list prior to Recital day.

• Have extra bobby pins, hairspray and makeup for touch-ups with them.

Dancers  need to wear makeup when performing, because distance of the performer from the audience can cause the facial features to fade or blur. However, it is not required.
NO BRACELETS OR NECKLACES NO  RUB ON TATOOS

1. DANCE SHOES: ballet shoes strings must be tucked in.

2. HEADBANDS, HEADPIECES, TIARAS MUST BE SECURED.  An extra bobby pin is always best.

3. PROPER TIGHT COLOR!  Don't let your child stand out for the wrong reasons. Tights must be skin ton (Except Ballet I-II) No runs or rips, and you may want to have an extra pair on hand, just in case.

4. MOST IMPORTANTLY, SPEAK TO YOUR CHILD ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE AHEAD OF TIME AND ENCOURAGE THEM TO SMILE AND ABOVE ALL "TO HAVE FUN!"

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