The “Day After” with Kate Jablonski
Each year, following the WGI (Winter Guard International) World Championships, a “DAY AFTER” Clinic is held for all interested participants on the massive floor of the University of Dayton arena. Typically, this 3-hour clinic features world-renowned choreographers such as Mia Michaels and Sonya Tayeh who enlighten, entertain, and share their passion and craft of dance and performance to 500 eager young people striving for greater levels of achievements.
This year’s featured clinician was the hugely popular Kate Jablonski, artistic director and choreographer for her own company “Beyond Words Dance Company.” Kate is a young, fresh, and immensely talented artist that has established her place among the ‘greats’ in the world of dance. Her work is brilliantly musical and emotional and strikes a cord with today’s young people in the area self-expression.
I had the privilege of observing this clinic along with Jean-Michel Ruelle, WBTF Coach, from France. We both sat in amazement as she taught the concept of musicality in “layers” to a contemporary piece of music. With each combination we were able to SEE more and more of the music in the work. She constantly reiterated that performers must be:
1) in tune with their own feelings and
2) respectful of the music they are interpreting.
By “respecting” the music she explained that performers must STUDY the music inside and out and strive to listen to EVERY instrument, phrase, and lyric before moving to it. This connection was an “eye opener” as the piece evolved from a generic stance and gesture to a full-blown emotional and interpretive “story”…….this, she did, in just three hours!!
Kate is a master teacher with something to say, something to share. She reaches for her students and touches their heart. Take a look at this clip of Kate in action and see just how she touched those in attendance………….
re: Kate Jablonski – Her spirit is captivating, while at the same time she is down-to-earth and plain speaking. Listeners, regardless of their age, gender, or experiential level, should be enthralled. Ms. Jablonski motivates, not merely to become a more effective performer/teacher, but also for self-evaluation, as well as inspiration. Her enthusiasm and commitment to her topic alone are telling. Those qualities enhance the learning experience beyond the valuable/wise information inparted. Would love to see more master teachers. I always love learning from WGI. Thanks, Dale!
Nice article. I always feel that WGI and other events have so much to offer for our coaches and athletes. There are parallel training skills and performance attributes from which the twirlers can benefit. Anything that we can use to help our coaches, judges, and athletes is valuable.