Adaptability

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change." -Charles Darwin
         This quote does not just pertain to life, it also pertains to dancers in a way. Competitive dancers are continuously changing the venues they perform and compete in, the floors and surfaces they create art on, and the shoes and costumes they wear while doing what they are passionate about. This is four things a dancer must adapt to very quickly in order to perform and compete at the top of their game. Even some of the most amazing dancers have trouble figuring out how to adapt, it is one of the things that separate great dancers from amazing dancers.
           You may think a venue or the area the dancer is performing in shouldn't change how they perform very much, and usually it doesn't but there are occasions when it does. The lighting in every place is different as well as the coloring of walls, and structure, size, and many more things. This could throw off a dancers spot while they are turning, and spotting is one of the most important parts about turning, without it turning would be nearly impossible. Also it could be distracting towards the dancer, hindering their performance. If a dancer is great they will be able to fully be in the moment in their piece despite any distractions. The most difficult thing about the change in venue would be the stage or performance area size. This could mess with formations, and even affect how big a dancer dances.
           The hardest thing to adapt to is the floor, or surface you are dancing on. Most dancers have a preference on what type of floor they like best, slippery, sticky, in between. Well to their disadvantage every floor will be different. The most common type of surface to dance on at competitions is Marley because you can purchase floor mats of them to place over whatever the stages surface is. I think that Marley is the perfect floor but that is because it is what I usually practice on. Another set back is that most dancers always dance while they are practicing on the same type of floor so it is hard for them to figure out how to use more control on slippery floor and push harder but not look spastic on sticky floor.
             Shoes are not as much of an issue really because you generally wear what the instructor or choreographer asks but usually that's what you practice in, or sometimes they will even ask for input. The last thing is costumes. sometimes costumes restrict movement, but hopefully with a quick run through you can make adjustments and figure it out. Also there is usually time for alterations to help make this process easier.
           As you see, dance is probably more difficult than you think; and ability to adapt makes all the difference.