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BMC Conquers Nationals with New Director
by Miley White
Danielle Buice
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Danielle Buice, new director of the Bailey Mountain Cloggers, knows what it feels like to be under pressure.
When the 22-year old recent Mars Hill College graduate stepped in as director last October, she took on a team of 23 experienced college cloggers hungry for a national title, plus all the hopes and expectations of their families and friends and alumni. There was a winning tradition to uphold, and just weeks to prepare for national competition.
That would be a high-pressure situation for many people, but Buice says that for her it was "a dream come true."
She has been dancing for 19 years, starting when she was three years old at a dance studio near her home in Pickens, South Carolina.
"When I was ten or twelve, I started teaching my own classes to younger kids, and I did that up until my senior year," says Buice.
She has also taught dance with a number of different teams, was a 4H instructor in Mars Hill, gave private lessons, taught at a huge summer camp, and was on the leadership team for BMC during her four years here.
When Buice graduated last June, she was offered the position of assistant director to Renee Shelton of BMC and gladly accepted. Buice's past experiences would serve her well as she faced the challenges of her position, which included choreographing routines, planning and being at practices and work-out sessions, teaching dances, and many other managerial tasks.
Buice says an effective manager is one who is there all the time and is dedicated. You must really have a passion for each moment you are directing, being prepared and organized, "letting the team know you love it just as much as they do...letting them know you can do it and they are going to see that you're capable."
Buice was ready for any challenge that came her way, and that is exactly what she got.
On October 3, Director Renee Shelton announced her resignation, and the next day Buice was appointed the new director of BMC.
Although Buice ascended quickly to the director position, her past experience helped her cope with the new responsibilities of the job. "I was doing a lot when I was the assistant. I guess what has changed is that now I have sole leadership over the choreography. I do get input from the dancers, but now I have the final say," says Buice.
So how do the cloggers feel about their new director?
"We all feel like we can talk to Danielle," said Kim Perry.
"Last night I had a flat tire and I felt like I could have called Danielle and said 'Hey, Danielle, I have a flat tire. Can you pick me up?'" says clogger Lauren Ann Finley.
Buice's caring nature is not the only thing that impresses her dancers. "She knows what she's talking about," says Finley. "She 's done real well revising things. She's done a lot to our teams to make them better."
Clogging Captain Heidi Kulas says Buice has "great leadership skills. She has been through some business and management courses, which help immensely with keeping the team together outside of the artistic realm."
One of the most intimidating things for this new director was the fact that the first competition she would be in charge of was the most important one of the year, the National Championships in Maggie Valley, NC.
Buice's responsibilities at Nationals were critical. They included "running practices, getting costumes, getting hair and makeup together, checking the music and making sure it's the right speed, giving it to the sound man, making sure they (the cloggers) aren't nervous, and just being there to support," said Buice. "It was intimidating, I'm not gonna lie There were 25 alumni who came, and so there was a lot of pressure," says Buice.
The Cloggers would compete against 78 teams from all over the nation in numerous categories for a rank of first, second, or third place, and then also for the Overall Title. However, Buice trusted her team of Cloggers, who had been working hard since their August training camp. "I was confident that they were ready. We always pull together."
The Cloggers compete with dance routines they have learned and perfected, and their hard work speaks for itself in the fact that they brought a total of eleven routines to Maggie Valley.
This competition lasts three entire days from morning until night. "We got there on Friday afternoon and were there until 11 p.m., then got up on Saturday and it went from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. Then it began again at 9 a.m. the next day to 8 p.m., and they announced the winner late that night," said Buice.
Finally, the exhausted dancers sat down in the auditorium to hear the announcement of the winners. Kulas recounts, "We always go into a competition hoping to compete well, but as everyone knows, the live performance arts can always be a surprise."
The team had not won an overall national championship since Buice's freshman year in the fall of 2002. However, everyone's hard work, early mornings, late nights, and teamwork paid off when the official announced that the winner of the National Championship Title for Overall Traditional Precision Team with Running Set Precision was Bailey Mountain Cloggers! "They screamed for about fifteen minutes," Buice said.
Though Buice and her team have conquered their national goals, they are far from being done with clogging. The cloggers still have two to three practices a week and are preparing for their concerts on March 30 and April 1 in Moore Auditorium.
Buice is also planning a trip to Spain to involve the team in an international competition against 10-15 other countries. BMC would be the sole representative from the U.S.A.
Buice has other plans for the team's future. "I hope to bring new ideas and new choreography. Styles are going to be different coming up. I'd like to open them up to new styles of dance and not just clogging," says Buice. The new director hopes to bring some stability to a team that has gone through many transitions in the past few years. She also hopes to rebuild and strengthen the team, since there are only 23 cloggers this year, a lower count than past years.
Buice reflects on the program and her hopes for its future, "I feel like it's just getting better and better. They're having a good time, and that's what drives me -- making sure they're having fun."
Reader Comment:
Cathy Jo Lewis, MHC 2006, 12/7/2006, 7:28 p.m.
As an alumna and fellow clogger with Danielle, I have to say that you are doing an excellent job as director. I am so proud of all the members for getting the 13th title. I only got to see you perform on Friday night, but ya'll did a great job and definitely deserve it. I am glad that the Hilltop did this story on Danielle and the members of BMC so everyone can see the hard work that goes into being BMC.
Linda Bagwell, 12/13/2006, 7:21 p.m.
Wanted to say CONGRATULATIONS to Danielle and team. So proud of you, here in Pickens, S.C.
Diane Bray, 12/14/2006, 7:25 p.m.
Danielle has been doing amazing things with
her dancing. Even in high school she performed an original ballet. I'm her grandmother and have watched her since she began.
I really enjoyed this newsletter and am so
proud of her!
Sharon Lewis, parent, 12/15/2006, 5:07 p.m.
I just wanted to say congratulations to all the cloggers for their 13th National Championship. Way to go BMC! Danielle, I have watched you the four years dancing while Cathy Jo was in school and you are a special young lady with lots of talent. I look forward to watching four more years beginning August 2007 with Ava Lyne on the BMC team. Thank you Hilltop for a wonderful story that needed to be told.
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