How To Pack and Organize a Competition Dance Bag

A dance competition is as intense as they come, as any teen drama so accurately depicted. Many of those stressors come from misplaced essentials or a makeup emergency. But when you learn how to pack and organize a competition dance bag, you can avoid many of these problems. 

Making and Following a Checklist 

Santa Claus is famous for making a list and checking it twice, but you may want to one-up the jolly gift-giver by checking your list three times before you depart. 

The best strategy is to begin the list at the top and work your way down the body. Doing so will ensure you have all the essentials. You’ll want hair accessories such as a brush, hair spray, and bobby pins for your head. Any bulkier accessories, such as a straightener or hat, can go inside a plastic bag to keep them secure.

Many dancers love to accomplish iconic eye looks before hitting the stage. The older the dancers are, the more face accessories they may want to consider, such as fake eyelashes and jewelry.

The only concern about packing the torso is whether everything fits accordingly. Some last-minute alterations may be in order if you check earlier enough.

You’ll want two or three pairs of tights for the show. Tights can rip rather easily during a dance competition, and you don’t want to be empty-handed if that happens. Even if you don’t need the extra pair, someone else there could. 

Lastly and most importantly, you cannot forget about the shoes. Unlike athletic competitions that only require one pair of kicks, dance requires a handful of shoes for different disciplines. Otherwise, your tap dance won’t go so well with ballet shoes.

Pack in Order of Appearance

While it’s critical to follow backpack ergonomics as much as you can when you prepare your dance bag, you may have to be more lenient to pack it in such a way that saves you time. It’s best to pack outfits in order of the performances.

Rather than digging through a pile of outfits to get to the one for your first performance, you should have that on top and work your way down, assuming the wardrobe allows it. Sometimes, a certain outfit must head toward the bottom because space is premium. Nevertheless, you can give it your best effort and do things in a logical order. 

After Attire

Your mind may solely be on the outfits, so you might completely disregard what you need to wear after the lights go out. Comfortable clothing is best before and after the contest, but you should also bring warm-up gear when watching others go after it.

In all actuality, one of the most commonly forgotten items is underwear. If you show up to the show in tights, it’s easy to forget extra underwear, so don’t make that same mistake as many have done before.

Learning how to pack and organize a competition dance bag ensures you have the goods in the best way possible. Doing so will erase any panic that overcomes you when you need to change swiftly before the next performance.