Not getting the gold is not the end of the world: silver medalists and other runners-up discuss competition.

Competition is everywhere. It's in sports, in business, in school, and in dance class. International dance competitions can seem overwhelming, but they are only amplifications of what happens in our hometown studios: auditioning for a scholarship, working toward a coveted role, or just getting the teacher to notice you. This striving can be an emotional strain, but it can also help build the fortitude necessary for entering official competitions. As you go into regional semifinals and then finals, the trick is to hold on to your sense of self as well as your empathy for others. The warmth of camaraderie can soften the cold edge of competition.

In the following segment, the first part of a two-part series, competition participants share insights on the value of a process that can be as trying as it is rewarding, and a competition proprietor tells why he is exiting the business.--Ed.

From ballet to Broadway to modern dance, competitions play a crucial role in our dance world, filling the years between early training and a professional career. But does winning really matter? How important is it to take the top prize? Participating in a competition can be valuable on many counts. Here, five artists--all of them winners, but none of them gold medalists--share their experiences.

Asmeret Ghebremichael, 23, was the second runner-up for the National Outstanding Dancer scholarship at New York City Dance Alliance in 1996. A professional dancer and singer who recently completed a tour of Aida, she notes, "The people who win the highest prize aren't always the ones who go on to be the most successful in the business. Competitions don't determine if you'll work, or what you'll be doing. But they do teach a lot of good lessons."

For one, competitions prepare dancers for professional auditions. Ghebremichael explains, "My professional life now is very similar to my former competitive life. There are times when I get the job and times when I don't. Instead of feeling rejected, I just move on to the next audition. People get hired for various reasons and you may never know why you did or didn't get hired."

When it comes to getting hired, competitions provide great exposure. In 1998 when Gebremichael performed in the Dance Masters of America competition, she did not earn an award. But she caught the attention of A.C. Ciulla, the choreographer of Footloose, who happened to be watching. "When I auditioned [for Footloose] that December," she recalled, "he remembered me, and I got the job."

The New York International Ballet Competition offers similar exposure fur ballet dancers. Mikhail Ilyin, 23, a principal dancer with the Miami City Ballet who tied for a silver medal in the 2000 competition, explains, "The competition shows off the new generation of dancers, those in their late teens and early 20s. Dancers need exposure at that age. They may get a contract out of the event, or simply an extra push artistically. They will inevitably meet many people, because it is such a large network."

Ilyin, who also won a bronze at the International Ballet Competition at Jackson, Mississippi, in 2002, likes the level playing field of NYIBC's process. All the dancers bring a single prepared solo, and once they get to New York they learn the same three variations (see "New York International Ballet Competition," DANCE MAGAZINE, June, page 34). "It is impossible to prepare at home. That is both the horror and the beauty of it," Ilyin claims. "The competition shows dancers how ready they must be, both physically and emotionally, in order to make it as a professional. We were in the studio for six hours a day learning variations. It was serious work, just like in a ballet company."

For younger ballet dancers, the Youth America Grand Prix provides a healthy atmosphere by allowing time for learning and socializing in addition to competing. Dancers perform in groups or as individuals and have a busy schedule of master classes followed by competitive rounds. "I look at it as a learning experience and a chance to perform," says Angelina Zuccarini, 16, the 2003 runner up to the top award in the Senior Age Division for women. "It is also a great chance to meet other dancers who are your age and headed in your direction. Everyone is really nice, and we socialize at the hotel at the end of the day. It can be a lot of fun."

To keep the pressure off, Zuccarini avoids going into a competition with a specific goal. "That way, I'm not disappointed, and whatever happens, happens," she says. "When I'm onstage, I try to be in the moment and not let the fact that there are judges in the audience affect my performance." World-renowned faculty are also in the audience, looking to award a select number of scholarships. As a result of last spring's competition, Zuccarini is currently training at the John Cranko School of the Stuttgart Ballet.

Sarah Baumert, 22, a recent graduate of the University of Minnesota, found a place to study as a result of competition. Named one of six finalists for the Student Dancer Award at the 2002 American College Dance Festival Association, she performed a duet choreographed by Peter Bingham during the festival's gala at the Kennedy Center. The final honor went to another dancer, but the experience led Baumert to study with Bingbam at Experimental Dance and Music in Vancouver.

"Preparing for ACDFA really influenced me," she said. "Rehearsing the duet every week and getting it into our bodies was great. It was like working in a repertory company. Bingham has so much information for me and my body."

Baumert advocates a low-key approach to competing. "Like many things in a dance career," she say, "competition is about luck. You have to learn to take it or leave it. Trust that something else will come up. Trust that you'll get a break. Trust that you are not any less or any more of a dancer."

Jason Parsons, 27, a choreographer who teaches at Broadway Dance Center, Steps on Broadway, and for the New York City Dance Alliance, was awarded second place in Leo's Jazz Dance Choreography Competitive Event at Jazz Dance World Congress 2002. He tells his students, "A competition is just one day. It could be a different outcome on a different day. Don't take it personally."

"What is first [prize]? What is second? It is about being the best you can be in that moment and never losing sight of the fact that you are doing this because you love dancing," Parsons continued. "If has to be about a love of dance, not a love of winning. Besides, who wants to be the best anyway? Then you have nowhere to go!"

Darrah Carr competed in Irish dance from age 8 to 18. She is now a dancer, choreographer, teacher, and writer.