Art, Artiste and Competition
"The only person to compete against is yourself." Heard this before? Surely, we all have- be it in high school academics, sprint practice or at dance class. And yet, there is a First place, second place, consolation place, or a rank probably at every juncture. As much as we reiterate in eloquent public speeches that there is room for all, that there is no need to be one up against another person, that individuality matters, the same speech may be followed up with a prize distribution ceremony - Best dancer award, best teacher award, best choreographer award, best accompanist award and the works. The tug-of-war between pursuing excellence by oneself versus being pitted against other individuals is puzzling. Idealistically speaking, there is no room for competition. Realistically speaking, it is competition that sieves through those in the room. So let's get real. What is the role of competition in one's journey of dance? Are we better or bitter from it? Does competi...