We’ve been at the Hynes Convention Center at the anime convention for almost three hours and it is finally worth it. The registration process was not friendly—multiple lines, down long hallways. It took a long time to get a print out of the schedule for the day. They say we should be using an app, but I cannot download the app, I wanted Julia to have a paper schedule to choose from, and after being turned down by a few “officials”, I ask at the accessibility desk and insist.  Finally, someone admits that this is the first year they are not providing paper schedules.  I insist again, like the mother bear that I am, and a paper schedule is put in our hands but by that time, I am pissed off and grumbling and deliver a lecture on what accessibility means.  I’m not going to say it was not needed but I could have been nicer about it.  Not a proud moment.

But now . . . 

Julia is learning a dance in a k-pop dance workshop.  In a ballroom with at least 75 (maybe 100) other young men and women, mostly women. Two women teach on a slightly raised stage. They are clear and good at breaking the dance down into manageable chunks and repeating.  The actual singing group, Bebe performing Stay C, is projected on a large screen beside the two teachers. The dance is repeated at 50% and 75% of the speed of the song over and over. The dancers learn small chunks and dance. Every few learned chunks, the teachers review by going over everything that has been learned.   

This is pretty hard for Julia. She is not the worst dancer out there, but no where near the best.  Amazing how some of these young folks are learning this dance very quickly. There is some air of experience and I wonder if this dance has recognizable combinations.  Julia began with very small gestures but now I see her taking decent sized steps and raising her arms above her head. She is having a great time.

And she persists, reminding me of her determination to be a cheerleader when she got to high school. By the time, they do the dance at full speed the last time, Julia is even doing the turn.  I’ve noticed she has a very hard time with steps that include a change from fully front facing. Seeing what she has learned in this hour, I would say she would need 4 or 5 sessions to learn what the best dances learned in this hour.  But it took her longer than the other cheerleaders to learn cheers.  She learned them and was allowed to cheer and was so much more than happy. 

She comes back to me after the dancing, flushed and very excited.  She is happier than I’ve seen her in a long time.  How hard would it be to find a group somewhere in Boston, and there are groups, that would let her join and dance?

In our first panel “A beginners guide to idol dancing,” the speakers covered the basics of costumes, choreography, finding or making a group, etc. Julia took pictures of the slides. Good information on some of them especially on where to find videos that people can learn from and an app that makes mirror images of performances which is a big help for learning. 

During the Q&A section, someone asked about costume prices, the speakers talked about the effects of tariffs—lots of costumes come from China. An additional $200 on costumes costing under $100. This awful administration ruins fun as easily as it cuts off life sustaining services.  

Next up is a anime sing along—it seems that there are many, many anime music videos including videos to the old Monkey’s “I’m a believer,” to musicals like “Loathing” from Wicked the the opening of Hamilton, and Disney music without Disney characters. Who knew? However, to be honest, this is not the crowd for musicals and no one but us know a few of the Hamilton words. If this was a muscial comedy crowd, there would be someone, lots of someones, who would be belting out every word. 

First song up, Don’t stop believing, that Julia knows well from Penguin Project shows back in Wisconsin as that was their theme song and the first song/dance they taught everyone in shows. Julia belts it out—I haven’t heard her belt like that in years! 

We spend the rest of the day in k-pop related activities, including a game where people voted on their phone on one of the two presented bots of songs or recording artists. 

The morning’s registration debacle has faded from memory. My vow to never come to this gathering has faded. What can I say? Julia had a very happy day. We will probably be back next year.