Local studio is planning to compete in person at the Heritage the first week in March. So far, 3 students have signed up. Studio Mgr gave me the package pricing details (the
studio’s package, not the Heritage package) in case I want to sign up. It is an all-inclusive package, so there are no a la carte options. One price covers everything (travel costs to Atlanta [it’s a 2.5-hour drive each way], X nights of “deluxe accommodations” at the hotel, banquet dinner each night, breakfast each morning, welcome cocktail party, admission & preferred seating to X number of sessions, souvenir program - and all of this is for student AND teacher, so you buy only one package, not two). Oh - wait. On top of the package price, the student also pays $X per dance entry (and 3 x $X for a 3-dance multi).
SERIOUSLY??? Cocktail parties and banquet dinners??? Even
if I were willing to take the inherent risks already associated with attending a dance comp in person, I would not voluntarily add to those risks by skipping blithely into multiple indoor social gatherings with a bunch of strangers who have traveled in from all over the country, even if there is a mask requirement (and idk if there is. Local studio requires that student & pro both wear masks at all times, on and off the floor, regardless of what comp venue requires).
One of the 3 students who already signed up dances with my pro.

So Pro is going to be in that high-risk environment for several days. I asked him if he will be required to quarantine when he gets back, and he said he doesn’t know (but I got the impression the answer is no). Sigh. I’m already going to miss out on lessons with him the week he’s gone, and then I also have to decide whether or not to take lessons with him for 10 days after he returns. (But I will probably sign up for lessons with a different pro during that period, or use the time for lots of extra solo practice at home.)
Interestingly, another of the 3 students who already signed up to compete at the Heritage is a retired physician, and her medical practice was in the field of - wait for it -
infectious diseases.