Another major difference that I immediately began to see was the level of discipline within the directors and members of both teams. The level of discipline between each team was a major difference that I saw within the first few weeks of joining Mint. I have noticed that Mint rehearsals ultimately tend to be much more disciplined and strict while Outburst tended to have moments of strictness but were ultimately extremely relaxed. One major difference concerning discipline was the response of each member towards discipline efforts and occasional reprimanding. The dancers that comprise Mint are high school and college students, professional corporate workers, and professional dancers. Because of this level of professionalism, directors and team captains expect their dancers to adhere to an extremely high level of professionalism – anything less is reprimanded by directors and team captains. In one particular instance, I was reprimanded by one of my directors for not fully paying attention to a director's instructions. As a result of being reprimanded as well as the consequence we were taught to fear by our directors, I was on my toes for the rest of the rehearsal and paid full attention to my directors' instructions. There were many other instances over the weekend in which dancers were reprimanded for bad behavior. In one instance, one of our team captains yelled at a group of dancers for being a distraction to other dancers being cleaned by a choreographer. In another instance, one of our directors yelled at a dancer for distracting another dancer while he was learning a new segment of choreography. Overall, discipline is expected of a dancer on Mint and anything less than that will be condemned. Although discipline on Outburst is also expected, discipline is often lacking at times. Dancers on Outburst are comprised of high school students, college students, and some working professionals. Outburst's reputation within the dance community is a happy, carefree team that expresses its love of dance through having fun while performing. Although this light-hearted attitude has positively helped the team, it has often taken a toll on team discipline. In many instances over the observation week, dancers had to have instructions repeated most of the time and were often disciplined. For example, dancers were instructed to warm up effectively before the beginning of practice. Despite these instructions, not many dancers adhered to these rules and looked over its importance. In addition, dancers were repeatedly told throughout rehearsal to show respect towards others and to remain focused. Although discipline and focus are cherished and valued on Outburst, they are often both overlooked leading to a laissez-faire atmosphere during rehearsal. Discipline is present within Outburst but is in need to be strengthened.
It has always been my intention to reflect upon the differences of my experiences with both Outburst Dance Company and Mint Dance Company. My observations through this ethnography have shown differences in rehearsal mentalities and efforts towards discipline. They have shown me that Mint Dance Company and Outburst Dance Company have extremely different mentalities concerning discipline and focus, which have both positive and negative attributes. Despite the aspects of each respective rehearsal that I have observed, both dance companies are ultimately their own entities, being extremely different in their approaches towards dance and work ethic. Each team has their own strengths and weaknesses through my observations, and I can say that I am a proud member of two talented, driven, and passionate dance companies.