As dance teachers, we could win awards for our attention to detail. Here’s a checklist just detailed enough to make your obsessive-compulsive heart sing a little louder. (You’re welcome!)

1. Butt glue to keep your dancers’ leotards in place. (We’ve found it’s best to avoid surprises caused by a slippery leo.)

2. A lifetime supply of bobby pins

3. Enough hairspray to burn a hole through the ozone

4. Your laptop with all your music on your hard drive (just in case)

5. A second copy of your music on a thumb drive (better safe than sorry)

6. A third copy of your music on a CD. (It’s archaic, but you never know.)

7. A final copy of your music on your iPhone or Android. (Now you’re clear!)

8. Nail polish remover. (Chipped black nail polish onstage is an unpardonable dance sin.)

9. Chocolate. (We can’t stress this enough.)

10. Diet Coke, the key to survival. (You can use the leftovers to clean the floors of your studio.)

11. Xanax (just joking) (but not really)