As a dancer, you use your entire body to tell a story, to convey a feeling to your audience.

And that includes your facial expressions. But when you're up on that stage with the bright lights shining on you and the audience so far away, it's easy for your beautiful face to get a bit washed out in the lighting. Those subtle changes and expressions in your face can get drowned out and lost.

This is why stage makeup is just as an important part of every dancer's costume, perhaps just as important as their Dancewear. But stage makeup is a bit different from everyday makeup. It's more defined. Here is a stage-makeup guide to help you apply makeup, either for yourself or for your child.

Stage Makeup Supplies to Have

While you may not need all of these things, these are great to have in your arsenal.

• Makeup brush set, or at least a powder brush, blush brush, eyeshadow brush and a crease brush. If you plan to buy just one eyeshadow brush, opt for a small eyeshadow brush.
• Cosmetic wedges
• Black liquid eyeliner or pencil eyeliner
• Liquid foundation
• Eyeshadow primer
• Eyeshadow palette with light and dark complementary colors. You may choose colors that match or complement your Dancewear
• Black mascara
• Eyebrow powder or pencil
• Blush
• Red lipstick and red lip liner
• A bag or case to carry it all in

Applying Your Stage Makeup

The way you apply your makeup really makes a difference in whether or not your features and expressions are seen from the audience. Here are some application tips:

Foundation. Pick a liquid foundation that matches your skin tone or is just slightly darker. You don't want to go lighter; the bright lights will make it look even lighter than it is. Dampen a cosmetic wedge and apply foundation to your face, blending into your neck area.

For young girls, parents may choose not to apply foundation to their children. Make sure you check with your dance instructor on the makeup requirements, but most won't require such a heavy base for young girls.

Blush. In general, stage makeup is more dramatic, even for kids. Apply blush heavier than you would for your everyday look.

For younger girls who don't yet have defined cheekbones, have her smile as big as possible or make a fish face and apply blush on the roundest part of the cheeks.

Eyeshadow. As with blush, eyeshadow should be used to define your features and make them stand out. Start with a primer. This is not necessary, but it will help your eyeshadow stay put, and keep it pigmented.

Pick the lightest color, applying it from under the eyebrow to your lid crease. Take the next lightest color and apply it from the crease to the lash line. Finally, take your darkest or smoky color and blend it into the outside corner and into your crease line.

Eyeliner. You can pick liquid or pencil, but waterproof liquid will appear darker and will be more sweat-proof and smudge-proof.

Apply the eyeliner as close to the upper lash line as possible. You can choose to apply a little eyeliner on the lower lash line, but keep in mind that too dark eyeliner all the way around can actually make the eye look smaller and less open.

Mascara. Next, apply some mascara to your lashes. Like eyeliner, make your main focus your upper lashes. You can opt to apply false eyelashes if you'd like. Gently hold the lash against your eye to measure the desired length (Hint: You want it just slightly shorter than your eye) and trim the false eyelash. Next, using a little eyelash glue, lightly coat the root area of the eyelash and using a steady hand or a pair of tweezers to hold the lash still, place the eyelash as close to the base of your own lashes as possible. Allow the glue to dry before touching it.

Eyebrows. Eyebrows should be filled in and darkened, especially if you have naturally light eyebrows. Remember, the audience will have a hard time seeing these features when you're up on stage. So even if it looks too dramatic, it won't be when you're under those bright stage lights. Carefully outline and fill in brows using a color that is close to your natural color.

Lips. Lips should be bold so they stand out. Line your lips, or your child's lips, using a lipliner, staying within the lips natural line. Next, apply the lipstick inside the lipliner. You may want to blot the lipstick using a tissue, and apply one more coat. This will really help the lipstick stay put.

To get an idea of what a dancer's stage makeup looks like, take a look at this video for our catalog. You can see our dancer's with no makeup, and then made up as they would be for a stage performance.

A dancer's expressions can make all the difference when she is performing. The subtle movements in her face can enhance her body movements. And her stage makeup is key to getting her facial features and expressions seen when she's up on that stage, far away from the audience and under those bright lights. Use this stage make-up guide to help you apply makeup perfectly for any stage performance.