The show consisted of two acts. With performances ranging from Charli XCX mashups and salsa dancing to beautiful lyrical pieces. Solo performances, duets, trios, and quartets were also featured in the show.
The curtains opened to high school dance 3 in black, long-sleeve lace body suits with black shorts. The song? “Nueva Yol” by Bad Bunny. A salsa-style piece kicked the night off just right.
One performer, Layla Mesch, a freshman in the Dance 3 class, says she has “learned better technique through most of my dance routines going into our show.” Mesch performed in the numbers, “Nueva Yol” by Bad Bunny, choreographed by Christy Muckenthaler, “The Gallery” choreographed by Ashton Titus and Kevin Ivins of Backhausdance, and “Say it Right,” “Maneater” by Nelly Furtado, a student choreographed quartet alongside EdenGrace Dalisay, Mayah Earn, and Sophia Jadali. She later added, “Remembering choreography has to be the most challenging part of preparing for this show, because we have multiple dances in the show, it’s a lot to remember.” She hopes the audience takes away how much hard work they put into the dance, as well as the concepts.
The first act finished with an all-class performance called “The Gallery.” The piece created by Backhaus choreographer during a residency within the dance program, consisted of a collection of dances combined together. Each dance represented a different painting by famous artists. These paintings ranged from Georgia O’Keeffe’s ‘Red Canna’, and Vincent Van Gogh’s ‘The Starry Night’. Ending with all performers on stage to dance to Andy Warhol’s ‘Marilyn Monroe’ portrait—a fan favorite for many.
Another performer, Celine Simon, a junior in the Dance 2 class, commented on how the preparation of this show has changed her as a dancer, “I’ve definitely become more confident, as well as gotten more comfortable around my classmates. I’m honestly looking forward to the show instead of being nervous about it.”And later added, “Getting in sync with all the other dancers, and being on the same page with everyone has got to be the most challenging part of the whole show.” Simon performed in two numbers, “360,” by Chari xcx, a mashup of the songs “360”, “B2b”, and “Talk Talk”, choreographed by Morgan Beckman, Lexi Ranger, and Andrew Rinehart. She also commented on what she hopes the audience takes away from the show: “I hope they take away how much work was put into this, and see how creative we can be.”
Kairi Roby, a Dance 3 student in her Sophomore year, has expressed that she has received a lot more discipline in getting the choreography right in this show. The most challenging part for Kairi was making up her own choreography for her own solo in the showcase. Roby stated that her favorite dance had to be the High School dance 2, “360”, as she “enjoyed that it was a big group, and the costumes were good.” She hopes that the audience can take away all the dancers’ hard work and dedication that has gone into this show, as well as the messages that are interpreted into the dances. Lastly, Roby’s favorite costume from the show was the High School Dance Three group, as they were very cool.
With the show coming to an end, middle school Dance 3 came out before bows, performing their seen-before ‘country themed’ dance to the songs “Wild, Wild West” by Will Smith, and “Timber” by Kesha. Their costumes were jean shorts, bandannas around their neck, and black tank tops. A great show-wrapping performance.
Reflecting on the show, the high school Dance 2 class agreed in unison: they loved seeing their growth as dancers, the positive energy shared by the cast, and the simple joy of performing together on stage. November 21st and 22nd were nights to remember, not just for the dancers but for those who left the Sea King Theater feeling every bit of hard work and dedication that went into each and every movement. Make sure to check out the CdM dance department’s next show in the spring!
