With National Dance Week beginning Saturday, how are students celebrating?

Brick Ban, Ambassadors member and junior

What do you like most about dance?

“To me, dancing is a different medium throu
gh which you can express emotion. The difference between dancing and talking is that dancing is not worn out. When you say ‘I love you,’ it comes to mean absolutely nothing just because people say it every two seconds. When you are dancing you can connect to another person on an emotional level that cannot be described or imagined by someone who doesn’t dance. It goes so much deeper than a physical activity. People argue that
at dance is a sport but I find that insulting. It is far more physically demanding than any sport I can think of and yet there is an artistry behind it that make it so much more impressive.”

What got you interested?

“Who doesn’t want to get up and dance when they hear a cool song on the radio? It’s just such a fun thing to do. It’s not so much a desire or inspiration; it is a need to dance.”

What’s the most difficult part?

“The most difficult part of dancing is a question that would take years to explain. There is absolutely nothing easy about it. But that is one of the reasons it is so much fun. You constantly have to strive for perfection, but you also have to live with the fact that it’s impossible, your whole life is the pursuit of something that doesn’t exist. I guess that also qualifies dancers as crazy. We are chasing after something that isn’t even there.” People who play sports don’t have to make their sport look easy.”

Molly O’Connor, ambassadors member and junior 

 What do you like most about dance?

“I think dance is a really great way for people to express themselves especially if they’re too shy to sing in front of an audience. But also it’s just a lot of fun and I really love challenging myself so it’s been a great way to do that.”

What got you interested?

“I started dancing because I wanted technical training since I’m very involved with musical theater and show choir. However, once I started it, I really began to love it separately from choir which made me want to join it competitively and take more classes. The thing about dancing that’s hard to swallow is that not everything can be learned and perfected and mastered as fast as you want it to be.”

What’s the most difficult part?

“I’m always seeing something I want to learn or watching someone else who I can learn from but it feels like there’s always so much more to improve and develop no matter where you are in your training.”

Kenny Lin, hip-hop dancer and senior

What do you like most about dance?

“Dancing is a universal language that brings people together. You can connect with others without speaking a single word. The cool thing about dance is all you need is rhythm. You can communicate the same ideas whether you practice dance or not. Dance is powerful.”

What got you interested?

“I pursued dance. I wanted to assign self-worth and elevate my ‘game.’ By learning break dancing, or b-boying, I hoped to get ladies. It all started freshman year with Hip Hop club. I watched my upperclassmen dance flawlessly, and it was mind-blowing. However, by the end of the month and throughout the next few years I learned that dance was not just to show off to others, it was like what I said earlier, a form of communication. I was the paint brush and the floor was the canvas. Just like poetry, certain movements in dance convey different emotions.”

What’s the most difficult part?

“So, the most difficult part of dance, for me, is consistency. There are always ways to improve your own dance, but it takes a lot of dedication to keep practicing.”

Katy Hook, Color Guard member and freshman 

What do you like most about dance?

“You can do so much with the style of dance. There are many different types so you can basically express yourself any way you like.”

What got you interested?

“I started dancing when I was 3 years old, and I got more into dance because I wanted to be an Ambassador like my cousin. I specifically got into Color Guard because my brother was in marching band.”

What’s the most difficult part?

“Sometimes, it can be stressful stepping onto the color guard floor. It’s difficult to only think about Color Guard and keep the rest of your life balanced.”