Humor Editor
For their last hurrah of the 2022-2023 school year, the LGHS Varsity Dance Team performed at the spirit rally on Apr. 7 in front of their fellow Wildcats! After practicing for nearly two months, the girls performed their three minute routine to a variety of popular songs including No Hands by Waka Flocka, Family Ties by Kendrick Lamar, Say My Name by Beyonce, and Disco Inferno by 50 Cent.
In order to prepare for the spring rally, the team practiced twice a week and added in extra morning rehearsals during the months leading up to the performance. Each practice consisted of different areas of focus: choreographing, blocking formations, and cleaning the pieces till they were performed in unison. However, the process sounds easier than the reality. Team members, including graduating senior Sammantha Schmidt, began creating 45-60 second routines prior to rally rehearsals that featured classic hip hop moves and transitions to keep the crowd pumped up. She commented on her thought process for the choreography, noting that “Choreographing rally is always so much fun because it is so different from what we do at football and basketball games! I always try to make the rally a bit more fun and less serious so that it’s enjoyable not only for us dancers, but also for the crowd.”
On the day of the rally, the team left class early in order to do a couple final run throughs with the leadership class. Despite the nerves surrounding their final performance of the year, the team excitedly went through their number with facial expressions and never-ending energy. Junior Taylor Ford described the feeling of those final run throughs: “It was stressful, but everyone worked really hard in getting the dance to look good. I was mostly just looking forward to later when I could perform in front of my class.” After the practice, the team headed to the fieldhouse where they did final touches to hair and makeup and quickly reviewed corrections before heading onto the field in their uniforms — black leggings, uniform white sneakers, and their class t-shirt.
When it came time to perform, the routine went perfectly. Students cheered the girls on as they started the dance off with a bang, completing two backflips in the first 10 seconds. From there, the student sections only cheered louder as the team performed various headsprings, kip ups, and other tricks that wowed the crowd. Even the freshmen on the team shook off their nerves as the student body applauded their hard work. Freshman Mina Hilao expressed that at first, “I was scared to perform at first since it’s still one of my first few rallies, but the rest of the team had an encouraging energy so it ended up being great”.
While the season is over for these Wildcats, they are hosting tryouts for next year’s team on May 15th!
Categories: School Sports, Sports