In celebration of Lunar New Year, Korean Pop Culture Dance Club (KPCDC) members danced to “Loco” by ITZY, “Stereotype” by STAYC, and “The Feels” by TWICE, pulling off coordinated choreography and multiple formation transitions, Feb. 1. Only one week before, they were notified that they had the opportunity to perform in the amphitheater during lunch for the Lunar New Year celebration.

Luckily, they had been practicing their dances since November, but there was still a scramble to clean up their choreography. For Co-Presidents Tanisha Prabhu (12) and Liahnne Kym Ico (11), the short notice didn’t dissuade them from performing with the rest of their club members. After all, this was the first time in almost two years that the club had the chance to perform in-person due to the pandemic.

“The last time I performed in-person was my sophomore year, so I personally was really excited,” Prabhu said. “It’s really fun to do the [dance] formations, which is something you can’t do virtually.”

Secretary Chhaya Maurya (12) also participated in the performance. Even though she had done Lunar New Year performances before with KPCDC since freshman year, she was nervous to be performing in front of a crowd after not doing so for a long time.

“I was actually shaking, like my knees were shaking,” Maurya said. “But then, when we got on stage and everyone started dancing together, I just focused on doing my part and enjoying myself.”

Because of the late notice of the performance opportunity, the dancers had to rush to perfect their routines. Initially, the planned routines posed a challenge for the group due to how many people were involved in the performance. In particular, KPCDC struggled with the eight-person “The Feels” choreography.

“There’s a lot of formation changes, and when it comes to eight people doing formation changes, it was a lot at first,” Ico said. “[The number of dancers] also made it hard to get perfect attendance during practice.”

However, the dancers were determined to perfect their routine and put on a performance they would be proud of.

“We could really see their determination,” Prabhu said. “Nearing the performance date, they were like ‘Okay, let’s do this. This is our time to show who we are as a club.’”

Prabhu said that a determined and supportive environment was crucial at this time.

“When people were having a hard time with the dances, other members were there to support them,” Prabhu said. “There were some people who were like ‘Should I back out of the dance?’ but everyone was there to pick each other up and that really made a difference.”

Ico and Prabhu said these rehearsals were their favorite memories from their time in the club.

“It’s really nice to see everything come together,” Prabhu said. “When everyone’s [immersed] in the moment, I just feel really accomplished because I contributed to this.”

Ico said she loves seeing the members gain more confidence in themselves through dancing.

“I really enjoy when the members come out of their shell and try to get more involved [in the club],” Ico said. “They really grow as a dancer, and as a person too. I love seeing them shine in our dances and performances.”

Maurya said that the welcoming atmosphere was what drew her to join KPCDC in the first place.

“When I found out [Westview] had a K-pop club, I [thought it was amazing]” Maurya said. “It’s so cool because it’s a group of people that share the same interests. I could do what I wanted without feeling embarrassed in front of other people or without other people judging me. [KPCDC] is a place where anyone can come and just dance or share what they love about K-pop.”

Prabhu shares the same sentiment for the club.

“I went to a private school where there were only 18 kids in one class,” she said. “It was a big change when I came to this school, which has 2,000 students. I never felt like I fit in but the first day I joined KPCDC, I never felt excluded.”

Ico is not only thankful for the community she has found in the club, but also the self-confidence it brought her.

“I met a lot of great people through the club when I joined,” Ico said. “I’m grateful [KPCDC] led me to so many new friends. [Dancing] helped me with my confidence. I was really shy and I had bad posture, and dancing helped me with both those things.”

Despite some negative judgment towards people who enjoy K-pop, the bond that the members share keeps the club a positive, supportive space.

“Don’t be ashamed to like something just because others judge you because you’re definitely going to be part of this community that’s going to love you and accept you for who you are,” Prabhu said.

Ico adds that KPCDC encourages new members to join the club even if they feel nervous about dancing.

“There’s definitely no judgment, even if you’re a bad dancer,” she said. “I know for sure I was a horrible dancer when I first joined the club. We just come to have fun and dance.”