The faint chatter of the crowd softened as the lights dimmed at the annual Dance Troupe winter show, Dec 3. For a moment, the theater was dark, illuminated only by a small Christmas tree perched by the stage. Then, the curtain was drawn, revealing the 17 members of Dance Troupe on the stage. Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” began to play, and instantly, the stage was filled with the cheerful movements of the dancers.
This year’s show is titled “Tis the Season” and consists of 19 dances, including appearances from Westview’s K-pop Culture Dance Club (KPCDC), Bayanihan, and Best Buddies.
“We’re performing a pretty big variation of styles and songs,” Sam Peiffer (12) said. “We have jazz, lyrical, contemporary, tap, hip hop. Every dance is unique.”
The opening dance was a jazz routine choreographed by Rosemary Cabanban (12), Emma Lam (11), and Sophia Sands (12). Dressed in Santa Claus outfits, Cabanban said they begin the dance with everyone on stage. Then, they break into three groups: leaps, legs, and turns. After each group performs, all the dancers join back together on stage to finish out the dance.
After a solo performance from Cabanban to “Seduces Me” by Celine Dion, Bayanihan took the stage. They performed the tinikling, a traditional Filipino bamboo dance. The dancers hopped and weaved between the clacking bamboo poles to the rhythm of “Coming Home” by Beabadoobee.
Following this performance, Dance Troupe performed “Sleigh Ride” by The Ronettes. In this routine, the upperclassmen perform with Dance Troupe 2.0, a group of boys that partner up with one dancer.
After intermission, the stage was reenergized with the friendship dance. To “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Hannah Montana, the Dance Troupe members took the stage partnered with students from Best Buddies.
“[The friendship dance] was started by Amelia Kane (’24), and I’ve upheld the tradition,” Peiffer said. “It’s a lot of work coordinating with everyone. One year, we had 50 total people, so it can be crazy, but it always turns out really fun.”
After the friendship dance, Dance Troupe performed a hip-hop routine choreographed by Grayson Skarsvaag (12) to “Partition” and “Diva” by Beyoncé. This high-energy dance received booming applause from the audience.
The energetic atmosphere was maintained by the KPCDC, which performed “Style” by Hearts2Hearts.
Shortly after, Dance Troupe performed “Poker Face” by Lady Gaga.
“I really like Cece Canty’s (#) jazz dance,” Peiffer said. “It’s towards the end of the show, so the audience has a really high energy by then, and the dance is super precise. It’s really sharp, fun, and a crowd pleaser.”
As the night came to an end, the dance troupe closed out the show with a remix of “Gimme More” by Britney Spears, “Maneater” by Nelly Furtado, and “Like a Boy” by Ciara.
“Our last dance all together is a culmination of our favorite football dances, mainly hip-hop,” Peiffer said.
With only about a month and a half to prepare for the winter show, Dance Troupe has been practicing in the early mornings and late evenings since Oct. 14.
Since many of the dances were curated by student choreographers, Peiffer said the performance gave many members the opportunity to be hands-on in the process of developing the show.
“I really like seeing everyone’s leadership come out with the student choreographers,” Peiffer said. “It’s cool to see someone who has maybe been shy throughout their time on the team, but then steps into the role of being a choreographer and they really shine through.”
In addition to all of the guest dancers, Peiffer said there are lots of new members to the team.
“We have quite a few underclassmen, three new sophomores and one freshman, and it has been really fun watching them grow,” Peiffer said. “My freshman year, it was always kind of scary talking to the upperclassmen, but I think we’ve done a good job of incorporating the underclassmen. We like bonding with them and try not to have separations for each grade.”
In her last year, Peiffer said she plans to savor every last moment dancing with the rest of the Troupe. She looks forward to Nationals in March and the spring show.
“It’s a lot of work and time to be part of Dance Troupe,” Peiffer said. “Sometimes it gets hard and can be frustrating, but knowing that I get to perform for my school and having pride in my school is why I do it. I’m surrounded by people who are so amazing, and I’m impressed every day how good these people on my team are, so I’m just pushing to be a better dancer every day.”
