The stage was set and the excitement shimmered as five Upper School dancers prepared to showcase their skills in two performances in Mary Eliot Chapel. The dancers performed a daytime show for Middle School students and held an evening performance for parents and classmates.
The concert featured a diverse array of dance styles, ranging from modern to jazz and even K-Pop. The dancers put in many hours of practice, perfecting their moves and honing their craft to create an enjoyable and inspiring experience for everyone in attendance.
One of the highlights of the evening was the duet Lemon Boy, which was choreographed by Ella Lin ’26 and Azael Mayer ’24. The piece was a beautiful fusion of styles and synchronization.
Summer Beasley, Dance Coordinator & Middle School P.E. Teacher, was thrilled to encourage these young dancers to showcase their skills and creativity on stage. She enjoyed watching the dancers express their unique styles and personalities in each performance.
One dancer found that learning the choreography was more fun than performing it because getting the movements right the first time was the most satisfying part. Mayer said, « My favorite song to dance to this year was MANIAC by Stray Kids. K-Pop songs and dances, in general, are really fun, and I find them accessible for people who don’t have a lot of experience dancing because there are so many guides on how to do the dances for different K-Pop songs. In most dance genres, choreography is not meant to be copied from someone else because that would be plagiarism. In K-Pop, though, the choreographers intend for people to learn the moves, and there are even competitions over who can copy the original choreography the closest. »
Rosine Stansberry ’23 added, « Performing for an audience always has a sense of finality, especially this year. This year was rather bittersweet as it wasn’t only the end of the season, but as a senior, the end of me dancing at MICDS. Practices focus on having fun with the process; we learn, mess up, fix, and change things. This year I was in three pieces. One focused on moving different parts of our body individually—which I find very fun to do—and had more sharp, clean movements. For another one, I picked the music, and it’s a song I very much enjoy. The last dance was a K-Pop cover. They’re very fast-paced and have a lot of smaller, more detailed movements. We used a mirrored version of the original group’s dance practice video and someone else’s tutorial to help us learn it this year. It’s always immensely satisfying when towards the end, we realize that we’re actually pulling it off. The K-Pop cover is always a favorite, and it was our best piece this year. »
After the evening concert, the dancers participated in a Q&A session with the audience, allowing everyone to ask questions and learn more about the creative process behind their performances.
Many thanks to Mrs. Beasley and Helen Li ’23, Lin, Mayer, Angel Pura ’23, and Stansberry for creating a celebration of creativity, talent, and hard work and for inspiring others with their art! Additional thanks to our lighting, sound, and backstage crew members Lola Compton ’27, Aubrey Diamond ’27, and Siva Ram ’27.
Click here to view the performance program, and check out the video below of the evening performance!