Ridge Dance Team Takeover

Art+credits+to+Divya+Agrawal%21

Art credits to Divya Agrawal!

Emma Havighorst ‘16, Entertainment Editor

Before Tuesday rehearsal begins, the members of Ridge Dance Team chat and begin to warm up. There is an exciting energy in the room as they run their dances. Ridge Dance Team spends only an hour and a half together each week to rehearse three dances, but the girls happily proclaim that they’ve been “winning everything” at competitions this season.

Throughout this school year, RDT (as members call it) has won many gold and platinum awards, the highest levels of achievement in dance competitions. In addition, they have won numerous judges awards such as “Broadway Bound” and “Best Choreography.” Judges awards indicate that the dance stood out to a particular judge, and that the judge wants to commend the dance and the team performing it for outstanding work in a specific area.

In its most recent competition, the Beyond the Stars Dance Competition, Ridge Dance Team ranked very highly. It received first place in category for the small group jazz dance, “It Don’t Mean a Thing”; fifth for the small group hip-hop, “I Wanna Rock Right Now”; and first for the large group hip-hop dance, “Universal Mind Control.”

Despite the high levels of achievement, RDT member Deirdre McMahon ‘17 reminds non-dancers that “while many studios tend to be competitive, filled with plenty of drama, Ridge Dance Team is an extremely supportive environment for everyone to have fun and grow as a dancer!”

In perhaps its most important role, RDT helps girls of all ages get to know each other and support each other, whether it is through help on a dance, in classes, or with personal drama. When Sammi Laham ‘19, a freshman on the team, was asked what her favorite part of Ridge Dance Team was, she replied, “I love how close knit everyone is, and that coming into high school, everyone helped the transition so much.”

As Ridge Dance Team Captain Jess Burchett ‘16 summarizes, the team environment is “a family and we focus on having fun while still getting things done and improving our dance skills.”
Ridge Dance Team is dominating the competition season. Look out for them, folks – you’re not going to want to miss their next performance in the Spring Dance Showcase on May 13.