Dance Team held their annual auditions and welcomed back returning and new dancers, ready to “kick” off their 2024 – 2025 season.
Tryouts took place over four days, with mandatory clinics from April 29 to May 1 and the final audition on May 2. The clinics taught floor combinations which tested various areas of technique in dancers. Senior Dance Team members student-choreographed a routine to “Maneater,” by Nelly Furtado which was taught to auditioning dancers over the course of the three-day dance clinic, to be performed as their final audition. An additional portion to the tryout process required dancers to submit a headshot, essay on a provided prompt by the team, letter of recommendation, evaluation chart and letter of overall dance experience. Throughout the tryout, dancers were analyzed by their technique in group settings and individually.
The entire audition process took rigorous work put forth from the dancers. Equipped with their routine choreography, audition number, slick back hairstyles, stage makeup and half-soles dancers felt ready to give the tryout their all.
“I was definitely nervous going through this whole process. It took some time for me to pick up the pace with the choreography and technique.” incoming Dance Team member freshman Michelle Tran said. “During my time auditioning, I knew to keep smiling until the end and dance my heart out. Facial expressions and preciseness were things I tried to bring out a lot during this audition process.”
The process of tryouts is the same for all dancers alike, even returning members are required to re-audition. For 2-year returning member sophomore Savannah Huang, the feelings of excitement and anticipation remained unchanged from when she tried out her freshman year.
“I’m looking forward to a clean slate and I’m excited for our routines next year,” Huang said. “It was definitely still nerve wracking no matter how many times you audition. I was relieved after it was over.”
When the 2024-2025 team was announced, it was a memorable moment making the process all worth it for some dancers, especially Dance Team’s newest members. Crowned with silver headpieces proudly displaying, “I made Walnut Dance Team!,” dance team shirts and a sign made by Dance Team’s graduating seniors, complete with the teams roster for the upcoming season was a fond first memory shared between the new team.
“The moment I turned around and saw my name [on the poster], I felt sudden happiness. Being admitted to the dance team felt life changing. I saw this moment as something rewarding for all the hours of practice and training I put in, especially throughout this year,” Tran said. “That memory is something I cherish deeply, I will never forget it. I had to trust and have faith in myself and in the end, it truly felt rewarding making it onto this team.”
