The dancing before dribbling

Running to the center of the court as “Look at Me Now” by Chris Brown starts to play, the hip hop teams—a total of 30 people—from Dancecapade, a dance studio located in Diamond Bar, with their black and white Nike Dunks kicking out, synchronize their movements to a carefully tailored choreography which the team has been practicing for weeks before. 

Freshmen Bethany Yu, Kaitlyn Shieh and 10 other teammates dance together on their dance studio’s high school hip hop team, their most recent performance bringing them to perform with the other pre-teen and teen hip hop teams at the Los Angeles (LA) Lakers versus Clippers basketball game Sunday, Jan. 19 at the Intuit Dome. 

They were given a total of four minutes on the court, around 20 minutes before the game started, to perform a total of seven songs including “Look at Me Now” by Chris Brown, “No Hands” by Roscoe Dash and Waka Flocka Flame and “Ayy Ladies” by Travis Porter. 

“A lot of my friends had their adrenaline kick in before [the performance]. But for me, it didn’t kick in until I was actually on the court,” Shieh said. “I was really out of breath after but it was a really nice experience, especially getting onto such a widely known court.”

The performance at the game was a special event organized by the studio director. In the past, the jazz teams used to perform for the South Bay Lakers in the G-league, but this was the first time any team had performed in the National Basketball Association. 

“We were really surprised when she told us that we had this opportunity. I remember I was looking up at the Jumbotron and it was so cool seeing [us] there. I think I saw my friend there on the screen and I was like, ‘Oh, she’s here too!’” Shieh said. 

The performance was choreographed by dance instructors and professional dancers Kylie Montoya and Camille Hernandez. In the past, Montoya was a part of Clippers Spirit, which led to coaching opportunities for both Clippers Spirit and kid Clipper entertainment teams. Returning to the court coaching for Dancecapade, she felt a sense of nostalgia: “Getting to see both organizations that I hold near and dear to my heart combine was pretty cool. It was really special for me to be down on the court and revisiting my old stomping grounds,” she said.

The teams practice an average of 3-5 times per week. Specifically for the hip hop team, they try to have at least three practices per month to prepare for performances. While the girls share their passion for dance, they prefer different dance styles. Yu prefers dancing hip hop because it is more “carefree and expressive.” On the other hand, Shieh prefers contemporary dancing for its “smooth and soft” movements. 

“Dance helps me stay fit. I grew up doing it and I have a lot of good friends in dance, so it’s a very safe space for me,” Yu said. 

Both having started at a young age of 5 and 8-years-old, Yu and Shieh, respectively, were inspired by their friends and family to join dance. Initially when she started, Yu danced ballet. When she grew older, she decided to join Dancecapade and was introduced to jazz, lyrical and hip hop styles. Similarly, when Shieh joined Dancecapade, she was enrolled in jazz ballet and tumbling classes. Both Yu and Shieh enjoy the community in Dancecapade that helps foster growth and development in their skills. 

“Dancecapade was the only studio where I felt growth. Everyone was inspiring and good at dance so I wanted to be like that,” Yu said, having taken classes at several studios before Dancecapade. She mentioned that the driving force behind her growth is the high level of skill by her peers, inspiring her to work harder.

“It can be frustrating when you don’t have the same skill asset as other people but you have to try to put that behind you and just work on improving. You have to think about it like they’re pushing you and motivating you to work harder because you’re in the same team,” Yu said. 

Although they are not planning to pursue a career in dance, Yu and Shieh look forward to dancing in Showstopper, one of the best ranked national dance competitions, this Spring season. 

“I’m really proud of my dancers for putting their best foot forward and getting to represent myself and Dancecapade as a whole,” Montoya said.