The cafeteria filled with the chatter of Guard members as the time for practice rolled around. When guard instructor Mr. Nick McMahan walked into the room, the group of 15 dancers swarmed around him to practice lifting each other into the air for the year’s routine.
“Think less cheerleader, more graceful,” said Mr. McMahan, trying to coach freshman Ciara Valdez to stand correctly as she was lifted upward.
In the other half of the cafeteria, Guard tech Ms. Taylor Hunter instructed the girls on their new flag routine. They smiled and laughed as they danced around their flags in a choreographed circle.
“We can clean the footwork at a later time.” Ms. Hunter said. “Right now I want to perfect the flags.”
The students reset and prepped each move carefully in order to learn it for their first competition Jan. 27.
“We still have an hour, oh my god. This is going be the longest rehearsal ever,” sophomore Brooke Johnson said.
The dancers stood in a huddle listening to the song they would perform their routine to. They counted along, pictured the dance they would execute.
Against the background of evening skies, the other group held their flags and listened intently.
“They’re not even going to notice. We’re just going to have an amazing show,” Chavarria said, joking about how much the judges would love the show.
Standing in a circle, the girls passed off their flags to the performer beside them. Ms. Hunter reminded them to provide feedback to their partner if needed. Then, the girls went from every other one passing the flag to every person.
“Okay, but she does it fast. And violent,” senior Emma Randall joked at Chavarria after she missed the pass.
As 7 p.m. rolled around, the girls worked together to fold up the tarp covering the floor, packing away the night’s effort. They shared relieved smiles as they gathered their backpacks and headed home after a successful rehearsal.
