In the warm, muggy P.E. gym immediately after school, the varsity Silver Spurs stand in formation, ready to clean up their jazz competition routine to the song “Burlesque.” Even during practice, the team maintains uniformity. All the dancers wear matching light pink shirts adorned with blue anchors, black leggings, hair up in high ponytails, and black or tan jazz shoes.
“Cross your right leg over left and put your hands on your hips,” senior Captain Alex Corpus said, standing in front of her team.
“Yes ma’am,” the team replies in unison.
“Hold five, six, seven, eight. Hold one. Go two. Three, four.”
Alex calls out the counts as the team practices the piece of the dance. Dancers usually count the beats in music by eight. They memorize what move goes on which count.
“Everyone do this with me- one, two, slap three, look four!” Corpus calls as she demonstrates the new dance piece.
“Try again.” Corpus said. “What count does your foot come in?”
“Six.” The team replied in unison.
“Right. Try again. Let me see that from six, seven, eight.”
“Yes ma’am.” The dancers answered respectfully.
Dance instructor Brooke Parlin watches the team from the bleachers, occasionally making corrections and giving encouragement to the dancers.
“Some people’s arms are swinging and then going down…Thank you for fixing those arms. That looks way better.” Parlin said.
The vibrant music resounds around the roomy gym from the portable radio. The dancers smile when the coach instructs “Faces on!” as the music begins. Then, the music stops less than a minute in.
“Let’s try it again.” Parlin said.
The song resumes and the dancers give their best effort. During the busy jazz routine, junior Madison Giese makes her way to the front to take the spotlight with power tumbling- a series of flips that take her from one side of the gym to the other.
During the routine, a few of the dancers, including juniors Ally Accipiter and Mia Williams, perform a difficult move called seconds (a move where the dancers continuously spin on one leg while the other leg moves back and forth from the front out to the side) along with their captain, while the rest of the team ducks down.
Dismissing the girls as the basketball team arrives, Parlin calls, “Get a quick drink of water, get the radio, and let’s go back to the dance room.”
