“There’s something tonight for everybody,” said Michelle Briscoe, Community High School’s Dance Body teacher, kicking off the Dance Body Winter Concert on a blustery Friday night. “Somebody will leave here inspired this evening.”

On Jan. 18 2013, Dance Body members came together and performed their hearts out. All 25 students were divvied up between sixteen dances, which in total lasted for about two hours. Junior Sofie Sylvester, who danced in fifteen out of the sixteen performances, really enjoyed this show. “I like that our show is so diverse because we each have different styles of dance. [The audience] can enjoy Adina Nadler’s fun and funky piece, and a serious and deep piece like Sofie Kromis’s.”

More than a few members of the audience did go home inspired, but it was the dancers who really gained from this long-anticipated performance. Clara Keane, a freshman in Dance Body, said, “Once we get out on stage and start dancing, it’s gonna come full circle and we’re gonna be so glad that all the hard work we’ve put into this has been worth it.”

“It’s been both a good time and challenging,” added Louisa Judge, another Dance Body freshman. “It’s hard to teach other people your choreography because they don’t always grasp what you’re trying to explain or what you want. It’s especially hard to teach people your own age or older because you don’t want to be mean to them, but we don’t have that much time so you have to be really strict to get a lot of work done.”

Keane agreed that teaching your dance is the most frustrating part of the program, but it’s also incredibly gratifying: “I think choreographing and teaching people your dance makes you a better dancer.” After experiencing dance from both perspectives, as a dancer and as a choreographer, Keane has a greater appreciation for dance.

In addition to gaining skills in dancing, the dancers have had some touching moments throughout the semester. “Our teacher is really strict and keeps everything on a really tight schedule, so it’s really nice when she says things like, ‘I’m really, really proud of all of you’. It makes me feel like it’s not just a grade,” Judge admitted. This sense of “more than just a grade” is what makes this class, and Community in general, such a meaningful experience.

It’s impressive that, with such discipline, Dance Body members were able to form such strong friendships. “We’ve gotten closer to a lot of upperclassmen that we usually wouldn’t interact with,” Keane said. “We’ve all [gotten to] know each other so well.”

The dancers agree that what really made the program successful and special is the wide variety of individuals and characters that make up Dance Body. “Michelle is great,” said Sylvester. “She’s brought some new ideas to dance body, which we need.” The fresh take on the program combined with the dancers made for a unique show. “Everything just sort of reflects the choreographer’s idea and we have a lot of different people with a lot of personalities,” Judge noted. This came through in the final product, as the concert ranged from silly and spunky to deep and dramatic, and always with talent to spare.