Spotlight on the Staff
The “stars” at Peninsula are most notably the multitude of amazing teachers, so the dance department decided to give them a chance to shine. This year marks the first showcase of “Dancing with the Staff,” organized by students of the Choreo Company. The competition was a fundraiser for the dance department, led by Loretta Tsudama, the coach of both Choreo teams, Song and the physical education dance program. Many people came to watch the show and vote for the teacher or duo they thought was the best. Tickets, sold by students in Choreo Company for the low price of $10, also helped attract people to come and watch. Despite this being the event’s first year, attendance was higher than anticipated, with over 80 spectators coming to show their support. This event was based off of a well known show called “Dancing with the Stars,” a dance competition that pairs a professional dancer with a celebrity guest. In this adaptation, 15 teachers were each paired with a group of four Choreo Company dancers. The teachers could either choose to work solo with their group or have another teacher be their partner. Considering how successful and engaging the show was for audience members and participants, it is confirmed to now become an annual event.
This idea was originally brought up in early November by Choreo students and was then approved to begin the choreography process in December. Dancers were given approximately two months to brainstorm and put together a choreographed piece, which they took a video of and later gave to their assigned teacher to practice with before the show. Freshman Elise Vu, a member of Choreo Company, rooted for the idea as soon as she heard it.
“We prepared for several months for this event,” Vu said. “It was [satisfying and exciting] to see it come to fruition. We had a lot of fun dances that we choreographed ourselves. In the coming years, I hope to have more teacher participation and more student turnout.”
The show was well-received, with most saying that they would definitely come back next year to participate or watch it again. The winning performance was a dance to “Getcha Head in the Game”, sung by Zac Efron from the well-known musical movie “High School Musical.” The official winners of the competition were Chemistry teacher and Girls’ Lacrosse coach, Paula Borstel and Government and Advanced Placement Psychology teacher, John Hangartner. Their supporting Choreo dancers were Annika Seiter, Tilli Wakefield-Carl and Maddie Tseng. Although Junior Alyssa Shavely’s group did not win, she had a great time planning and performing her dance.
“We started choreographing the routines two weeks before winter break, so that after winter break we would be ready to start working with the staff members,” Shavely said. “I felt really proud after my performances. Choreo Company has been working on this event for months and it was really rewarding to see all that hard work pay off. Even if we did not win, it was all about the fun along the way.”
Overall, students could not be more enthusiastic about this new event that they have created. This friendly competition brought together students and teachers alike toward a common goal while raising money for the dance department in the process. The winning prize was a paid day off for the teachers that won. While not everyone could win, the staff and students all had a great time bonding with each other and learning the dance moves made especially for them. English 2 Honors and Link Crew teacher Rebecka Dibble performed “Wannabe” by the Spice Girls and loved cheering her fellow teachers on.
“I would absolutely [perform] again and I am already looking forward to next year,” Dibble said. “It was super fun and the other teachers who danced were all supporting each other, the [energy] from the crowd was great. I could totally see this becoming more of a thing in years to come. This was the first year, so I think in future years it will get even more popular.”
