Dance performs ‘Under the Big Top’
JOHN ROUTH >> THE LANCER
January 27, 2012 • Kelly Wisneski, News Editor
Filed under News, Top Stories
They passed between two looming balloon-clowns
to fi nd themselves standing “Under the Big Top” that
was once the PAC lobby.
The parents and students slowly fi lled the auditorium
for the dance program’s annual Winter Dance Concert,
which ran from Thursday, Dec. 1 to Saturday, Dec. 3.
“I think it turned out amazingly considering the
amount of people that were involved in it,” fourth period
dance member junior Annalea Fusci said. “It’s a
lot to organize, but it was defi nitely a success.”
Members of fourth period played a larger part in the
show than they had in previous years. Dance teacher
JaLeen Murphy divided the 70 dancers into three
groups, each third performing one dance. The groups
combined to perform the clock-themed “Gold Time” in
the second half.
Fusci appreciated the way in which Murphy dealt
with the amount of students in her period.
“It’s a lot easier to choreograph for 20 kids than it
is for 70,” she said. “It’s nice to be in a different dance
with less people so there’s more room and more of a
chance to dance.”
Another variation from last year’s show was the emphasis
on transitions between dance routines.
“We worked on how the dances worked together,”
Murphy said. “It felt like you were at a circus from
start to fi nish.”
This year, Murphy also provided $1,500 worth of
lighting, which she said produced more vibrant colors,
and commissioned circus tent decorations in the auditorium
and lobby.
“It felt very fi nished,” she said.
The emcees, juniors Alex Karukas and Michael
Seltzer, used playful side-skits to put the dance performances
into context. With the help of their Master
Book of Evil Circuses, their characters attempted to use
the ‘evil circus’ to accomplish world domination.
“We were trying to get the audience to be involved
yet trying to get them creeped out,” Seltzer said. “In
the end it’s supposed to be heartwarming even though
we’re evil.”
Although the duo had some instruction from Murphy
and wrote their own script, a good portion of the fi nal
product was improvisation.
“If we needed to get the plot going or we were just
bored with the lines, we’d change it up,” he said. “Especially
with the live theatre, if something doesn’t go
the way you want it to—which it will—you just have
to work with it.”
Murphy is unsure of whether or not the duo will continue
as a recurring theme in the shows despite their
involvement in the past several concerts.
“My job is to make a great production,” Murphy
said, “and it’s hard with so many other students that
want to do it.”
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