[quote]By Drew Danko
Online Editor
Photo courtesy of Renee Eason[/quote]

How long have you been dancing?

I took ballet when I was around four, and then I stuck with it. I have been dancing competitively since first grade, but I was dancing before that.

What does dancing mean to you?

I’ve been doing it for so long, and it’s such a big part of my family since we’ve done it forever. I’ve met some of my best friends in high school through dance, so I have orchesis to thank for that. It’s helped me grow as a person and become more confident and outgoing.

How did you decide to do orchesis?

My older sister was on it, she joined during her freshman year, which was the first year it started. She was a senior when I was a freshman, so I joined since she was on it.

How did you decide to apply and become president?

I’ve always tried to take a leadership role in it, because orchesis has always been really important to me. When I quit competitive dance, orchesis was all I had, so I knew that I could focus all of my time on it. For people who do both, it would be really hard, so I just wanted to be a leader my last year before I left.

What does it mean to you being president?

It means a lot because I set the mood of the troupe. I help run rehearsals, do a lot of choreography, and I do a lot of outside stuff for our showcase, like posters and advertising. I make sure I know everyone on the time and push everyone to get close to each other. It’s really important to me because I’ve made it my goal to get to know everyone on the team well, so I’ve met a lot of people. We’re definitely the closest we’ve ever been, and I feel like I take a part in that.

What is your favorite memory of orchesis?

Every year, tech week is always really fun. Tech week is the week before our show, and we are here until nine or 1o each night staging, doing lights, and practicing to get ready for the show. We always get so close that week, because we have so much down time, so we’re always talking and all together. It’s a super fun week that we all get together.

What are you going to miss most about orchesis?

I’ll definitely miss the girls. I’ll miss being a part of a team like that. Also, I’ll miss dance in general because I’m not dancing in college, It’ll always be a part of my life, but I’m not doing it anymore competitively, so I’ll miss doing it on stage.

What are you excited for people to see in the showcase?

I’m excited for them to see everything, because it shows all the hard work we’ve put in all year and that it has paid off. I really like the partner dance because it’s really funny and I think we did a good job with that this year. It’s fun to see how excited the boys get about being in the show, sometimes we joke that they’re more excited than we are.

The orchesis dance showcase “Shifting Limits” is this Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium. Students can purchase tickets during all lunch periods Monday through Friday for $5. Tickets will be sold at the door for $8, $10 for adults.