As the theatre lights began to dim, an anticipatory hush settled over the auditorium; the coal-black curtains rolled open, and the varsity and junior varsity dance troupes materialized across the stage in the opening number of the Upper School’s production of “Welcome to the Jungle” on May 4 at the Blackford Theatre.

The upper school dance department held one performance of its annual dance production on the evening of January 30 and two performances on January 31; a matinee and an evening show. The dancers performed each evening show to a sold-out auditorium.

This year, the show encompassed two acts, which were titled “Welcome to the Jungle” and “Animal Inhabitants” and featured a record-high 135 dancers in 22 dances. The dance department invited choreography students to choreograph dances in the show alongside a set of professional instructors. The overarching theme of “Welcome to the Jungle” was ultimately chosen following discussion between the department, teachers and students.

A member of Harker’s dance program for the past six years, all-American dancer and varsity dance troupe mainstay Noel Banerjee (12) reminisced upon her years with the program. “Welcome to the Jungle” is the the second upper school dance production Noel has choreographed in.

“I took the mistakes or bumps in the road that I made last year and made sure to switch things up this year,” Noel said. “My [groups] both years were so hard working and talented, and my visions come true. I absolutely love to perform, dancing in the shows [is] awesome and I’m so lucky to have been a part of it all.”

Recently, Noel had the honor of dancing in London’s New Year’s Day Parade alongside fellow varsity troupe dancer Darby Millard and other all-Americans in the field of dance. She and Darby were named all-Americans after attending a dance seminar hosted by the United Spirit Association (USA) during the summer of 2014. Dancing since the tender age of four, Noel is considering double majoring in the art next fall.

The dance department selected seniors Noel, Darby, Sindhu Ravuri, Erika Olson, Jacqui Villarreal, Ryan Pachauri, Ashir Bansal and Andrew Zhang as well as juniors Allison Wang, Helena Dworak, Emily Pan and Ankita Sharma to choreograph dances in this year’s show.

Like Noel, this was varsity dance troupe captain Darby’s second year choreographing with the production. Endeavoring to learn from past mistakes and improve her choreography by integrating more contemporary, advanced styles, she encourages aspiring choreographers to experiment and take risks.

“Since this was my second year choreographing, I was not as nervous,” Darby said. “I knew what to expect, what goes into the makings of a piece; I wanted was to improve and learn from my mistakes. I was happy with how my dance turned out because I went outside of my comfort zone [with] a different style.”

Dance has played a pivotal role in Darby’s life. Recollecting her past as budding student of dance, she emboldens new and self-conscious dancers to enter the program by participating in the year-long dance classes and the production.

“Welcome to the Jungle” director and varsity dance troupe coach Karl Kuehn attributes the success of the shows to the dedication and energy of the dancers. Kuehn counts the seniors’ performance in their last upper school dance production as bittersweet, yet beautiful.

“I truly enjoy seeing the students’ dedication, passion and effort come alive onstage during each performance,” Kuehn said in email interview.

Kuehn commented on seeing his, the instructors and the dancers’ visions come to fruition, and how rewarding the final product had proven to be.

“Creatively, I am always amazed at how the process enables me to start with an [often crazy] idea, and with the teamwork of the dancers, production staff and crew, see the idea come to life,” he said.

Going into the show, Emre Ezer (10), who has danced with the program for the past four years, wanted to put on a successful performance for the audience and develop as a performer.

“[My hopes were] mostly just to have fun and create memories to last a lifetime, but also to improve my dancing skills,” Emre said.

Junior varsity troupe dancer Noor Singh (10) references her sixth grade audition for the middle school’s Dance Fusion group as the inception of her Harker dancing career. She believes the audition was where her love of the art first originated.

“I dance because I can express myself, and I just find it really fun; I love being able to improve,” Noor said. “I just love dancing with the all the other girls, and it’s so much fun to be a part of such a big program at Harker.”

Noor regards her fellow junior varsity troupe members akin to family.

During the intermission, single-stem roses and bouquets were available for sale at tables located along the sides of the auditorium, and many audience members could be seen lining up in the long queue to make purchases.

Following Saturday night’s finale number, the teary-eyed senior choreographers presented varsity coach Kuehn and junior varsity troupe instructor Rachelle Haun with bouquets, while several made speeches, and a few cried intermittently. The seniors of the varsity dance troupe presented Kuehn with a duck bill in recognition of the fact that he has played the nurturing role of a “Mama Duck” towards them.

As the ceremony and subsequent festivities ended, the night came to close with the performers breaking out in spontaneous dance and very same coal-black curtains being drawn, marking the culmination of “Welcome to the Jungle.”