The upper school dance show in January is quickly approaching, and unseen preparations are afoot; student choreographers have already begun creating their routines and teaching them to dancers.

The 10 choreographers who passed the selections and are taking the class select the various elements of their dance and have total creative control of their piece.

“We pick the music right away, at the very beginning,” student choreographer Miranda Larsen (11) said, “and then slowly as we go on, we have to pick costumes, and we have to tell them [the teachers] our lighting choices and formations. “

“The selection process is you would fill out an application if you are an incoming junior, to take the choreography class, and if you are accepted you take the choreography class, and then choreograph that year” student choreographer Tamlyn Doll (12) said.

Though student choreographers compose their own routines, dance teachers Rachelle Haun and Karl Kuehn provide insight and select the dancers who go into each routine.

“I do like being assigned dancers by teachers because it allows me to meet new people and talk to people that I wouldn’t usually talk to,” Tamlyn, said. “I know last year for my dance I met a lot of new friends through choreographing. I wouldn’t have normally talked to the same group of people.”

Choreographers draw inspiration from their peers, the theme of circus and their own experiences as dancers.

“All of the Harker choreographers that I’ve had during my time at Harker have definitely influenced me in some way,” student choreographer David Zhu (12) said. “Whether it’s hip hop, which is my preferred style, or jazz, or other types of styles, I think I’ve incorporated small elements of everybody’s style into my own style.”

Each choreographer has their own unique source of inspiration.

“I have a lot of basis in modern dance, and I draw a lot of personal inspiration from choreographers like Merce Cunningham, Martha Graham and my own teachers that I have been able to work with,” student choreographer Sanjana Marce (12) said. “That definitely inspires, both consciously and subconsciously, the work that I make.”

Student choreographer Liana Wang (11) was inspired by the theme of the show.

“For the dance I’m doing for this show, I was thinking, since it’s about circus, it reminded me of those Victorian road shows, back in the day,” Liana said. “So I was thinking of more traditional circus, so that’s kind of where I drew my inspiration from.”

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Anya Weaver

Riya Singh (10) prepares to execute a turn sequence during rehearsal. Participants in the production will perform this Friday.

Every week, student choreographers spend several hours working on their pieces; between one and seven hours choreographing and an hour rehearsing with dancers.

While there are many different reasons for students to take the choreography course, oftentimes they are pulled in by the promise of something new.

“ I did choreography last year, [and] it’s always been something I’m interested in,” Sanjana said. “I know that it’s very different from dancing itself, but it’s also an awesome process to be able to create your own pieces, and that’s something that I wanted to explore and be a part of.”

Some seniors who take the class are juniors who reapplied after taking it their junior year. The reapplication process included an interview with the dance teachers as well as a short solo routine to display the applicant’s choreography level and dancing skill set.

The dance show is on Jan. 28 at the Blackford theater.

This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on October 11, 2016.