![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
A cluster of dancers, loosely huddled together, rhythmically undulate in a mesmerizing cadence. A red spotlight illuminates their iridescent leotards and mesh pants as the dramatic intro of “(I Just) Died in Your Arms” by Hidden Citizens pulses throughout Patil theater. When the music reaches its climax, the passionate chaos on stage abruptly stops. The lights dim as the rest of the dancers disperse off stage and lone Cecilia Yang (12) shines amidst the darkness, concluding the 2024 upper school Dance Production.
‘Night and Day,’ the 2024 dance production featured around 90 dancers and 18 groups with performances held on Jan. 26 and Jan. 27 in the Patil Theater.
As per the theme of this year’s dance production, Director Rachelle Haun, who also choreographed five of the show’s routines, organized the theme of each dance to fit with different times of day and night.
“I think the dance production was really fun to watch, and it was interesting to see my friends perform,” attendee Iona Liu (9) said. “The first dance was also a cool opener, especially with the trampolines and the amount of dancers performing. I liked how clean and in sync everything was, and I thought the music was great too.”
Student choreographers, juniors Maya Affaki, Claire Cheng, Yasmin Sudarsanam, Arthur Wu and Sonia Yu and seniors Emma Cai, Selina Chen, Luke Mehta and Cecilia Yang, worked individually or with a partner to create one of the seven student-choreographed dances. Maya and Sonia co-choreographed Dinner and Diatribes, a contemporary dance that presented a dinner party starting prim and proper before descending into madness throughout the night.
“We incorporated a lot of smaller movements at the beginning, with everyone on the chair sitting very proper, back straight, and feet flat on the floor,” Maya said. “As we went on, we used the skirts and the arms a lot more. Our arms extended further out from our bodies rather than being close, and the movements got a lot bigger and faster.”
To qualify for choreographing for the dance production, students took two prerequisite courses with Haun. During Dance Composition, they learned the basics of choreography, such as utilizing formations or balancing movement rigor. After completing Dance Composition, students took Choreography, creating their dance production routines and receiving feedback from both Haun and their classmates.
“We basically choreographed as much as we would teach in the next class,” Maya said. “At the beginning, we choreographed the first chorus, which we could teach in the first class to get a feel of how our dancers picked up the choreography and if they liked it. Then, we went from the beginning and kept on going until the end.”
Haun emphasizes the importance of student choreographers in dance production. Their involvement allowed all dancers who auditioned to participate in the show, enhancing the scale and impact of the production.
“We had a lot of very talented and committed student choreographers,” Haun said. “Because we had so many choreographers that cared so much about their final product, we had a lot of very strong routines. There really weren’t any weak routines this year, so we were lucky.”
In preparation for the dance production, tech crew members, choreographers and dancers all attended full run throughs on the week of Jan. 21.
A dancer in four routines, Tiana Salvi (11) highlights the excitement she felt from the last few rehearsals in which performers first showcased their routine on stage in front of fellow dancers. The bond created through watching every routine made the process of preparing, working and performing in the show even more memorable, according to Tiana.
“During the last week [of rehearsals] when all the dancers come together, you see and hear everyone cheering for you because they’re seeing your dance for the first time,” Tiana said. “Throughout the week, even when everyone sees the dances 10 times, it’s the same energy. You really feel the community that Harker dance has. It’s like a family where everyone supports each other.”
