Sleighing it

It’s that time of the year again: the annual Christmas Dance is just around the corner. For over ten years, students have been gathering every holiday season to watch their peers dance in the festive performance. Former Director of Dance Denise Dalton initiated the tradition. 

This year, a surprise is in order as the dance team is debuting new choreography and music. For the first time since its origin, the dance has changed. Maggie Coors ‘25 said, “The holiday dance has been the same for a very long time, and we are thrilled to give it a revamp.” 

Traditionally, the dance takes place directly after the holiday dinner celebrated at a family-style meal. “Usually everyone crowds into the student center, and there are chairs set up all around the fishbowl. The dancers are together in the middle, and face each side during the performance,” said Kaiya Hoffman, another dancer.

The preparation for the performance occurs in the few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas break. Stella Johnson ‘25 said, “We start with an audition and we decide the twelve or so people who get in. Usually, the captains take the lead in teaching the choreography to everyone else. Then, Ms. Rupp helps us clean and get everything organized, and we go out and do it.”

“We have about two one-hour rehearsals to get it together and clean,” Hoffman said. “The style of dance is called precision dancing. It is very specific and requires perfect unison, so it takes a lot of focus and dedication from the dancers,” said Coors. She also noted that the dance is comparable to that of the famous Radio City Rockettes. 

Senior dancer, Cricket Tatone ‘24 said, “[This dance] gets me into the holiday spirit. When I think of the few weeks between Thanksgiving and winter break, my mind immediately goes to the Christmas dance. [I] can't imagine a holiday dinner without the excitement of performing afterward.”

The Christmas dance serves as the bow that ties the weeks between the fall and winter break together.