The past few months have been busy in the dance world inside and outside of Millbrook High School. In late January, the Universal Dance Association Nationals took place in Florida at the Walt Disney Resort. The highly competitive event featured powerhouse collegiate dance teams such as Ohio State University (Ohio State), Louisiana State University (LSU), and the University of Minnesota. The esteemed competition gained attention outside of the dance world after last year’s performances from Ohio State and University of Minnesota went viral on TikTok. The two schools, who both performed highly, garnered large debate online regarding who should win. Specifically, LSU’s hip hop routine was heavily loved online.
Once again this year the Ohio State University and the University of Minnesota dance teams showed out in the jazz category. Online, the hashtag #DanceSuperBowl25 was used as content creators on TikTok discussed their excitement for the competition. Ohio State took first place in the jazz category with an electrifying routine to “Moulin Rouge” choreographed by Carsen Rowe. In third place was the University of Minnesota who performed “This Woman’s Work”. Their routine was choreographed by Amanda Gaines and Anna Hilt. Millbrook sophomore Carston Dunton said, “I liked Ohio State’s routine, but I think Minnesota should’ve won first just because they had really great storytelling.” This was a common perspective expressed online but a shift from last year, however, where Minnesota faced criticism for focusing too much on the technical side of the choreo and not the story. This year, critics felt that Ohio’s routine was too technical, and had a lack of narrative.
On February 14th through the 16th, the Wildcat Pride Dance Team competed in the National Dance Alliance High School Nationals. The team is coached by Darius Anthony, who worked hard leading the team to nationals. In an interview Anthony said, “In order to compete at nationals we had to attend the National Dance Alliance Camp over the summer and get a bid, the team has worked so hard I’m very proud of them.” The team’s Hip Hop routine choreographed by Nathan Cherry earned them third place. The team has been perfecting the choreography since the beginning of the school year, and have performed within Millbrook several times, including the Millbrook’s homecoming pep rally. Sophomore and member of the team Skyla Rivera said, “It was very fun having all the support of the other teams and just bonding with everyone.”
As competition season comes to an end, high schools and colleges across the country have had a successful season. Watch out next year for the Millbrook Pride Dance Team, as they plan to make another appearance at nationals next year!
