This football season, cheerleaders will not be the only ones dancing at a half-time show. Dressed to kill in band pants and Dinkles shoes, seventy students with awkward instruments will show off their best moves.
Looking to add some creativity to the band’s performances, music director Dan Briggs asked admissions director Kim Brueggemann, who also teaches dance and directs the fall play, to choreograph a dance for the band. “Our principal job is to entertain, not only musically, but visually,” said Briggs.
The band’s fall repertoire includes selections from the popular musical West Side Story. One of the pieces, “America,” contains a section in which only percussion instruments are played. The choreographed dance will take place during this section.
In the musical, “America” is a battle of the sexes—the women’s attempt to convince the men of the benefits of living in U.S. versus Puerto Rico. Brueggemann wanted to recreate this original message through the choreography.
Also concerned with staying true to the theme of the musical, Briggs said, “West Side Story, at its heart, is as much about dancing as it is about telling a story. I wanted to make sure we paid homage to the original material.”
The band was split into boys and girls for partner dancing, although some girls had to take the roles of boys due to an uneven distribution.
While the dance moves are basic, Brueggemann explained that “the quantity of people made it tough. We rehearsed in the auditorium, which was really small, but when they got out onto the football field, it looked grand.”
Students of the band share Brueggemann’s enthusiasm for the new performance. Gushing about how “awesome” the band is, freshman Morgan Jones said that the dance “adds a sense of individuality” to the ensemble.
Senior Rusty English said, “[The dance] gives us more of a challenge and something new to do.”
“I’ve always wanted to do the show [West Side Story] here. This makes me want to do it even more!” said Brueggemann, who directs the fall musical every year. JC has been hesitant to put on West Side Story due to the difficulty of the orchestration. Now, the music department is clearly capable of taking on the challenge.
Briggs is always looking to make the band more fun for both the students and the audiences. “We will continue to find new ways to entertain, and we are not opposed to avant garde methods,” he said.
“America” and other selections from West Side Story will be performed at one football game’s half-time show. Briggs hopes that game will be the Homecoming game, but if not, then the performance will take place on the last home game of the season. The performance is also to be showcased at the Music Department’s Christmas Concert.
Charlotte Hagerman can be reached for comment at [email protected].