Dance and cheer programs combine efforts for performances
Photo By: Eric Leaf
The Roosevelt cheer and dance teams, the faces of school spirit, have undergone many changes this year. The main change is the combination of the two previously separate programs into a joined “Spirit Team” that performs at school events.
Marcus Williams, former Seattle Seahawks dancer and head dance coach at Seattle University, brought along many changes when he came to work with the Roosevelt program. The dance team, which mainly focused on competitions in the past, has shifted to joining cheer for sports game performances. The two teams also perform together at assemblies.
Combining the teams helped to forge friendships between members of both programs. Luca Sisk ’25, four-year dance team member and captain, stated, “It’s definitely fun to get to know new people.”
This new format also mirrors more professional college programs. “A lot of college teams have this spirit program where they have dancers and cheerleaders on the sidelines,” Cheer Captain Anya Gubas ’25 noted. “I think that if any of us wanted to go and do this in college, it would set us up really well for that.”
Long-standing aspects of the program have also changed, such as the cheerleaders wearing their uniforms on game days, the addition of some unfamiliar cheers, and the motions of the fight song. Regarding these changes, cheer member Eternity Enis ’25 remarked, “I miss part of our things from last year, part of our tradition, but I’m glad I can experience a new style, leaving this year.”
Both teams have had to put in extra work to accommodate these new changes as well. “We have practice around four or five times a week, whereas we used to have it only maybe three times a week, and the practices are definitely longer,” Zadie Abraham ’27 commented. “We have to work for it, but I think we’re all getting a lot better.”
While dance member Lizzy Pekelny ’27 described the process as “overwhelming” at some points, she explained, “As we continue to establish this program, it will become what we’re used to.” It’s evident that these teams have been working hard to fuse their individual styles into something fresh and exciting.
“From the core values of what we do, we’re all performers,” Sisk said. “It was just a change that we kind of had to flip our minds into, but as we have gotten used to it, it’s definitely been something that we have been enjoying.”
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