As the year comes to a close, Perry’s dance department wraps it up with their 8th annual Student Dance Show. On May 12, 13 and 14 the beginning, intermediate, and advanced dancers, as well as Moveo Dance Company showcased 23 pieces in the auditorium.

Beginning preparation in April, the concert took some time to bring together as the dance department had many tasks to complete in order to organize the event. This included, finding music, choreographing pieces, and teaching the pieces. The department also had to produce tickets and programs as well as order costumes for about 300 dancers.

“Sometimes it was [stressful] but most of the time it was pretty fun,” senior dancer and choreographer Taylor McQuillan said.

Although bringing the showcase together was not the easiest process, Sadler believes most of the “pressure just comes from having such a reputable program. Every year we want to make sure that we have a really great program put together.”

In light of graduation, the seniors had a senior dance, which is a tradition of the department, and were also recognized with a note and a flower after intermission.

“We recognize each of them for the time they’ve spent in the dance department and thank them [and] hope they continue to be active in dance,” Sadler said.

McQuillan, who will continue her dance career as as a member of the Grand Canyon University dance team, said the concert was ”exciting because it’s our one last big thing before we graduate but [also] sad because the dance program has been the best part of high school and I’m really going to miss it.”

Although the last concert of the year took much work to bring together, Sadler feels it was well worth it and “bittersweet because there is so much work that goes into preparing. I think dance teachers are relieved when it’s over but, at the same time, we’re so proud of our students.”

“It’s nice to be able to see it all come together and watch all of your students up there showcasing themselves,” Sadler stated adding, “Anyone who says dance is not valid as a subject in school has never been to our shows to see how hard these kids work and how rewarding it is as a teacher to see their growth through the year.”