Sonoma Brawley – Contributor

On Jan. 24, the Bishop’s Dance Team hosted their Dancing with the Gaiters fundraiser. Due to the success of the event last year, the Dance Team decided to host their second season featuring a new round of participants.

The event was modeled after the reality competition show, Dancing with the Stars, and paired a club representative (star), with a Dance Team member (pro). Seven clubs participated including Ringette, Cheerleading, Motionball, the Swimming Club, Chaos and Creativity, the Charity Fashion Show, and the Sports Studies Society.

Image courtesy of Sonoma Brawley

The duos had a week to put together routines and practice before the final presentation at The Gait. There were a variety of styles including Jazz, Contemporary, Ballroom, and Hip Hop. Each pair did a brilliant job at creating engaging and impressive routines that were performed in front of a large audience and panel of celebrity judges. Composing the judging panel, and grading the competitors on a scale out of 10 was SRC Extra Manager Taylor Morgan, and returning champions Gabe Pelletier, and Taylor Mason.

There were three prizes to be awarded to recognize the talent on the dance floor. The first award was Best Technique, and was presented to Juliette Arsenault and her partner Haislyn Suarez Paez for their Ballroom routine representing the Charity Fashion Show. The Judges Pick Award is for the stand out number of the night, and was given to Nilka Bouchard and her partner Shannon Gaskarth for their Jazz number representing the Cheerleading Club.

These two awards came with Redbull prize packs provided through a sponsorship with Laurence Gourgues.

This year, Abigale Hnidy from Ringette and her partner Kate Raycraft took home the coveted Mirrorball trophy. We are excited that this win will support another BU Sports Club, and Ringette will be using the money to help them rent more ice time at the Plex rink. Dancing with the Gaiters is designed to be a community building initiative that supports the Dance Team, and the participating clubs. Kate reflected on the experience by saying that “Abi and I have been friends for almost two years and so it was so exciting to get to share this experience with her. Especially getting to watch her experience something that is such a big part of my life.”

This fundraiser was created to help the Dance Team travel to a Competition in Brampton Ontario in early March, and the money raised is split 50/50 with the winning star’s club. BU Dance is thrilled with the continued success of this fundraiser, and the chance it provides to connect across campus with a variety of students. Dance team member Shannon Gaskarth remarked “this was my second year participating in this event as a dancer, and I’ve loved it each time. Events like these are what give me the opportunity to meet and collaborate with new people, and you’d be surprised at how much artistic expression can emerge from these short-term creative collaborations. Dancing with the gaiters is a beautiful showcase of how dance can really bring people together; And then again, who doesn’t love a little friendly competition?” Another team member, Emmett Tinning noted that “this is a tradition that enhances the spirit of Bishop’s.”

After attending competition, the Dance Team will host their year end showcase in Centennial Theatre Mar. 21. They hope to see you there!