World Beats Dance Spirit Week Comes to a Close
World Beats Dance Spirit Week came to a close last Friday with West Potomac’s first ever World Languages Dance. Unlike Homecoming or Prom, the music primarily played was in Spanish, as well as French and Hindi.
“We were nervous that not too many [students] were going to buy tickets, that only a few [would participate] in the spirit week, and that the idea of a dance with – what students thought would be – unfamiliar music was not too appealing to the students, so I wasn’t sure how much fun everyone was going to have,” said Spanish teacher Brittany White.
Much to her surprise, over 100 people attended the dance.
“I didn’t expect so many people to show up,” said junior Rachel Brautigam, Co-President of Spanish Club.
A large number of the attendees were members of language clubs and honor societies. Senior Alex White, however, isn’t in a world language, but decided he wanted to go to spend time with friends.
“I just wanted to let loose and dance with my friends,” said White.
Spanish Teacher Yamalie Colon first decided to organize the dance to provide a place for students to have fun and dance to different styles of music.
“We wanted students to feel comfortable and be open to sharing their cultures in a fun atmosphere,” Colon said.
The planning process, however, was not smooth sailing.
“It was a lot of work, but so worth it. Of course money was a concern, but it all worked out and we had support from the administration and PTSA,” said Colon.
Around the middle of the dance, the Hispanic Leadership Club performed Bachata, Samba, and Reggaeton routines.
“The dance was Ms. De Gatica’s idea and the prep was amazing,” said junior Monica Castro, who is on the Hispanic Leadership Club’s Dance Team. “It was fun, we laughed, we joked around, and the dance was amazing. I had so much fun moving to the music. The way we performed was the best we had the done the routine.”
As to plans for future dances, Colon said next year’s dance is already being planned. She said that she hopes for involvement and support of other departments as well.
