Guy-Girl Dance

The Lancerettes showed off their amazing performance at the Homecoming Assembly. The crowd cheered for the girls as they danced to various songs. They later on performed a “guy-girl” dance with 31 other senior guys . They all lined up on the gym floor, poms in hand, ready to perform their portion of the guy-girl dance. They then switched spots with the Lancerettes, eventually returning for a combined finale.

The process leading up to the big event was quite exciting. The senior Lancerettes select a senior boy to be paired with each Lancerette. While the guys paired with senior girls were notified by their counterparts ahead of time, the others did not know who their partners were until Sunday, October 6, the first rehearsal. At the start of the three-hour rehearsal, those in the dark were blindfolded and guided to their partners. Once each senior guy had their hands on their partners’ shoulders, the blindfolds were removed. The dancers spent the remainder of the time learning the choreography, meeting again the morning of the assembly to finalize details.

In the end, the dance received positive feedback with many students commenting on the skill of the dancers performance. It was a great start to the homecoming assembly.

Liam Flatley (‘20) has been dancing for four years and was chosen as one of the senior mancerettes. He expressed that he was excited to finally show the school his love for and talents associated with dancing. He was told before hand about doing a solo part and went through a grueling three hours of training to prepare for it. While he experienced some difficult challenges, such as remembering all of the steps (since there were many incorporated), he still enjoyed dancing with Lancerette member Sydney Smith (‘20), a close friend and fellow dancer.

After taking part in the dance and executing a successful solo, Flatley stated, “[I felt a] great jubilance. There was nothing I would have rather been doing.” He also gives a message to the students of Brookfield Central, saying, “If you’re confident with the little bit you know, that will go so much farther than actually having all the steps. Just owning what you’re doing and embracing it – and embracing who you are – is really the key to nailing a good performance.”

For those out there willing to try dancing in the events to come, Liam Flatley encourages people to perservere in learning the dance and make sure not to add to many confusing steps, for it would take away from the original idea. In the end, he summarizes his experience in one phrase: “This is definitely hard to forget. [It was] so fun that I don’t think I will ever forget it.”

HOCO Court games

Kyle Lee (‘20) roll-steps across the gym, carefully balancing an oreo on a spoon clasped in his mouth. He was the second leg of his relay, and his teammates were Minh Liu, Daphane Milkert, and Elianne del Campo. He was an unsurprising pick for HOCO court because of his skills in music and leadership, as well as his friendly personality. After the relay, Kyle states, “My [four years of] marching band skills were really useful in that moment,” referring to the skill of roll-stepping (which is used while marching to maintain a steady sound), utilized during his successful journey carrying an oreo on a spoon in his mouth across the gym to his awaiting teammates.

Daphne Milkert (‘20) cheers on her teammate, Minh Liu (‘20), as he completes the cup-stacking portion of the relay. Though Liu was the first to begin the fourth and final task in the relay, his did not manage to successfully complete it before Brandon Lee (‘20). “Minh can’t stack cups under pressure,” Milkert said in the end. Minh commented on his own experience, saying, “I was so, so focused that I couldn’t see all of the cups. [But] it was really fun and a good final homecoming.” As for the opposing side, they celebrated their victory. Lee, concerning the last leg of his relay, simply commented, “it was epic”. Despite the upturn, the team celebrated with jovial high-fiving and laughter as they completed their final HOCO assembly.

Crowning the King and Queen

Students soon arrived to the homecoming football game to witness who of the homecoming court would be named queen and king. After the homecoming assembly, which was filled with fun games and antics, students were eager to learn who would be chosen from the promising candidates. In the end, seniors Julia Fernandes and Augie Jurva were named homecoming king and queen. Fernandes accepted the crown with a glowing smile (as seen in the picture to the left), saying, “I was so honored to be selected. I felt so loved by everyone. Everyone on court was so amazing, and it was a fun group to be a part of.” Augie Jurva added on to her statement, saying (in typical Jurva fashion),“It was neato burrito.”