This post was submitted to Manual RedEye by Madison McLean (10, J&C).

On Nov. 2nd at 6 p.m., the Youth Performing Arts School’s (YPAS) Dance Department held a Young Choreographers’ Showcase, exclusively choreographed and performed by sophomores, juniors and seniors in the black box theatre.

Each dance was watched and judged by a panel of adjudicators who decided which pieces would move on to be performed months later at another student-run YPAS performance called New Works.

“As an audience member who attended only to support my friends, I was blown away by the unexpected amount of talent and drive in my peers,” Mandala Gupta VerWiebe (10, J&C) said. “I knew that they could dance, but not like this! I really can’t believe this choreography was done by people basically my age.”

If the piece is selected, student performers will get more time to fine-tune choreography as well as have access to full costumes and lighting.

“I loved to see all of my peers who chose to participate express themselves,” Sachi Dixit (9, YPAS) said. “They displayed their creativity and love for dance in these amazing pieces.”

The performance had free admission, and about 40 people sat in the audience. Each dance was about three to five minutes long, with a two to five minute pause between pieces for adjudicators to write down comments. There was a five minute intermission, but the performance as a whole took about an hour.

“It’s really gratifying to see Gabi develop and grow as a dancer and choreographer. Makes paying for all those lessons and driving to all those rehearsals worth it!” Mindy Badia, a parent of Gabi Badia (10, YPAS) said.

In about two weeks, YPAS dance students will learn which of their pieces was selected for New Works.