How the Laduettes use and make music

BEATMOVE TO THE BEAT

Laduette dance team brings music and dance together

RYAN TUNG features staff

OOn a Wednesday evening, the sun sets over Ladue High School. However, inside its walls, the school remains alive. On the gymnasium floor, a team of dancers moves as one, perfectly synchronized with the pulsing music.

The Laduette Dance Team, coached by Julie Grace and

Alexandra Guenther, works to seamlessly combine dance and music and produce engaging performances. Through consistent practice to convey music and emotion through choreography, the team has found continued success at both regional and national levels.

“We perform at all varsity home football and basketball games as well as community events,” Grace, a former Laduette and team coach since 2008, said. “One of our biggest accomplishments is winning the 2016

National Dance Association Medium Varsity Hip Hop

Championship.”

Since the start of the pandemic, however, the team has been forced to adapt to changing circumstances. Because each dancer is closely connected in routines, the group has taken special safety precautions to protect the health of everyone involved. For Claire Long, a senior and team captain, the season has been drastically different from years past.

“The virus has put us further behind than we usually would be,” Long said. “We’re coming back in steps. We wear a mask during practice, make sure we’re distancing and take health surveys. We’re trying to be really careful.”

Despite the setbacks, the team has continued to prepare for performances and competitions. During the three practices a week, each dancer and coach helps plan, create and prepare routines in the high school gymnasium.

“We spend a lot of time teaching and cleaning routines,” Grace said. “When we are not preparing for games, we are working on our national competition routines and organizing our trip to Nationals.”

But dance is more than just perfecting choreography. For the Laduettes, music plays an equally crucial role in creating a compelling performance.

“For a dance to be good, you have to have music,” Long said. “The two go hand in hand.”

In fact, when creating routines, the team relies on music to determine the style of choreography. The genre, tempo and rhythms of a song work as a foundation for every dance.

The Laduette Dance Team practices in the high school gymnasium. The team started practicing during the pandemic at the start of the school year. “Team operations have been very different than normal,” coach Julie Grace said. “We have been managing with all of the COVID restrictions.” (Photo by Ginger Schulte)

“Music is a huge part of dance. It chooses the style of dance we perform and gives us a mood and beat to dance too,” Team Captain Caroline Bernstein said. “You have to listen to every part of a song [to] make sure you match the music.”

Choosing and editing the music itself also requires significant attention. To make a compelling performance, the team often compiles a mixture of sounds to produce a song that makes a routine as exciting as possible.

“As one of the captains, I help make all of the music and the dances for the team,” Long said. “The captains will pick songs they like, and if we want it to be a combination, we will make a mix, speed up the music or cut things out so it fits better with the routine.”

However, this complex work with intricate sounds can be difficult. While music produced by the team often suffices for local performances, the team relies on music professionals for the national stage.

“Music has been extremely challenging and we had to learn how to adapt to the music rules and restrictions,” Grace said. “We currently hire a company to create our mixes for nationals.”

While the team mainly focuses on hip-hop and pom, a squad-oriented dance style involving the use of pom-poms, it tries to feature a variety of songs and artists. Team music selections occasionally shift from more popular to lesser known tracks.

“Every once and a while we will use a not well-known song,” Long said. “But, most of the songs we use are songs that people would know — they’re more fun to dance to and people get into watching if they know the song.”

Regardless of the genre or style, the team strives to leave a memorable performance with every routine. This motivation for work and practice has created a strong bond between every Laduette.

“We are so close with each other as a team,” Long said. “We are always together, and we have a work ethic and drive. We all want so badly to do good in competitions and at nationals, and our goals drive us.”

This friendship has cultivated a strong sense of teamwork between the dancers. Especially for dance, this collaborative and supportive relationship has been crucial to team success.

“The Laduettes have had so much national success [because of] our teamwork,” Bernstein said. “In a dance, we all have to work just as hard as the person dancing next to us. This pushes us to stay motivated and to be the best dancers we can be.”

This teamwork and drive has propelled the team to its local and national accomplishments. Even with the virus delaying the team’s usual progress, the Laduettes continue to aim for another national achievement.

“The dedication and determination of the team is behind our success,” Grace said.

“These girls want to be successful for each other and are extremely hard working. It is so amazing to watch the team learn and grow — I am so lucky to be a part of it.”

A common passion for dance and music has brought the Laduettes together. In a time of social isolation, the team uses its art as an expression of identity. “Music will make or break a routine, draw a crowd or tell a story,” Grace said. “Dance is an outlet for personal expression — [it is] a safe place, a stress relief, and much, much more.” p w