As I walked across campus on a brisk Sunday evening, hearing the church bells ring as I made my way to Fordham Prep Leonard Theatre, I was excited by the idea of finally attending my first on campus dance show.
For some background, I’ve danced all my life, first in recreation center ballet lessons when I was three years old, then at a strict, rigorous Russian ballet academy in middle school and finally, my high school’s pre-professional modern dance company (shoutout New Trier Dance Division). However, after graduation, I retired for good.
Hearing about an all inclusive dance team was therefore completely out of my comfort zone, as almost everything I’ve ever known about dance was highly structured and incredibly cutthroat. I was interested to see how that dynamic played out on stage, both interpersonally and choreographically.
I had no idea where to go once I got to Fordham Prep, as I hadn’t been inside the auditorium since the safety presentation during my first week of freshman year. Still, I followed a crowd of girls I assumed were going there (especially since one was holding a bouquet of flowers). Once inside the packed lobby, one of my friends handed me a Dance Co-Op program. The theme was entitled “Serve.” This title, in club president Lily Paturzo’s, FCRH ’25, words, “is based on the saying ‘you served, you ate’ which is a way to show appreciation and support for others.”
Despite the saying itself being a metaphor, the show was organized into three courses: Act One — Appetizers, Act Two — Entrees and Act Three — Dessert. Each act was organized into three or four dances, with either a song or an intermission dance, performed by Fordham dance groups Falak and Candela Latina, in between them. There was also a two-part raffle, where two lucky Co-Op parents were given a goodie box.
The Appetizer round began with a group dance choreographed by both Vesa Prevalla, FCRH ’25, and Katherine Leahey, FCRH ’26, complete with fierce choreography and bright, pink and green costumes. In between most of the Appetizer round’s dances, the house went dark, and a song would play. However, Fordham Falak performed after the final dance of the round, “Freaky Mix” choreographed by Mia Guzzo, FCRH ’25. Falak’s technique was beautiful in their shining red and gold costumes, and the team utilized a creative mix of Indian compositions with American music.
Right before Falak’s performance, a lighthearted, funny video introduced Co-Op’s mission to unfamiliar audience members such as myself. Guzzo described the team as a “middle ground for people who are very anxious or want to do something casual.” While many dance teams can either be a significant time commitment or need advanced technique to join, Dance Co-Op strives to provide a safe space for all dancers, whether they have years of experience or are just beginning.
The Entree round started off with a bang as Grace Glennon, FCRH ’25, Prevalla and Paturzo performed a tap dance choreographed to a mashup of Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” and “Beat It.” Further entrées included a jazz number to Sabrina Carpenter and a moving contemporary dance to Hozier. The course was concluded by Fordham’s Candela Latina, who gave us high-energy partner dances, including music by Romeo Santos and individual choreography to Bad Bunny.
The final act, Dessert, began with an empowering, fun jazz dance to “Juice” by Lizzo, followed by a senior-created video and dance to “Ribs” by Lorde. The act concluded with a short dance and bows, set to “Candy” by Robbie Williams. The company then honored all of their seniors with a bouquet of flowers and a brief speech for each of them, thanking them for their contributions to the company.
Before attending the showcase last week, I was pretty much checked out when it came to dancing in college. I occasionally took classes at Broadway Dance Center, but I was not engaging with anything Fordham-related. I enjoyed this show, not just for the fun choreography and uplifting energy, but also because it opened my mind to another way to dance. Dance doesn’t always have to be very stern or serious; it can still be driven without being boring. From now on, I’m going to try and take a page out of the Dance Co-Op’s book when I am dancing.
