Annual Dancefest showcases student dance groups

Before attending Lehigh, Tayler Jones, ‘28, said she watched classical Indian and K-pop music videos and practiced choreography in her living room. When she got to college, Jones said she wanted to try dancing in an official capacity. 

On Friday, Jones performed to a sold-out crowd at this year’s Dancefest, which is an annual, student-run dance showcase featuring 16 dance groups. This year’s theme was “Southside Flow.” 

Jones said she performed in four groups: LU Bhangra, Belly Dance, African Renaissance and Anbyans. 

Since each team has two practices per week, Jones said she had to practice every night, except for Mondays, with three practices on Sundays. During winter break, she said the Belly Dance executive board plans dances and creates a tentative schedule for the spring semester. 

However, Dancefest was held two weeks earlier than usual, giving dancers less time to prepare. Because of this, Jones said the Belly Dance group had to adjust its schedule. 

They usually take one week to teach a dance and hold auditions, but Jones said they had to shorten that timeline to complete all routines. She also said practices had to be as productive as possible, and students couldn’t afford to miss them.  

“All of my groups pulled through pretty well this year,” Jones said. “Everything got done on time, but it definitely felt rushed.”

As treasurer of LU Bhangra and Belly Dance, Jones said she helped choreograph dances with other board members. She said she spends hours listening to the same song and adjusting routines so they work for the entire group.

Jones also said it’s easier to learn an already choreographed dance because the “kinks” have been worked out, so she only has to add her own flair. She said she tries to incorporate different techniques while staying true to the culture of the dance.

“(With) choreographing, you have to think about and account for people’s different skill levels and how hard or easy it would be,” Jones said. “When I was making my dance, I’m thinking to myself, ‘If I’ve never done belly dance before, would this dance be possible?’”

Ayaka Numata, ‘26, is also involved in four dance groups: Bad Company, Helius, JM Entertainment and Belly Dance. 

She said she’s performed in Fusion and International Bazaar — other Lehigh dance showcases — and Dancefest since her sophomore year. As vice president of Bad Company and president of JM Entertainment, Numata said she arrived at Zoellner Arts Center at 12:30 p.m. on Friday to discuss lighting cues for both performances. 

With about 40 students, Numata said JM Entertainment had to plan every practice carefully and ensure all members attended. She said snow days earlier this semester canceled three practices, but it wasn’t too difficult to adjust the schedule. 

“It’s really just efficiency and working on how much time I can spend in the studio and knowing when I have downtime,” Numata said. “Sleep schedules are kind of nonexistent.”

Numata said she still attends every class with her busy schedule. She also said she balances her social life with dance because the two are closely connected, and her teammates are also her friends. 

Along with studying for exams, she said dancers must memorize multiple routines for each performance, and being in more than one group can make it difficult.

“At first, the thought (of memorization) can be overwhelming, but I’ve been doing this so long that it’s more just pattern recognition for me,” Numata said. “It can get confusing between some of (the dances) if the choreo gets repetitive.”

After a performance, Jones said she enjoys seeing the dancers’ hard work pay off and runs around complimenting people in other groups. 

“It really pays off in the end, especially when you’re helping teach people and then you see the energy and the glow they have after they perform,” she said. “Everyone’s super tired but they’re also so excited because for a lot of people, this is their very first time performing on stage or performing in a group.”

Linnea Crouch, ‘29, made her debut on the Baker Hall stage during the ballet club’s first Dancefest appearance. 

Created in 2025, Crouch said the ballet club continues a tradition from Lehigh’s former ballet club from the ‘80s, called the Balletomane Society. The 11 members performed a classical ballet routine from the Italian Renaissance, which she said focused on technical precision and grace. 

“This is all of our first times being on stage together,” Crouch said. “So, it’s really exciting that we get to do that as a group.”

Opportunities to get involved with the dance community at Lehigh include taking academic dance courses, participating in annual showcases and joining student-run groups. 

“I hope people (at Dancefest) can appreciate the differences between all the dance styles and how unique ballet is compared to things like hip hop or belly dance, and just the diversity within dance,” Crouch said.