The SunDancers and other members of the Westwood Dance program performed their annual show Escapade on Feb. 24 and 25 at the Performing Arts Center (PAC). Between the two days, there were also performances by Warrior Pride, Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Dance, Advanced Dance, Anderson Mill Elementary School, Canyon Vista Middle School, the cheerleaders, and even the SunDancers’ parents. The SunDancer companies Hype and the Jazz Company and the student lead organization En Croix also had individual performances.

“My favorite part of Escapade this year was watching each of our dancers have a special, memorable moment on the stage,” SunDancer Director Shelby Kelly said. “We have so many beautiful dancers in our department. It is truly incredible to see the immense amount of growth that happens over the year and culminates at this performance.”

The theme of this year’s Escapade was Words to Live By. Before each piece, the announcer offered words of wisdom with a quote. Each quote was connected to the dance in an individual way. For example, the song Freedom Tower, which was dedicated to those who lost their lives on 9/11, had the quote by Virgil, “No day shall erase you from the memory of time.” Another quote that was used was Pravinee Hurbungs’ “You’re a diamond, dear, they can’t break you” for the SunDancers’ opening dance for the second act, A Girl’s Best Friend.

“It’s the things that get us through the day,” McKennah Robertson ‘18 said. “Or 7:30 a.m. practice, which is exhausting, and just motivating us to be a great team.”

Warrior Pride had two dances, one for each night. On Friday, they performed Make ‘Em Laugh, with the quote, “Life’s better when you’re laughing.” This was followed by Saturday’s dance, Simple Man, with the message to be rid of all materialistic things in life and enjoy the simple things.

“My favorite part of Escapade is working with my team,” Anjali Segu ‘19 said. “And trying to do the best we possibly can for the show. I think the meaning of Escapade is the importance of living to meaningful values.”

The SunDancer Babies made their Escapade debut together in their piece, Don’t Rain On My Parade, where they twirled across the stage with white umbrellas, while the SunDancer seniors performed their last dance together, a hip-hop piece from the musical Hamilton, My Shot. The sophomores and juniors also did a piece together called Chicago. The final dance was Don’t Stop Believing, which included the SunDancers’ signature kick line, and also gave recognition to the SunDancer seniors.

“Every year Escapade is a very emotional event,” Mrs. Kelly said, “knowing it is our seniors last time to dance. We have loved our time with these seniors and are very sad to see them graduate. But, we know their futures will be incredibly bright. So, we are excited to see all the wonderful things they will go on to do.”