The Austin band Fingerpistol performed on Sunday, April 15 in the Westwood cafetorium. While the profits made selling wristbands to the event went toward the funds of the International Baccalaureate Student Organization (IBSO), the event was open to any Westwood student and any family or guests that they wanted to bring with them.

The event began with two-step lessons from the group Two Left Foots. Afterwards, the dance floor was opened to people wanting to try out their new moves along to music played by Fingerpistol.

“I’m actually not in IB, but the event had two-stepping and I love two-stepping,” Abby Smith ‘19 said. “The live band was so amazing; they play actual live events and that’s the best thing ever.”

Attendees were challenged to push themselves out of their comfort zone and take part in something that they might not be used to.

“I really enjoy putting myself out there and dancing,” Maureigh Cantu ‘21 said. “It’s trying something new that I don’t normally do. It’s overall just to have fun. The people who didn’t want to dance, when we brought them to the dance floor they had a lot of fun. They didn’t think they were going to have fun but they actually did.”

While the dance was a new experience for many of the attendees, it was also different for the performers as well.

“A lot of times we play at bars and stuff and people only dance to the songs they already know,” Fingerpistol vocalist Ms. Meg Bodi said. “When they hear an original come on, they would go sit down and wait for the next one they recognize, so it was really nice that people danced the whole time. The response from the students was really great. It was really fun to show them a part of this culture that maybe they haven’t gotten to experience before.”

In the end, the event was an enjoyable time for all and helped people get to meet strangers, get to know some that they didn’t know well, or even improve relations with those close to them.

“It was a very fun experience that taught students not only how to dance, which is an important social skill, but also made us come out of our comfort zone,” Kelsia Adil ‘19 said. “Overall, it was a great community building event.”

Pictures from the photo booth can be found here.