When I received my acceptance from Swarthmore during my senior year of high school, I did three initial things: finished eating my Taco Bell grilled cheese burrito, provided my parents with the happy news, and stalked the @rhythm.n.motion.dance on Instagram.
I joined my high school dance team during my sophomore year. With a background in gymnastics, I found so much joy in being able to express myself through movement with my peers. There, I was able to explore the styles of hip hop, contemporary, and vogue. While I was unsure of how involved I wanted to be in dance during my time at Swat, I knew that not having it would deprive me of joy.
Through Swarthmore’s list of clubs and organizations, I learned of the Rhythm n’ Motion Dance Company, a Tri-College Consortium dance group that focuses on the African Diaspora along with the influenced genres of jazz, hip hop, and salsa. I watched the recorded livestreams of their performances over the summer, and their creativity, choreography, and talent truly amazed me.
I decided to attend their first workshop of the school year last fall. I met so many new people–first-year students, current members, and upperclassmen–in a span of two hours, despite being timid and nervous. It made me even more hopeful to have more opportunities with the group.
I still remember the evening of auditions. I wore my “I LOVE GUAM” t-shirt and bright pink trash pants–two staples in my wardrobe that had soon become my lucky charms. About a week later, I received my acceptance. Needless to say, I was more than grateful and excited.
I spent almost every Saturday at Upper Tarble–an open space for campus events–with the rest of the RnM members, as we rehearsed for our upcoming fall semester showcase. Underneath all of our tireless practices, constant memorization of choreography, and “sorry, I’m late” messages, RnM became more than just a dance team. I ate at the dining hall with members during our one-hour lunch breaks, decorated small pumpkins with my big siblings, and indulged on delicious strawberry milkshakes at the Crumb Cafe after our flash mob at the dining hall (an annual RnM tradition to advertise their upcoming showcase).
Something that I will forever cherish was the bond I cultivated with the rest of the new members, whom we called the Newbies. We had two amazing dancers from Bryn Mawr, which allowed me to gain new friendships outside of Swarthmore. It was simply enjoyable to see ourselves take charge of the group as a whole, from picking out our music, to assigning choreography, and to performing it for the first time at the Lang Performing Arts Center stage. I had formulated a bond with them that no one can ever replace.
Even after the show, the celebration of RnM continued. I saw my friends cheering for me as I walked outside the dressing room with my luggage full of costumes. Soon, my friends filled my arms with posters of my face and sets of flowers from the Co-op, our local grocery store. Seeing the other members experience it as well made me even happier. We are all individually talented, but together, we make a whole room proud in unison.
