Dance Marathon 2014: Block 4 recap
March 8, 2014
When energy was low during Block 4, students were pumped up by the Battle of the DJs winner DJ Adyct who left the stage to an ongoing chant of “one more song” from dancers.
Weinberg sophomore Aditya Raikar, who performs as DJ Adyct, encouraged students by blending mixes of popular music and tech beats. DJ Adyct even incorporated the Coldplay song “Fix You,” the emotional touchstone of DM 2013’s final block.
Communication sophomore Eric Goldstein, dancing for his second year, said although he remembers last year’s block four being “miserable,” the DJ this year engaged the dancers with upbeat and motivating music.
“The kid’s fantastic,” Goldstein said. “This block is so much better than last block four.”
DJ Adyct won the spot last month at DM’s Battle of the DJs, where he competed for the limelight against three other performers, said DM special events coordinator Andrew Christy.
The event was held at 27 Live on Feb. 20, one week after the Battle of the Bands competition that voted on the student band that will play during Block 8.
Christy, a Weinberg senior, said Adyct was chosen according to a specific set of criteria laid out before the event. He said the DJ was a perfect addition to DM, and kept the energy in the tent high through his whole set.
During the block, students saw a video produced by the the International Student Association World Cup and watched a “Bop It” brain test on stage.
The hosts of the “Today Show” also created a celebrity video where they gave an encouraging message to the dancers from their morning show studio.
“We just wanted to say keep dancing and keep up the good work,” Today Show anchor Al Roker said. “We love what you’re doing for Team Joseph and we know that you’re making a huge difference by dancing to fight Duchenne muscular dystrophy in young boys.”
When the sun rose at about 6:10 a.m., balloons were dropped from the ceiling, as students gathered together in a chorus of “Here Comes the Sun.”
Dancers dressed up for the block’s theme, “Guilty Pleasures,” with the emcees sporting NickelbackT-shirts and tutus and crowns. The songs played — which included One Direction and Justin Bieber — also reflected the block’s theme and elicited enthusiastic sing-a-longs that revived the crowd.
Members of the finance committee announced at the close of the block that DM had raised $89,468 by the close of dancer registration in October.
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @mccarthy_ciara
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @beccasavransky
