At almost 9 p.m. Friday, the Ryan Family Auditorium was abuzz with students and parents for Fusion Dance Company’s first of three “Fight Night” performances. As the lights dimmed and the opening chords of “Girlfight” by Brooke Valentine began to play, the cast filed onto the stage for the opening number.
Established in 2003, Fusion Dance Company is composed of 48 dancers, with auditions held at the beginning of both the Fall and Winter Quarters. From current members to alumni, the team has cultivated a reputation on campus defined by its talented dancers and tight-knit bonds, Weinberg senior Lehla Dillard said.
“You genuinely build relationships, and you build something so creative together as a team,” Dillard said. “It feels really, really special to see so many people from so many different cultural backgrounds and racial backgrounds and creative backgrounds come together to make something so beautiful.”
Dillard said Fight Night was chosen both because it was so “striking” and high energy, but also due to its strong marketing potential.
The team traveled to local Evanston boxing gym FitBox45 for a photoshoot as a means of marketing, said team member and Communication first-year Calista Nelson. Their efforts were successful given their “high social media engagement and ticket sales,” Nelson said.
Fusion members commit to a grueling rehearsal schedule ahead of the show, with practices three to four times a week during Winter Quarter and two weeks of tech rehearsals in the beginning of Spring Quarter from 5 to 11 p.m.
The resulting two hours of choreography featured a range of dancers and formations to songs ranging from RAYE’s “WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!” to A$AP Rocky’s “HELICOPTER.”
“Choreographers can honestly use any song or do any type of style dance that they want,” Dillard said. “It is super cool, because that’s how we keep the show so individualistic.”
In the end, Dillard and Nelson emphasized that the show succeeded in what it set out to do: be genuinely fun, both onstage and in the audience.
The audience’s unyielding excitement carried over more than 20 pieces. Attendees alternated between cheering, clapping, whooping and shouting out individual dancer names. Medill first-year Asher Joseph attended and found the choreography engaging.
“The energy was just electric,” Joseph said. “I think the set was jam-packed with bouncing, fun songs. The choreo was so much fun to watch, and I think that really just brings the audience in as well.”
Especially at Northwestern, where academic pressure can run high, events like Fusion’s allow students to experience genuine, positive release, Dillard said.
“The point of it is to be screaming for each other and just hyping each other up constantly,” Nelson said.
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