The K-Pop Dance Club continues to grow this year as members prepare for new performances, workshops and collaborations that showcase their talent, dance skills and Korean culture.
The club practices about two hours each week; they utilize lunchtime meetings with after-school practices to perfect choreography and routine details. Club president Senior Jiyoo Min said the biggest challenge is the “cleaning process, in which I focus on making every move look smooth, sharp and coordinated while perfecting the details.”
Last year’s Winter Pep Rally gave the club members the chance to showcase their hard work to the students. Min reflected on the success of that performance, which featured music that was hyped by the staff and students. “Out of all the club performances I have worked on, I would say the 2023 Winter Pep Rally was my best work so far,” Min said.
The officers are also preparing for upcoming events, including the Fall Festival performance on Oct. 25 and the POTH show in early December. Additionally, the club hosts member-led workshops where students can learn choreography requested by students. “Right now, we are holding workshops where we teach K-pop choreographies requested by our members, and we plan to add more meetings like these throughout the year,” Min said.
The club’s officers, including sophomore Sherlyn Zhu and sophomore Emmy Ke, are focused on supporting the dancers of all experience levels and helping during training. Zhu said the club recently held a successful interest meeting, where students learned about the year’s goals. “We introduced many things and ate snacks our club president brought,” Zhu said.
Leadership transition is one of the key concerns for this school year, as multiple senior officers are graduating. Zhu expressed optimism that new members will step up to take leadership roles and continue supporting the club. Zhu said she’s “hoping the new members this year would be both interested in having leadership roles and capable of it, so it doesn’t become tedious to run the club next year.”
The officers have also been working to build connections among members through events outside of rehearsals. Group outings and traditions are hosted to help strengthen friendships in the club and promote teamwork. “Since I joined as a freshman, we have continued traditions like Secret Santa before winter break and group hangouts at Rockville Town Center after Hallyu,” Min said.
As the club continues to grow, it also aims to collaborate with other dance clubs at school. The officers hope to create performances that celebrate different music and dance styles. Min said their main goal this year is to “continue the performances [they] have done in previous years, while also collaborating with other dance clubs at [their] school.”
Ke emphasized that the members’ shared passion for dance creates a positive and friendly environment where everyone feels welcome. “I do enjoy being part of this club because everyone in here is very friendly and I was able to make a lot of new friends,” Ke said.
