An enthusiastic crowd of students, teachers, and parents filled the Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, May 25th, at Watchung Hills Regional High School (WHRHS) to witness and participate in Dancing With the Teachers. Dancing with the Teachers is one of a yearlong series of fundraising and awareness raising events sponsored by student groups in support of Project ALS (Amyotropic Lateral Sclerosis, also called Lou Gehrig’s Disease). Project ALS is the non-profit organization started by the late Jenifer Estess, who died from the disease, and her family to seek out and support leading edge research to find treatment and a cure for ALS.
The Project ALS has special significance to the students and staff of WHRHS because of English Teacher Laura Goodson. Goodson’s brother battled ALS, like Jenifer Estess, and it was Goodson who first discovered Project ALS, and encouraged the WHRHS student government to adopt ALS as their year-long community service effort.
“Thank you for all of your support this year,” Goodson said. “As you know, this is a cause that is near and dear to my heart.” Ms. Goodson welcomed everyone to Dancing With the Teachers, and thanked the co-sponsors of the event, the Sophomore Grade Level Council and the WHRHS Dance Ensemble. Student Masters of Ceremonies for the night were Suchir Govindarajan and Schuyler Weisberg.
Students from the WHRHS Dance Ensemble, which had just staged its three-night Spring Dance Concert May 12th, 13th, and 14th, to rave reviews, provided the framework for the 14 dance numbers performed at Dancing With the Teachers. A number of teachers and administrators were featured performers in each number, with Dance Ensemble students and their Faculty Advisor, Marisa Joshi, a talented dancer and choreographer in her own right, providing guidance and spirited support for the teachers. Among the dances were many of the numbers that highlighted the Spring Dance Concert. The Dancing with the Teachers event benefited from having the services of the Performing Arts Center’s technical director Chris Valenti and his crew, according to event organizers. Valenti and his crew bathed the stage in appropriate and professional mood lighting and theatrical spot lighting, just as they had for the Spring Dance Concert.
For the last scheduled dance of the evening, all were invited, including audience members, to come on stage to dance the currently popular funky line dance, “The Cha Cha Slide.” Many in the audience filled the stage, caught up in the fun. The Dancing With the Teachers line-up of dances included several from the Spring Dance Concert, including “Phishy,” “Collateral Damage,” “Incandescent,” “Becoming Human,” and “Masala Chai.” The rest of the program for Dancing With the Teachers included popular favorites, “The YMCA,” “Uptown Funk,” “Whip/Nae Nae,” and “Thriller.”
For more information about Project ALS can go to its Web site, www.projectals.org, and/or can contact Ms. Laura Goodson at lgoodson@whrhs.org.
(above) Among the staff members who participated in the “Dancing With the Teachers” Are (in white shirts, l-r) Principal George Alexis, his Administrative Assistant, Susan Obuch, and Front Desk Secretary Pam Sasso. Flanking them (l-r) are two of the students who helped lead them through their dance number, titled, “Collateral Damage.” Dance Ensemble dancer junior Michelle Shui of Green Brook Township, and sophomore Michelle Du of Warren Township.
(above, kneeling, l-r) Students Michelle Shui, Lauren Loesberg, and Kaitlyn Santucci, Dance Teacher Marisa Toshi, and students Anna Paterson, Morgan Pravato, and Molly Garyantes. (standing, l-r) Students Michelle Du, Victoria Pantagis, Michelle Sucre, Dena Vayas, Katey Berger, Arielle Ostry, Sevoula Tsivgas, Sabrina Lane, and Camryn Graf.
(abover, l-r) Outside the WHRHS Performing Arts Center after the performance are some of
the members of the WHRHS Football Team who danced in the Dancing With the Teachers” dance number “Incandescent.”: junior Nadir Beyah of Warren Township, junior Nick Ugarte of Warren Township, and junior Michael Montecalvo of Green Brook Township. Not in the photo, fellow football players Michael Bereheiko, Clayton Bush and Jack Smith.
(above) For the grand finale to Dancing With The Teachers, all were invited, including the audience, to get up on stage to participate in the last dance number, the currently popular funky line dance, “The Cha Cha Slide.”
