STEPPERS DRAW ATTENTION

The spotlight shone brightly on Tech’s girls’ and boys’ step-dancing teams this year, with major media coverage, a documentary film about them nominated for an award, and success on a national level.

Stepping or step-dancing combines cheerleading and drill team moves, with influences from gymnastics and dance. Participants use words, hand claps and foot stomps to produce complex rhythms.

Three Columbia University journalism students followed the girls Lady Dragons team for five months in 2008-09 as they practiced relentlessly while fulfilling their academic requirements. The film documentary they produced, “Step Brooklyn”  was nominated for a Webby Award, a prominent award for Internet excellence.

The film’s opening titles state, “After four winless years, the Lady Dragons are determined to take home a first place trophy.” Team captain Renee Edwards (now a student at Babson College) says, “We want to break the cycle…. I want to win something.” The film climaxes at a competition where they cheer on the first place finisher, the Tech boys’ Organized Chaos team, while lamenting their own inability to win. The film concludes with the revelation that six days after shooting ended, the Lady Dragons won their first competition.

The New York Daily News  featured the Lady Dragons in a full page spread in April. The article discusses “Step Brooklyn” and reveals that the 2009-10 team won a major competition for the second year in a row.

Not to be outdone, Organized Chaos was named the third best team in the nation at the Youth Step USA tournament which was in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.