The sport of dance has existed for many years. It has always been a part of human history and has been known to bring people together at gatherings and events. The beginning of team dance first becoming popular dates all the way back to the roaring 20’s. It started as pep-clubs and slowly began to gain popularity up to par with other sports, such as cheer.

High school students, mostly females, wore skirts and blouses and performed on fields and in gymnasiums in military-like movesets that needed to be memorized by every person that was on the floor. One mistake in timing or hesitation was all it took to completely break the flow of the performance. This made the sport very difficult and also gave teamwork a huge impact on how well the team danced.

“Back during freshman and sophomore year I really struggled with correcting my techniques. I would try to fix something and I would think that it was fine but when the time came, I would still be doing it wrong,” junior dancer Grace Rowe said. “I would say that my movements started with ballet and tap dancing but as I advanced through the levels they became much more advanced and difficult.”

As the years passed, so did the uniforms. They began to become more unique with the years to come with different varieties in them. They went from military movements and formal uniforms to more feminine, flexible and flashy uniforms. As the uniforms changed, the movements did as well. 

With time, a point system was implemented. Judges get 20 points that they can assign to each category: performance, technique, choreography, creativity and presentation. The goal of the team was to average 80 points between their three scores. 

With this new system being implemented it also made the sport more competitive and difficult and soon dance competitions became a huge part of the sport instead of just performing at pep rallys. This was when dance became the sport that we all know and love.

“Both my mom and sister danced when they were younger and that’s what inspired me to become a dancer,” sophomore dancer Hailey Menzies said. “They inspired me to join the sport because I wanted to be just like them.”

Dance has been passed on through the generations and as those generations have passed so has the different aspects of the sport. With every generation of dancers the sport has drastically changed from military performance to tap and ballet, all the way until now where teams are now given flashy bright uniforms, difficult movements, and a unique point system. It is quite possible that it has gone through more change than any other sport in history.