Photography, Text, Video Interview, by Alexander Liu, Copyright 2017
.
THE EMOTIONS OF HEAVEN-ON-EARTH WEEK
.
We call our “Hell Week” “Heaven-On-Earth Week”. This is because the week before our show is both a blessing and a curse. Naturally, there will be moments of sadness and despair due to the shear stress of the upcoming event. However, these same moments help bring the dance troupe much closer together than we would have been otherwise.
Heaven-On-Earth Week started off poorly. After a not-so-smooth first practice, members of the troupe left in a depressed mood. To make matters worse, the harsh cold only reinforced these feelings. Some went outside and reflected on all of the things that went wrong during practice. Others preferred to stay inside and find a quiet space to think alone. Despite the different locations, they were all thinking the same thing: formations were too inconsistent, transitions were too slow, and the choreography was too unclean. With such, the window of time before show was closing quickly, and the troupe did not have high expectations for the days to come.
As the weeks progressed, the show started to piece itself together. Slowly but surely, the mood lifted as well. The usual lively banter picked up again and people began enjoying themselves at practice. Furthermore, the unexpected warm weather was a pleasant surprise to those leaving practice on a recent Wednesday. Instead of parting ways, they decided to spend some time together in a field under the beaming sun. Here, they told jokes, gave each other hugs, and asked each other about their days. It was clear that Heaven-On-Earth Week had taken a turn for the better.
During Thursday night’s practice, there was much excitement due to the possibility of a snow day. Sure enough, the next morning, the troupe woke up to exactly what they had hoped for. Some members of the troupe went out early to enjoy the snow before class. While the cold had been harsh and depressing merely a few days ago, it now added to the fun of a successful ending to Heaven-On-Earth Week.
.
https://youtu.be/C27PWXtcdLs
.
.
About The Author: Alexander Liu is a freshman enrolled in the College of the University of Pennsylvania, Class of 2020. Alex is a member of an Pan Asian dance troupe on campus.