Dance raises over $250,000 for student aid
Midway Photo by Lily Vag-Urminsky
NINETIES NIGHT. Miles Warshauer belts out his solo on “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” as fellow Bel Canto members Luca Carroll-Maestripieri, Tommy Hsee, Nicki Sekhar and Jonah Schloerb, look on at the Dewey Dance, March 9. Bel Canto was one of several student performances at the event.
March 12, 2019
More than $250,000 raised at the Dewey Dance will go toward student financial aid thanks to parents, faculty and staff who took part in the ‘90s-themed event Saturday, March 9.
Attendees dressed in plaid, leather jackets or blazers with sleeves casually rolled up talked and danced around Kovler Gym. Their classic ‘90s outfits were illuminated by the purple and blue lights as parents talked to old friends and colleagues.
Almost 400 tickets were sold to Lab community members, close to the same amount that were sold for the first Dewey Dance in 2017. Though the number of tickets sold is similar, this year’s event raised more money than in 2017, through many other fundraising opportunities. Maintaining the ‘90s theme, popular CDs were available in raffles to help further promote fundraising.
Damon Cates, Lab’s executive director of alumni relations and development, worked with his staff to plan the catering, donations and advertisement for the fundraiser.
“We talked with volunteers about what they thought might be the best priority for the school and what we thought they might rally behind,” Mr. Cates said.
He and others who collaborated on this project believe that by spending the money on scholarships for students, it will help admissions with its diversity, equity and inclusion work.
Bel Canto performed its first pop number, including new choreography, at the Dewey Dance. According to member Cindy Wu, the whole group learned to dance and sing at the same time, something that they had not yet faced during rehearsals.
“Overall it was a lot more fun and there was a lot more energy in rehearsals,” Cindy said, reflecting on the preparations for the Dewey Dance.
Looking over at the D.A.R.E. shirts that Bel Canto members wore, Brian Hewlett, Lab’s new director of innovation and technology, commented, “I came tonight because it sounded fun and those guys sound really good.”
