By Channe Chwa (19S03G), Lim Zu Er Joey (19S03N), Maxyn Claris Koh (19S03F), Ng Jing Hui (19S03H), and Rebecca Lau Jing Xuan (19S03S)
If you heard loud music coming from above Popular and made your way up, you’ll find street dancers in their natural habitat at the Mirrors, usually practising for an upcoming performance (but sometimes just taking a much needed nap or studying for a test the next day).
An often too-loud bunch, all street dancers share the same love for dance and are not afraid to express that, whether through casual head bobbing on the way to class or fancy footwork while sidestepping the crowd in the canteen. As dancers, we’ve come to understand that dance is much more than movements on stage; countless hours of blood, sweat and tears go into each performance. In each dancer, you’ll find that steely determination to improve and work hard, not just for himself/herself, but for the group as a whole. We’ve learnt to push ourselves to the limit, both physically and mentally, and as scary as that sounds, it definitely pays off when we watch our performance videos and see how far we’ve come.
Our CCA sessions are twice a week for 2 hours each, but we also have unofficial practices if necessary during peak periods (nearing performances). Typical CCA sessions begin with warm-ups and PT, afterwhich our instructor, Ms Steffi, teaches us a variety of skills ranging from basic techniques to improving our performance quality and telling stories through our dance. Occasionally, we may even get exposed to different genres of dance through workshops by external instructors – which include genres like popping, locking, waacking and hip hop! Don’t be afraid to socialise either; everyone is really welcoming and we will try to help you with any queries, dance-related or not. As we are all here to learn, CCA sessions are always a safe space to explore and groove without any fear of being judged.
Of course, to showcase all that we have learnt and practised, we also have many opportunities to perform and even choreograph pieces, during events such as CCA camp, our annual showcase, ad-hoc performances, workshops and competitions, which may be internal or external. Although competitions are always tough, RSD overcame the odds and managed to clinch a finalist position at Super 24 in 2017!
If you’re interested in joining RSD, you might be wondering about our auditions. During auditions, Ms Steffi will teach a short routine, following which you will be given 15 minutes to practise. Once in the audition room, you’ll perform the routine twice and be given a different song to freestyle to. Don’t worry about not being able to perfect the routine or not knowing how exactly to freestyle, you just need to show that you understand the music and portray your passion, which isn’t as daunting as it seems!
Though many of us were worried during auditions because we came in with no experience, ultimately, it’s not about having the best musicality or technique. Rather, it’s about being submerged in the music and being willing to learn. RSD has members from so many backgrounds: contemporary dance, gym, shooting and even NCC, but we all start on a clean slate and are here to grow together. So no matter where you’re from and how much experience you have, it doesn’t hurt to just go for it and give RSD a try!
We look forward to seeing you at auditions with an open mind and a determined mindset. Here’s to future head isolations at Mirrors!
PS If you want to know more about what we do, you can check out our official Instagram page @RafflesStreetDance and @SexyMeOnTheStreets if you want to get to know the 2019 batch better :D :D :D