"Stronger together"

Dance concert Celebrates Unity of WO community

By Cynthia Cumming

WEST ORANGE, NJ – The West Orange High School Dance Department presented its first annual concert on Feb. 15, and it was a showstopper. “Stronger Together” celebrated the diversity and unity of not only the students and West Orange High School, but the West Orange community.

The program, which began last year under the direction of dance teacher Melissa Sande, continues to grow and will feature Dance 1 (Elements of Dance), Dance 2 (Performance Skills), and Dance 3 (Honors Advanced Course) in the 2018-19 school year.

“The theme of "Stronger Together" was inspired by what my experience at the high school (and West Orange in general) has been so far,” began Sande.

“Each day I have the privilege to see school leaders, faculty, and students alike whose actions demonstrate unity and support for one another. As a teacher, I have felt very supported which has led to me being able to put forth my best effort into the development of the dance program,” she said..... Click here to read more

West orange dance program raises the barre for 2017-2018 School year

By Cynthia Cummings

WEST ORANGE, NJ – The inaugural year of the West Orange High School Dance program “raised the barre” for students and dancers, and even more is planned in the 2017-18 school year.

Dance teacher Melissa Sande is more than up to the task of developing the program, which completed the first year of Dance I. Sande received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Montclair State University and her Masters in Education from Rutgers University. She is certified to teach dance K-12 in both New York and New Jersey.

“The Dance I program content incorporated the four cornerstones of dance as art in education,” noted Sande.

“Students learned Dancing and performing (technical training), creating and composing (building a dance), knowing history, culture, and context, and analyzing and critiquing (developing a critical eye),” she explained.... Click here to READ MORE

New Dance Course added for 2017!

Dancers currently enrolled in the introductory dance will now have the opportunity to take a successive course entitled Dance II: Performance Skills. Students in the level II course will explore all aspects of what it takes to put on successful performances. Students will be introduced to production elements that have to do with staging, lighting, to how to prepare and excel at performances. Students will also engage in performing ensemble works as well as having the opportunity to present their own over the course of the year. Participation in performances are a MANDATORY part of this course and count towards the student's final grade.

WOHS Dancer's original work chosen for National PTA Reflections Contest

In late November, Senior Cameron Bridgers submitted an original work to be adjudicated in the second annual PTA's Art Reflections showcase. Cameron worked in collaboration with her dancers Kennedy Fort-fotskey and Amaya. On January 26th, Cameron and Kennedy performed at Liberty Middle School alongside with the boys and girls step teams. At the showcase, Cameron found out that her piece has been chosen among other submissions to represent West Orange at the National level of the PTA Reflections contest. Congratulations Cameron and dancers for a job well done!