Alyssa VanPelt-Cathcart, Staff Writer
Over the weekend of May 1st through May 3rd, Terpsichorean Dance Company, commonly referred to as TERPS by SUNY Oneonta students, performed their semesterly dance recital. Both Xclusive Dance Crew and OK! Crew performed as well.
Every semester, TERPS picks a new theme. The theme for the 2025 Spring semester is Clue. Clue is a classic movie and board game featuring a murder mystery. At the beginning and ending of each performance, they play a video starring the current EBoard: Kayden Fastag, Jessica Kaufer, Amani Rodriguez, Kaylee Thatcher, and Maya Johnson. They were dressed as various iconic clue characters such as Johnson wearing red for Scarlet and Rodriguez wearing purple for Plum. In their video, they have lost a very important set piece. However, when they cannot seem to find it, they begin to accuse each other of trying to sabotage the show. They play into the true crime trope to fit the overall theme of their event.
Throughout the show, the hosts played into a true crime mystery as well. Martin, one of the hosts, did a dramatic inhale and began speaking as if he was possessed. During his possession, he warns the other hosts that there is danger. Then he exhales out of his possession and acts like nothing happened. This leaves the other hosts creeped out, but to the audience it played as a humorous addition as Martin said, “huh, what are you talking about?” During the rest of the show, it is discovered that Red the Dragon, the school mascot, is missing. One host, Olivia, suggests that perhaps Red is dead because she spilled hot soup on them earlier, but no one has seen them since. Then Martin admits that he had locked Red in a storage closet and had forgotten about them. However, Red is still missing. The hosts play into humorous suspense. By the end of the show, it is revealed that another host, Suzie knew where Red was the whole time. She just wanted to mess with Olivia and Martin, to scare them a little. Then, Red, the mascot themselves, appeared on stage.
The story amongst the EBoard continues right before the finale. Johnson receives a text message that the set piece had been found. They are all relieved, but then they spend the time mourning that this will be their last show together as an EBoard. During intermission, they played a video of kid versus adult photos of their graduating seniors. Many of the contemporary and ballet dances were to more somber music that ended with an intimate group hug. Many of the dancers are so expressive. It is impressive how deeply connected they are to the dance as they’re performing. It is difficult to not feel connected as an audience member to their dance. The dance, Teenage Dream, was a group ballet to the song, Teenage Dream by Olivia Rodrigo. Kaylee Thatcher choreographed the dance, and they wore purple dresses with bows in their hair. At the end, the seniors amongst the dancers, stepped forward and placed their bow on the ground before exiting off stage. Then, everyone else slowly walked off, leaving one girl to pick up the bows by herself. As the lights died down, everyone came running back on into a group hug.
TERPS is welcoming to newer dancers or anyone interested. They often host their auditions at the beginning of each semester. For more information, or to see videos of their performances, find them on Instagram: @terpsoneonta.
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