From April 9-13, the NYU Dance Team will be participating in the National Dance Alliance College Nationals, an annual event hosted by the NDA in Daytona Beach, FL. The NYU Dance Team is the official competitive dance group at NYU that primarily focuses on the hip-hop, jazz and pom styles of dance. Aside from performing at nationals, the dance team is very active within the NYU community, performing at basketball games, hosting showcases and giving back with community service. The competition is split into two parts, preliminaries and finals, and teams receiving the highest scores this weekend will be awarded a spot in the finals.  

The NYU Dance Team is a diverse, passionate group of dancers working to create a space of fun and community while also regularly competing throughout the season. The team is largely self-run with team captains taking the lead with choreography, costume design, fundraising and creating practice schedules. Fundraising efforts — including bake sales, merchandise sales and events with restaurants — throughout the season go toward travel and accommodations for nationals.  

In past years, the dance team placed fourth and sixth in the 2024, seventh at the 2023 and sixth at the 2022. To prepare for the upcoming performances, the team goes through, what members refer to, as hell week, where the team meets to practice six times for around a total of 25 hours.  

“The work is worth it,” senior and team captain Dee Leggard told WSN. She has been a part of the NYU Dance Team for her entire college experience and is extremely grateful for the creative outlet the team has offered her. 

“Dance is such a constant in my life. I knew that I wanted to pursue that in college because it was something that I could always rely on,” Leggard said. 

Apart from dance, the club provides members a uniquely supportive community on campus where they can connect with people who share common interests and experiences.   

“I really sought to find my community on campus, particularly with people who had similar backgrounds,” Leggard said.

For the team, NDA College Nationals is an opportunity to present their dedication and hard work over the course of the season and to represent NYU at the national level. The team has been practicing their dance routine for months in preparation for nationals.  

“It’s really heartwarming to see how much the team has grown throughout the year,” Leggard said. “I’m proud of how far we’ve come.”

For updates on the NYU Dance Team’s performance this weekend, watch the NDA livestream, available to view through Varsity TV. 

Contact Chloe Sundstrom at [email protected].