Riley Pegher ’26

I am a relatively new dancer, and Orchesis has openly welcomed me, providing a space to share my passion and love for dance with other dancers. There were two practices back to back right before Fall break, during which both choreographers told us that practice was optional. Of course, I went to both, but I was nervous about spending two hours straight practicing. It was the best decision I could have made. At the first practice, I helped teach someone the choreography they had missed the week before; someone even called me a "dancing TA." Then, in both practices, I learned the finale of the dance. All the work we had done over the past several weeks had paid off, and I got to finish both dances all the way through. The feeling of excitement, clarity, and appreciation between the dancers and me was something I’d been looking for for a long time.