Dance group places in competition

Pouring sweat, sore backs, hands on the hips and requested water breaks were all part of Urban Impulse as the music came to a stop last Thursday night. After nine hours of dancing and planning for its competition at Ohio State University, the dedicated, but worn out, group from Eastern slowly inched out of Weaver with the goal to win.

Set for its first competition, the group that has been running for two years has seen its ups and downs.

Kay Legette, Brianna Yore and Liz (getting last name today) created the group on Eastern's campus two years ago.

"We wanted to start a group that was diverse. We knew a lot of people who wanted to dance, but they wanted to do more than just pom-pom routines or technical spins," Legette said. "We wanted to do not just hip hop, but contemporary."

After starting fresh with new members and another set of tryouts this year, Legette and Yore said the group has grown a lot since it first began.

The communication skills and dedication to practices has increased the stability as a dance group.

"We learned all about how to get hard work done," Yore said. "We became better leaders."

Urban Impulse has made a habit to practice its dances every day. The group's nights begin at 9 p.m. and often come to an end at midnight or later.

After performing at the Delta's basketball tournament, Urban Impulse hit the studio floor for nine hours of non-stop practicing.

The group practiced their routines from 3 p.m. until midnight on Thursday, the night before their first competition as a team.

"They are very dedicated, considering they've been together all day," Yore said. "There's 13 girls and four boys and they still have energy to keep going."

As it became later, towels wiped faces and teammates encouraged each other to keep going: "Go hard or go home," they said.

"We want to win," Yore said. "We at least want to come back with something."

As for returning to campus empty-handed, Yore said, "That's not an option. We plan to win."

Urban Impulse did not win a first place trophy, but it did meet its goal of making it to the second round and placing in the competition.

The group received a standing ovation from the audience during its performance and was patted on the back by other teams.

It is not a disappointment to the group's leaders that Urban Impulse didn't grab the first place trophy.

"I'm just excited that we-I never thought I would start a group on campus," Legette said, "but seeing it unfold from just an idea to where we are now. I think we have grown, me, Liz and Brianna."

Urban Impulse plans to stay afloat as long as possible, Legette said. The group is looking for more places to showcase its work.



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