The Class of 2016’s Nickelodeon-themed Quad Day delivered a solid performance filled with eccentric show characters and impressive dances.
Their skit focused on a behind-the-scenes look of the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards hosted by Drake and Josh, played by juniors Jacob Randall and Josh Dey respectively. The hosts discover that the signature Orange Blimp Awards were stolen.
They and the “Heroes of Nickelodeon,” such as Spongebob ( junior Zhan Ng) and the Fairly Odd Parents (juniors Arnav Pawar and Darby Williams), embark on a mission to recover the awards, traveling through Nick shows and encountering stars and villains along the way.
Although the performance was detailed and quirky with its realistic costumes, microphone issues made the skit hard to understand. There were also changes to the script the night before Quad Day that junior class treasurer Anant Rajeev said.
The juniors, however, recovered with their upbeat and energetic dances. Although it was hard for them to practice frequently due to other commitments, the juniors managed to practice as often as possible and posted video tutorials on their class’ Facebook page for those who could not make the rehearsals.
“We scheduled practices trying to accommodate as many people as we could, but it was really hard to do,” said junior Nina Harris, who choreographed three dances: small girls, large girls and partner dance. “Everyone has other commitments and it was hard to convince people to make dances a priority.”
One of the highlights of the Quad Day was the all-guys’ dance, which was choreographed by junior Vinny Faylor. The dance was similar to one the previous year, both using hip-hop elements and showcasing junior Justin Lee’s twerking. This year, however, Faylor made it more creative and entertaining by including full-face masks, inspired by popular dance crew Jabbawockeez.
“[Jabbawockeez] was the first dance crew on America’s Best Dance Crew,” Faylor said. “I was inspired by all of their dances because they made the audience look at everyone, not just at one person.”
Many choreographers embedded Nick shows’ theme songs such as “Make it Shine” by Victorious into their dance mixes.
“It was my idea to incorporate a Nick song for our finale because I thought that it would be a good way to wrap the whole day up,” junior Jenna Chen said.
Although the performance was cohesive, many students purposely did not cheer or laugh during the skit and dances due to class rivalries.
“We were a little bit disappointed [that others would do that],” Rajeev said. “However, there is this sensational quality about this class to just do the best that we can and share that satisfaction between ourselves with what we did, so we just focused on what we did well, what we liked and what we can work on for next year.”
Despite their hectic schedules, the juniors adorned their section of the quad with an ambitious tunnel blocked off by styrofoam. Inside, they showcased objects from popular Nick shows, completed with a lifesize pineapple-house from Spongebob Squarepants, a spinning Nickelodeon sign built by the class’ robotics team members and glowing lights. All their diligent efforts paid off, for they won first place in the decorations category.
Overall, the class of 2016 had a successful Homecoming that showcased the class’ unity and cohesion.
“Homecoming is a time to unite the class and bring a group together rather than compete for whoever can perform the best,” Rajeev said. “We're just glad we could put on a cool show for everyone to watch, and I think we showed that this class will support each other no matter what.”
