The Legacy Dance Team is a group of diverse dancers from across the country at Louisiana State University.
Madison Cannon, an LSU political communication major and president of the dance team, said the Legacy Dancers are a performance-based, student run organization with the main goal of serving Black dancers in the Baton Rouge community.
“While the dance team is open to everyone, it gives Black dancers a place to be showcased, especially at a public white institutional school,” Cannon said.
Legacy Dancers was founded by students in 2004 as an all-hip hop crew. Over time, it has progressed into a group of dancers that specialize in all genres of dance, including hip-hop, jazz and contemporary. The dancers focus on good movement and performance quality, as well as confidence building.
Chloë Long, an LSU junior majoring in biological sciences, serves as the Legacy Dancers’ social media manager. Long said a big part of the group’s mission is to share their love for dance with the Baton Rouge community with unique, family-oriented performances.
The team often performs at the LSU and Southern University talent showcases and other local events around Baton Rouge. You can catch the Legacy Dancers’ next public performance at the Miss Phi Beta Sigma Pageant on Oct. 5.
“The audience should expect a high energy jazz routine with lots of personality,” Long said. “This will be our first performance with our brand-new team.”
This could be considered a rebuilding year for the Legacy Dancers. After seniors graduated last May, the group only had four members. Legacy Dancers has built its membership back up to 28.
Kaleb Clausell, an LSU sophomore majoring in kinesiology, is one of those members. She also serves as the team treasurer. Clausell has been dancing since she was 2-years-old and enjoys continuing to perfect her craft at college at Legacy practices.
“In our practices, we normally perfect choreography if we have a performance coming up,” Clausell said. “But if not, then we treat it like a normal class and work on training and conditioning.”
The Legacy Dancers’ officer team plans to bring in guest choreographers for future practices. The exposure of new moves and teaching techniques challenges dancers, leaving room for improvement. The club also aspires to introduce a majorette workshop sometime this fall.
The club’s officers encourage anyone who is passionate about dance and has basic technique skills to audition for Spring semester membership at the end of January 2023. Practices are held on Fridays from 6 to 8 p.m.
The Legacy Dancers’ vice president, Shemaiah Verret, is an LSU junior majoring in elementary education and minoring in dance. Verret, who started dancing at age 14, encourages everyone to pursue their passions. It’s never too late to start, she said.
Legacy Dancers offer open workshops to dancers who are not on the team for $5. The team’s officers recommend potential members attend workshops, so they can be introduced to the team’s culture and get to know current members.
“If you have a passion for dance, come tryout,” Verret said. “We look forward to seeing you.”
You can find more information about the team on their social media @Legacy_Dancers.
