Parents, students and alumni joined together in Cramton Auditorium to view the “Battle of the Cliques,” where step and dance teams of different residence halls competed for a trophy and bragging rights.
The step and dance teams for the Harriet Tubman Quadrangle, Charles R. Drew Hall and College Hall South faced off on April 11 to determine who would win this year’s competition.
The step and dance competition was part of a week-long series of activities called “Who Runs the Halls,” which included a dorm decorating contest on April 6, a late-night pajama party at Annex Cafe on April 8 and a stroll competition on April 12. The event was coordinated by Howard University Reslife, a student organization under the Office of Student Affairs.
Each dance team had an independent performance. College Hall South went first, decked out in plaid red miniskirts and large glasses. Quad followed shortly after wearing their traditional black and yellow colors. After their independent performances, the teams faced off against each other, taking turns executing routines to different mashups of popular songs.
The HU Step Team, a team composed of people from all dorms, introduced the teams with their performance, utilizing different acrobatic techniques and flips that riled up the crowd.
Then, Drew Hall, College Hall South and Quad performed their step routines, acting along to storylines that went with their audio. Drew Hall donned green basketball outfits as a homage to their colors and the movie “High School Musical,” Quad wore gold and black cheerleading outfits and used inspiration from cheer routines from their set and College Hall South wore suspenders and created a routine around “schooling” their competition.
“I loved the ‘High School Musical’ theme that Drew did. I wish they did more with the song ‘Get Your Head in the Game,’ Donnie Phills, a junior computer science major from Charlotte, North Carolina, said. “I thought that it was really entertaining and creative.”
After a brief intermission, alumni judges deliberated on who would win this year’s reigning title.
For the dance portion of the competition, Quad won over College Hall South. For the step competition, Drew Hall was awarded first place, College Hall South was awarded second place and Quad Hall was awarded third place.
Rhaili Lowe, a freshman supply chain major from Hartford, Connecticut, said that she thinks the wins were well deserved.
“Everyone did very well and worked so hard, I enjoyed the show. I don’t think that Drew has won in a minute, so it was nice to see,” she said.
Copy edited by Jalyn Lovelady
