On Thursday night, friends and family crowded into Levin Ballroom for Adagio Dance Company's "Dancefest 2013: It's Your Turn." Adagio, which is run by students, is Brandeis' largest dance group and open to all who wish to participate. Students with varying levels of skill can join and the company will teach their participants and then perform different dance styles at Dancefest. The show was comprised of Adagio performances, as well as several other on-campus dance groups and a few from other schools.

The Adagio performances included ballet, lyrical, jazz and modern dance styles. The Adagio Executive Board, headed by co-presidents Natasia Sun '14 and Gabriella Velonias '15, put on an impressive show with a diverse line up.

The Adagio Dance Ensemble opened the show with an expressive modern jazz routine choreographed by Joleen Caraballo '17 and Lori Shapiro '17, set to Lady Gaga's "Applause," and it deserved just that. Because this number was upbeat, the dancers were visibly enjoying themselves and having fun with the music.

The next dance was more somber, with a different group of Adagio dancers performing to Lana Del Rey's melancholy "Young and Beautiful." As with the first number, the dancers fit their movements to the music, conveying the emotion of the dance skillfully.

Dancefest provided an opportunity for groups from other schools to show Brandeis their skills as well. The first off-campus group to perform was Suffolk University's (Mass.) Wicked!, a hip-hop group that brought their talent and swag to the Brandeis stage, much to the audience's delight. Dancing to a mash-up of rhythm and blues and dance music, the dance crew shook the stage with their moves.

M.O.T.I.O.N., a step group from Curry College, gave a unique and creative performance, starting with a traditional step number using the popular Drake song "Started from the Bottom," and then going off stage, grabbing chairs and performing a school-themed step routine. This involved one of the members teaching her pupils how to step, and them showing her what they can do, at one point standing and stepping on the chairs. The routine ended with the "students" marching off the stage after refusing detention. The audience laughed along with the entertaining and unique performance.

After another Adagio performance, Brandeis' So Unique step team did their standard step routine, which was almost the same as their performance at last week's MELA, shaking things up at the end with some new moves. The Adagio hip hop dancers then showed their love for Justin Timberlake, performing a rhythm and blues-spiced routine to his hit songs "Mirrors" and "My Love", to the audience's delight.

B'yachad, Brandeis' Israeli folk dance troupe performed a routine, choreographed by Lianne Gross '16, in which the dancers moved around the stage gracefully to contemporary Israeli music, blending modernity with tradition. Hooked on Tap, Brandeis' tap dance group, gave an enthusiastic tap performance, although I do wish the taps of their shoes could have been heard a little better over the music.

Brandeis' Belly Dance Ensemble shook their hips to a catchy Egyptian song. Their colorful, spangled costumes were the most eye-catching of the evening, and their movements were impeccably timed to the music. Kaos Kids gave an impressive performance as the only Brandeis-based hip-hop group of the night.

Adagio's second to last dance, choreographed by Erica Mazzone '15, to "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles, was emotionally charged and beautiful as the dancers spun and fell to the ground to the powerful song. 

The dance ensemble closed off the show with a lighthearted routine, choreographed by Jess Urbach '15, set to a unique song featuring a child's voice telling a story over intriguing electronic music. Jumping around the stage, the dancers exuded youth and vibrancy, closing the show with skill and energy.

The audience seemed entertained by the evening's performances, shouting out names of friends in the Brandeis performances and cheering just as enthusiastically for the off-campus groups. The Adagio performers were the stars of the night, and their hard work paid off.

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