The Canby Cougars and the Philomath Shining Stars hosted events over the weekend, with dozens of teams and fans filling their gyms.
The gloomy drizzle outside didn’t keep dancers from bringing their routines to the floor and showcasing the work they’ve put into their performances in the Show, Traditional, Jazz, Pom, and Hip Hop categories.
Joining Canby at their event, the Winter Festival of Dance were teams from Barlow, Clackamas, Forest Grove, Grant, Grant Union, Gresham, Lincoln, Molalla, Nelson, North Eugene, Parkrose, Putnam, Reynolds, Silverton, Sprague, and Wilsonville.
For the first time this season, Show teams shared their works in process to an anticipatory audience. It is always a fun process when these teams begin to unfold their tarp floors, allowing that first glimpse into the stories and themes that are soon to be shared through movement. Strategic placements of props and set design elements, drawing the audience even further into the adventure and production of a Show routine.
The prolonged set-up resolves and the music begins. Just as it does with all routines, the "show" comes to life with animated faces and unfurling poetry from the dancers' musical movements on the floor. With most of the Show routines having rather unexpected and abrupt endings on Saturday, it is clear that there is more to come from these teams.
Five Show teams shared their work, Clackamas, Sprague, North Eugene, Grant, and Canby. As hosts of the event, Canby performed, but chose not to compete. After all Show performances concluded, the scene was certainly being set for the season. Although they slid down ramps in their performance, the Clackamas Cavalettes slid up the podium and took home first place with their show titled “For Dorian,” scoring an 81.00.
Sprague, the 2025 state champions in the Show division, followed closely behind with their offering, “Note to Self.” In their routine, dancers manipulated oversized pencils and a to-do checklist of things to complete. This viewer was reminded of the dozens of things teams have left "to do" before the State Championships in March.
Sprague trailed Clackamas by less than a point, with an 80.22. If this year is anything like last year, the nail biting will continue, scores will notably be too close for comfort, and the final outcomes will be revealed as we all slide into the Show division at the State Championships in March.
Silverton joined the line up for the first time this season, offering two strong debut performances in the Jazz and Traditional categories. The Foxes took home first place in both the Jazz (5A) and Traditional (5A) line-up. With a Jazz score of 83.26, Silverton also received the highest score of the day, athletically performed in sleek and striking black costumes.
Eight teams competed in the 6A Traditional division, creating a notably large field for the event. Clackamas continued its first place momentum for the day, with a routine titled “For River.” Performed by seven exceptional dancers, the piece is a carry-over of their Contemporary routine from earlier this season, and continues to have a successful run.
The Traditional category also had a division for 1A-4A, with two teams representing the group. Molalla and Grant Union took the floor, and Molalla went home with the first place banner.
For the 6A Jazz group, a field of five teams, Gresham earned the top spot with a score of 75.72. Barlow certainly gave them a run for their turning shoes, however, with a second place score of 74.56.
Hip Hop—always a crowd-pleasing and energetic category—was split into two divisions, 6A and 1A–5A, with three teams competing in each. Parkrose earned first place in the 1A–5A division for the second consecutive week, while Forest Grove captured the 6A banner with an impressive season-debut performance in this category.
Less robust at this event, but powerfully represented with sensational performances, was the Pom category. Both Parkrose and Forest Grove earned their second wins of the day, representing the 1A-5A and 6A Pom divisions.
Although its an unofficial category, and the scoring rubric could be unreliable, Parkrose also went home with a trophy for the "freestyle dance" contest at the Canby event. A joyful way to pass the time as scores are being tabulated and teams gather on the floor to wait for awards.
Winter Festival of Dance (Canby) - First Place Finishes
- Jazz (5A): Silverton (83.28)
- Traditional (6A): Clackamas (83.17)
- Traditional (5A): Silverton (82.11)
- Show: Clackamas (81.00)
- Pom (6A): Forest Grove (80.22)
- Hip Hop (6A): Forest Grove (76.61)
- Jazz (6A): Gresham (75.72)
- Pom (5A): Parkrose (74.28)
- Traditional (1A-4A): Molalla (74.24)
- Hip Hop (1A-5A): Parkrose (74.00)
- all results
The Philomath event, Dancing with the Stars, was a slightly smaller gathering with ten high school teams in attendance. Lebanon, Milwaukie, Newberg, Newport, North Bend, Philomath, Roosevelt, Sheldon, West Albany, and Willamette participated in four categories.
Hip Hop and Jazz were divided into 1A–5A and 6A divisions. The Traditional and Pom categories featured only 1A–5A entries.
With three teams competing in Traditional, West Albany earned the top score of 83.28 in this category. This also stood as the highest score of the event. West Albany earned first place among the four teams in the Pom category as well, scoring an 81.78, and the second highest score of the event. A successful day on the scoreboard for West Albany.
The Jazz category seemed to be a popular genre at the Dancing with the Stars event, with four teams populating each division. Newberg earned first place in the 6A group, with a score of 72.28. It was close race among 5A entries, but Lebanon managed to take the win over Milwaukie with scores of 77.61 and 76.00 respectively.
Newberg’s Hip Hop routine was the winning performance in a field of four 6A teams. This was also Newberg’s second win of the day. Philomath was the only Hip Hop entry among the 1A-5A group, taking home the win at their home event.
Dancing with the Stars (Philomath) - First Place Finishes
- Traditional (1A-5A): West Albany (83.28)
- Pom (1A-5A): West Albany (81.78)
- Jazz (1A-5A): Lebanon (77.61)
- Hip Hop (6A): Newberg (75.67)
- Jazz (6A): Newberg (72.28)
- Hip Hop (1A-5A): Philomath (67.78)
- all results
The Canby and Philomath events also featured several middle school and club teams, a solo, duo and trio round at Canby, and drill down battles at both events. All of this contributes to another full and well-rounded day of dance.
Among the high school programs, several standout teams delivered two winning performances on Saturday, while others showcased three or more routines they hope to qualify—knowing they will ultimately have to choose just two for the OSAA State Championships.
Next week, competition continues at Tigard and Willamette High Schools. There are still new routines to debut and scores to record. As the season unfolds, new stories emerge each time the dancers take the floor.
healeyjamesr@gmail.com
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