N.A.R.P.s

It’s no secret that it has been our lifetime dream to be extras in a Step Up movie. Those dreams were temporarily crushed when Maddie’s application to MTV’s show Made to become a hip-hop dancer went unanswered in 2010, and Izzy’s career in Irish Dancing quickly came to a halt when it became clear she genetically could not point her toes.

However, our dancing confidence made a triumphant return after a crowd of “fans” (belligerent partygoers?) catcalled us during a late-night Atwater dance-off last year. It only made sense that during our semester of experimental adventures we would make a stop at a Riddim dance practice. For those of you less-cultured readers who are unfamiliar with Riddim, we will give you the 411. Riddim is the coolest group on campus; end of story. Rhythmically-gifted students band together every term for weekly practices that culminate in an end-of-the-semester final performance slash the ultimate showdown. The performances are well-choreographed, sexy, creative and full of great mood lighting. Basically, it’s the closest a Middlebury student will ever get to attending the Video Music Awards.

Luckily for us, the members of Riddim were more than willing to let us join in. In fact, they even offered to let us crash a Tuesday night hip-hop/twerk class taught by Lauren Black ’16, the ULTIMATE hip hop expert. We had about a week to prepare for our dancing debut. The most obvious question we had to address was: what do we wear? Maddie really pushed for an off-the-shoulder sweater with a cheetah leotard and cropped leggings look, while Izzy was dead set on drop-crotch sweats, Nike dunks and a T-shirt with homemade gaping armpit holes. Due to our inability to pick one over the other, we compromised with loose fitting tank tops, leggings and barefeet. Every night before bed, we would watch three critical YouTube videos: Beyonce’s Superbowl Halftime Performance, “The Carlton” from French Prince of Bel-Air and Channing Tatum’s Magic Mike Black Vest Dance (just ‘cause). When it was finally Tuesday, we felt as ready as we would ever be — unable to touch our toes and full of energy.

As we entered the dance studio below Proctor Dining Hall, we clung to the back wall in order to get as far away from the full length mirror as possible. We watched the dancers run through what they had learned the week before with starry eyes and perhaps a little bit of drool running down our chins. Lauren instructed the dancers on the floor to “let that booty do its thing” as the lyrics “kill him with it” blasted out of the speakers. Naturally, we immediately felt at home.

It was finally our turn to join in once Lauren started teaching everyone a new dance. We were flooded with questions. What is a kick-ball change? Do I look like Missy Elliot?  Why does my face look like I’m in pain when I’m trying to be sexy? Honestly, we felt like we were awkward attendees at a bad indie concert struggling to sway with the beat. Even our simple strut paled in comparison to the hot women of Riddim. Maddie particularly struggled with a move that required her to push up her cleavage that is, unfortunately, nonexistent. A GIRL CAN DREAM. During the final run-through we managed to keep up with roughly 25 percent of the choreography — even the on-the-floor gyrations to the lyric “big fat pu**y mufasa.”

All in all, the Riddim girls were incredibly nice and welcoming. At no point did they burst out laughing at our flailing limbs, and we immediately felt a part of the group. It was honestly shocking how quickly everyone learned the choreography. Lauren would repeat the new moves once before all of the girls fell in line and were ready to move on to the next while we were still catching our breath. Not only did they retain the choreography but they looked incredibly sexy the entire time. The Riddim girls have a confidence that radiates from their dancing, and it makes their performances that much more fun to watch.

Don’t forget to buy your tickets for the December performance as soon as they go on sale – we recommend the 10:30 timeslot as the crowd is much rowdier.