Stuy Legacy Places Second at Sayaw Dance Competition

The bright lights, the positive atmosphere, and the cheering from the audience—this is what makes months of afterschool practices worth it for members of Stuy Legacy, an urban dance team at Stuyvesant. While performing at massive dance competitions seems daunting to most, for Legacy members, it’s part of everyday life.

Stuy Legacy came in second at Stony Brook University’s largest dance competition, Sayaw X. This was Stony Brook’s 10th annual competition, with Stuy Legacy and nine other teams competing.

Stuy Legacy was established in 2016 and has since grown to become a competitive team, consistently placing at competitions in the New York metropolitan area. This season, directors and seniors Jeff Lin and Crystal Liu, director and junior Min Sun Yu, and choreographers and seniors Zuwei Li and Andy Li, decided to create a medley set with loosely connected songs. While last season showcased a solemn set with a recurring theme of loneliness, this season was about “show[ing] a more diverse range of ourselves,” Liu said. “When we limited ourselves to one story, dance became very restrictive.”

To prepare for the competition, directors and choreographers worked together to piece together a story. “We all discussed the song choice[s] very collaboratively, making sure that each song acts as a puzzle to a grandiose picture of visual expression we wanted to portray,” Zuwei Li said in an e-mail interview.

Choreographers were also encouraged to critique each other’s pieces and experiment with different options for transitions. “This collaboration ultimately results in a greater final product that contains all our best ideas, and it ensures that we reach our highest creative potential,” Lin said.

The stress that comes with creating a competitive set is both physically and mentally draining. This season’s set required more energy than previous ones. “It was very demanding in terms of energy. It was extremely difficult to get through the almost six-minute long set while also performing and keeping a lot of details in mind,” sophomore Melody Lin said.

Team morale also hindered progress this season, as both choreographers and members on the team found themselves doubting their work. “As a choreographer, I sometimes found myself not having a lot of confidence in my work nor the motivation to push through the season when it got stressful,” Jeff Lin said.

This doubt came to a head the day of the competition, when members felt discouraged after a bad set run. “At the beginning of the day, I was so excited to perform, and I was really confident in our abilities to do really well. But when we took the time to clean, my whole mood shifted, and I was really doubtful,” freshman Sukanya Ferguson said.

To combat this doubt, directors and choreographers looked to past members also attending the competition. “We were really tired out and unable to perform to our full potential. However, we received feedback from our alumni and other dancers from the community on how to improve. After this, we only fixed a couple of things and prioritized our mentality going into the competition,” Melody Lin said.

Legacy also has a tradition of coming together and sharing thoughts before going on stage. This allows members to share their worries and to reinforce the team bond. “We discussed our feelings as a team, and the talk really brought back the hope I had at the beginning of the day,” Ferguson said. “After all of the doubts, we ended up placing second because we believed in ourselves once the time came, which resulted in us doing well.”

This community spirit also exists outside of competitions, as members and directors alike continuously express the competitive, yet loving atmosphere of the team. “Through Legacy, I learned to find more than just my voice. I found a family that taught me the importance of communication and personal endeavor,” Zuwei Li said.

Jeff Lin agreed, commenting on the values Legacy upholds and how these values aren’t only found in the studio. “I think Legacy values growth very heavily in all aspects: as a dancer, as a student, as a team player, as a human, and more,” he said. “Aside from dance, teammates help each other with schoolwork, learn respect and how to be cooperative from each other, and are heavy supporters of one another.”

Legacy’s support system can clearly be seen when the team welcomes new members. While directors aimed to maintain the quality of their set, they wanted to take in as many new members as possible. “We maintain high expectations for everyone, but we are also always supportive and will spend extra time helping new members with choreography or learning if needed,” Jeff Lin said.

Some of the newer members of Legacy felt very encouraged as they integrated themselves into the Legacy community. “I feel like I belong somewhere,” freshman Caleb So said.

Ferguson agreed, “The process of building a set is memorable, including stress, laughs, and progress. As I go on with the team throughout high school, I will always go back to this season's set as a way to acknowledge my growth as time goes on.”

Due to concerns surrounding COVID-19, all studio practices have been canceled, while upcoming competitions have been postponed. Directors and members plan on continuing the legacy paved by previous members while aiming for the team to remain a place for dancers to grow and learn together. “Legacy isn’t just a thing to feel comfortable in; it’s something that’s helped me grow as a person,” Liu said. “If people can find that for themselves, I think we’d be living in a much better world.”