Rockin’ their way to Disneyland
THEY came, they danced and they conquered the judges’ hearts.
SK Convent Bukit Nanas, Kuala Lumpur, and SM La Salle, Sabah, beat 233 teams from all over Malaysia in Disney Channel’s My School Rocks 2012 competition.
Their reward was a three-day, twonight trip to Hong Kong Disneyland.
“I’m excited when I think about the roller-coasters,” said Addeena Safeea Anuar, 10, a member of the winning team from the primary school category.
The girls’ choreographer, Mohd Taufik Bakar, said that he only had two days to train with the girls before the competition. “I was strict with them and we worked hard,” he said.
Echoing his words was Nur Aqila Junaidi, 11, who said, “We practised till 12am or 1am, and then we stayed up late to finish our schoolwork.”
At Malaysia’s largest interschool dance competition, teams were assessed not only on their skills, choreography and dance concept, but also their props, costumes, showmanship and teamwork.
Mohd Taufik chose a slow, romantic song and incorporated contemporary moves into the dance which he believed gave the girls their winning edge.
“Our team was different from the rest,” said 10-year-old Sophie Aiyuni Natasya Mohd Sofian proudly. The youngest member of the team, nine-year-old Sharifah Salma Alhadad Syed Zaid Alhadad added that they “cooperated with each other really well.”
Anisya Khairina Bazlan, 11, enjoyed dancing and performing because it helped build her confidence while team member Amisha Sofia Azli, also 11, advised young aspiring dancers to enjoy themselves while dancing.
“Don’t let the stress get to you and just do your best,” she said.
It was an all-boys team from SM La Salle, Sabah, that nabbed the top spot for the secondary school category.
The team comprised Marcellus Richard, 17, Mohd Hafiz Sahijin, 17, Stanley Tsen, 17, Fairul Fazli Low, 17, Muhammad Taufik Mumbarikusain, 17, and Mohd Fazlee Mohd Fuad Abdullah, 16.
“We took part last year. It gave us invaluable experience and helped us improve and better ourselves in this year’s edition,” said Marcellus, adding that they were more disciplined.
Team member Muhammad Taufik added that they were grateful for the opportunity to compete and “are proud to uphold the good name of our school.”
Stanley remarked that the hardest thing about a competition is that “you are being judged from the minute you walk out onto the dance floor.”
“Attitude is key and making a good first impression is important,” said Mohd Fazlee.
The stresses and challenges however, do not dampen Fairul’s passion for dancing as his ambition is to be a dance teacher!
Besides a trip to Hong Kong Disneyland, the winning teams each received a trophy and a musical instrument set for their schools.