By Alexander Rigali

Julia Galasso, the captain of the Woodland Regional Dance Team, is optimistic and energetic about the upcoming season. She is confident in the team’s prospects, especially after their past wins. 

“We started learning some of our routines for this year, and they’re looking really good,” said Galasso

Galasso’s approach to preparing her team for success involves both physical training and team bonding. She has introduced running to build the team’s endurance and organizes team bonding events. She believes that dancing as a unit is key to success, and a strong bond helps the team perform as one. 

“If you dance separately, it’s not gonna look great, but you need to dance as a unit, so you kind of need to have a bond with the team,” she said.

When it comes to leadership, her style is characterized by positivity, enthusiasm, and energy. She makes herself approachable so her teammates feel comfortable coming to her with anything. She is also focused on making every team member, especially new ones, feel valued. She hosted a pool party to help everyone get to know each other and made a point to have conversations with new members to make them feel comfortable.

Julia recognizes that dance is an “opinionated sport,” so a loss doesn’t mean the team is bad. She reminds the team that a judge’s preference can influence a score, and a tough loss doesn’t reflect on their overall talent. The team also knows how to adapt to challenges, like injuries or sickness. Julia believes the team’s ability to fill in for a teammate and readjust on the spot proves how strong they are as a unit.

Ultimately, Julia loves her role as captain because she gets to influence her teammates. She wants to leave a positive legacy and help the juniors feel confident enough to step into the captain role after she leaves. 

“I like that they all look up to me with such bright eyes, like I did once when I was a freshman, sophomore or junior.”