For several years, I took ballroom dance lessons from a local studio. A few times each year, the studio held “Showcase” events—mini productions where students performed choreographed routines in full costume. Every routine became its own project, from pitching creative ideas to sourcing props, coordinating with instructors, and bringing a theme to life on stage.

My early routines were simple and lighthearted. I started with a Swing to “Fun, Fun, Fun” by The Beach Boys. Then came a playful Cha Cha to “Summer in the City” by The Lovin’ Spoonful, followed by a smooth Foxtrot/West Coast Fusion to “Love Song” by Sara Bareilles. Those first few showcases were mostly about learning choreography and trying not to trip over my own feet.

Over time, though, I began designing routines that were more imaginative—and more technical. I added props, built simple set pieces, and experimented with storytelling through dance. A Viennese Waltz to “Danse Macabre” featured a cardboard cemetery backdrop. A Quickstep to “Spiderman” included an improvised web-flinging move. One of my favorites was a swing routine to “Footloose” with a mid-dance quick-change costume reveal. And eventually, I performed a dramatic Tango to Lindsey Stirling’s “Shatter Me,” complete with sharp musical accents and theatrical styling.

Each showcase was its own creative adventure—part choreography, part stage production, part engineering.

Here are a few partial samples:

Quick change in “Footloose”:

“Shatter Me”: