Dance Team Excels in 10th Year

It was in 2005 that Jackie Dunn started the Branford High School Dance Team as the team’s first coach. In just ten years the team has spread its wings, becoming an official sport, a state champion and a powerhouse of a team. The team has brought many honors to the town. 

“I was hired in 2003 and two years later I was approached by some students to ask about starting a dance team”, said Dunn.” They had one when they were at Walsh Intermediate School and said they would like to compete for a team at the high school,” she said. ​“I spoke to Dave Maloney, who was an assistant principal at the time, and he supported the students’ request.” He has since retired. The team has thrived.

“It wasn’t easy then and it’s not easy now. We raised all the money to put on the program and Jacqui and Megan are still doing it now,” she said. 

“The school paid for bus transportation for our team but we fund-raised all the rest. We did pasta dinners, car washes, dances with staff for the students, wreath sales at Christmas and returning cans at WalHmart. You name it we did it” said Dunn. ​“We paid for entry fees, uniforms even much of the expense to get the team members to tournaments.” 

Jacqui Montano, (right in photo with Palluzzi) who was Dunn’s assistant, took over the coaching reigns in 2012 when Dunn retired to spend more time with her young children. Montano added Megan Palluzzi, a former dance team member,to her staff. They have continued the success established by their predecessor. 

Dance Becomes An Official Sport

Back in 2007 the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) took dance on as a sport and started the Dance Team State Championship that has been held every year since. 

Branford became a state power during that time and won 7 consecutive state titles only falling short in 2014 with a second place finish in the Hip-hop Division.

In addition in the Northeast Region, with teams from Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut and New York, Branford became regional champions in Hip-hop in both 2013 & 2014.

Just this past Saturday, on Valentine’s Day, the team took first place in the High School Jazz and High School Hip-hop competitions at Central Connecticut State University. Their jazz routine also took the prize for overall/grand champion of the competition by earning the highest score of all teams competing that day, including some college teams. 

Team Heads To Florida

Last month on January 29 the team left Branford for the Universal Dance Association Nationals in Orlando, Florida.

The team had been preparing their jazz and Hip-hop routines since school started in September, polishing the skills, tricks and techniques.

At the UDA competition they were competing with some of the top teams in the country.

Their jazz routine was a fast-paced remix of Macklemore’s, ​“Can’t Hold Us” where they showed off their intensity and strength, and in the hip- hop routine was a mix of songs from ​“B‑Boy” to house music where their ability to dance across all styles was highlighted.

They competed in the small varsity division, considered the hardest division of the competition, in both jazz and hip- hop for the first time in the team’s history. Sixty-five teams competed.

In hip- hop they finished as semi-finalists placing in the top third of all competitors. Assistant coach Megan Palluzzi referred to it as ​“an amazing accomplishment” when asked about the event.

There’s no question the dance team ​‘light’s it up’ when they perform. Just ask the fans that attended the boy’s basketball games in December and January when they performed at halftime. They are exciting to watch.

Their next competition will be at Quinnipiac University on February 21, followed by the CIAC state championship at Hamden High School on February 27.

###