Dancing Davis: Senior Steps In For Injured Sophomore Dancer

Surrounded by columbia blue-suited marching band members and Lancer Dancers, senior Davis Vaughn set his clarinet near the white football field sideline and switched from a stiff, systematic marching band member to an agile, free-flowing dancer.

While the crowd of East students rustled and cheered him on from the silver bleachers, Vaughn dipped and lifted senior Megan Walstrom through their duet. They danced to a song called “Left My Baby” which is meant to show two people saying goodbye for the last time. People who hadn’t previously know Vaughn would never have imagined he had learned the emotional dance in less time than he spends at school each day.

It was only three days before that Thursday night football game that he found out his regular halftime march would also include a duet dance choreographed for a varsity Lancer Dancer. He filled in for the injured original dancer, Sophomore Oscar Miller. Even though Vaughn forgot the order a couple times, his beaming face could be seen smiling up to the bleachers — showing the thrill he gets while performing in front of the crowd.

Previously, the spot was held by Miller, who has been practicing ballet for 12 years. Shortly after his first and only time performing the dance, Miller dislocated his knee during ballet class and was deemed unable to continue dancing due to his thigh-high cast. Because of his charismatic personality, Vaughn was then asked to fill Miller’s shoes — even though he lacks the professional training and practice.

When deciding how to adjust the dance after Miller was injured, choreographer and Lancer Dancer coach Alexis Close remembered that Vaughn has performed in all the musicals throughout his years at East — including Cinderella, Seussical and Curtains — and would add entertainment value to the dance.

“Davis gives a dynamic performance on the stage and I’ve enjoyed working with him in the musicals in years past,” Close said. “He was so kind to fill in Oscar’s spot, and he’s fun to watch perform too.”

Getting pulled aside during band practice by Close took Vaughn by surprise, but he was eager to step out of the usual marching line.

“My reaction was like a really nervous but excited ‘of course I will’ because I know how good of a dancer Oscar is and I know I cannot fill his shoes so there was a mix of nervousness and excitement,” Vaughn said.

Miller has performed in nine “Nutcracker” productions, “Tom Sawyer,” “Alice In Wonderland,” and “Sleeping Beauty” with The Kansas City Ballet. Vaughn, on the other hand, has had no formal dance training. That is, unless you consider “foleyography” — the most basic form of choreography used in choir — formal. The extent of his dancing is a perfected jazz square. Most of the dancing he does is just for fun and to make people laugh.

Even with the stress of having only three days to learn the dance, Vaughn maintained his easygoing attitude and practiced as much as he could. His duet partner — senior Megan Walstrom — ran through the dance with Vaughn a couple mornings the week of the performance.

“He was very positive through it all and I was so impressed because I felt so bad for him getting thrown into this tough situation but he handled it really well,” Walstrom said.

The possibility of students’ judgy eyes that may come from him not being the most graceful dancer doesn’t bother Vaughn. Although it will take a few more dips and lifts for him to perfect his inner dancer, grande-jeté-ing across the field is something different than the marching he’s done the past few years and is fun for him. As of right now, he has the remainder of the season to practice and improve.

“You kind of just have to go with it and accept that you may have to embarrass yourself but that’s part of the fun of it,” Vaughn said. “Hopefully I’ll get better at the dances and it comes more naturally to me as I progress.”