By Lee Zhi Ying (26A01A, Chairperson) and Tan Hui Yu (26A01C, Vice-Chairperson)
Adapted from CCA Previews ’25
If you have a passion for dance, Raffles Modern Dance is the right place for you!
We are an energetic group with a spectrum of dance aptitudes—and you don’t need a dance background to join in on the fun!
Our CCA Sessions
The main genre of dance that we explore during our CCA sessions is contemporary dance, which draws inspiration from a wide range of genres, including ballet, jazz and Chinese dance. However, it breaks away from the rigid structure of these traditional dance forms, allowing for more freedom of expression. In fact, many contemporary dancers and choreographers often draw inspiration from everyday movements.
Our CCA sessions are held twice a week (Mondays, 4:15pm-6:15 pm, and Wednesdays, 8:30am-11:00 am) and typically start with warmups, where we condition and strengthen various muscle groups to build our foundational skills, strength and endurance. These workout sessions also allow us to feel and build onto each other’s energy as we encourage one another and come together as a united team.
Following that, we work on different dance combinations, learning new tricks and ensuring that we utilise the right muscles. These exercises are the building blocks for our performances, allowing us to better appreciate and execute higher level choreography.
CCA Culture: A Home Away From Home
Here in Modern Dance, we aim to form a close-knit family to enrich our short two years in RI. During training sessions, partner work is a common sight; we work on the quality of our movements through peer feedback, learning from one another’s corrections while fostering a stronger team spirit. If you’ve ever thought of doing cool partner work lifts, Modern Dance is the place for you to experience them!
Outside of routine training sessions, we hold bonding sessions, whether it is a simple dinner after CCA or performances, or spending time together on outings. This helps us to build a strong support system within the CCA, allowing us to cope with the stress of JC life and making every training session much more enjoyable.
Our Performances
Some of the performances that you can look forward to are the biennial Singapore Youth Festival (SYF) Arts Presentation and our annual ARTSeason showcase. These performances are platforms for us to showcase what we have been working on during CCA sessions, and serve as a milestone for individuals and the team to work towards and celebrate.
Outside of SYF and school performances, we also take part in external showcases or competitions. One example was the 2025 Lion City Dance Convention (LCDC), held at the National Stadium. It was an opportunity for us to showcase our performance to a larger Singaporean community as part of ActiveSG’s National Day Celebrations.
After weeks of self-led practice sessions, as well as shared determination during CCA sessions, we were recognised and commended on our efforts, emerging in Top 10 in the Junior Category.
Beyond our achievements from the various competitions and performances, we believe the journey is equally, if not more fulfilling. During the practice sessions in the lead-up to the competition, every dancer is hyper-focused, determined to break boundaries. Together, the team forges a strong collective spirit, and Modern Dance becomes not just a CCA, but a family that we know we can rely on, and grow together.
We are given free rein to choreograph our own pieces for most school-based performances, allowing us to freely express ourselves on stage. Each dancer is able to take the lead in choreographing at least one item for the showcase and can also collaborate with other CCA mates as choreographers, seeing their artistic vision come to life!
It is hard work, but the adrenaline rush we feel from performing together as a team onstage under the stage lights, and seeing our hard work pay off is immeasurable.
Martha Graham, a pioneer in the contemporary dance scene, once said: “Great dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion.”
Hence, fret not if you do not have any prior background in dance. If you have a passion to learn, we would love to have you join our Modern Dance family. We guarantee a jam-packed and fun-filled CCA experience here in Mod! See you at auditions!
