On March 10 and 11, Mark Keppel’s dance company went to Long Beach to compete in West Coast Elite (WCE) Nationals. This year, WCE was the biggest national competition WCE has ever hosted, having teams from all over the United States compete in more than 900 routines in various categories. Our very own Mark Keppel Dance Company competed in two new categories, Small Jazz and Small Hip Hop. 

Friday morning, they competed in Medium Contemporary, Small Hip Hop, and Medium Hip Hop. Later that night, Medium Contemporary placed fifth and Small Hip Hop in the top three. The top 3 teams will then compete at finals on Saturday, March 11th, for first place with brand-new judges. On Saturday morning, they competed in Small Jazz and Kick (a dance style similar to Rockette performances). Small Jazz placed top three, and Kick was awarded 3rd place. Both Small Jazz and Small Hip Hop had the chance to get first place at the WCE gala later that Saturday night. In the final awards, Small Jazz placed fourth, and Small Hip Hop won second place with a 96.34 out of 100— just 0.16 points away from first place. This is just their first national of the season. Their second national takes place in two weeks from March 31 to April 1 in Irvine, California.