On Sept. 22, ASB hosted their “Harry Potter” themed Fall Rally, a celebration of fall sports, school spirit, and anticipation for the upcoming Homecoming dance. It showcased performances from dance and cheer, class clashes, and the video reveal of the Homecoming theme.
This year, Homecoming will be held on campus on Oct. 28, with the theme Gabrielino’s Yule Ball. The theme draws inspiration from a dance by the same name in the book, “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.”
“Rallies are used to boost spirit and honor the athletes that were playing but this year specifically we wanted to go a little bigger and grand,” said Senior Jacob Schilf, ASB Vice President.
Opening the event were ASB members dressed in the green, blue, red, or yellow of their respective houses, along with a handful of teachers wearing costumes of professors from “Harry Potter.” Some of the teachers in costume included Principal Vince Lopez as Headmaster Dumbledore, Tom Velekei as Professor Snape, and Nicholas Merica as Professor Moody.
“It was like seeing a childhood dream come true […] I’m so glad this is the homecoming theme,” stated Senior Phoebe Chan. “I’ve always thought the world of Harry Potter was so magical and exciting and I think [ASB] did a great job reflecting that spirit.”
Girl’s volleyball and golf, cross country, and football were among the fall sports highlighted at the start. When the sports teams entered, professors led the way as the cheer team welcomed them, and the audience appreciated the commitment of the costumed faculty members.
The first class clash game was “Catch the Snitch,” ASB created their interpretation of Quidditch as volunteers from each house (grade) participated. There were small colorful balls on the gym ground, each worth a point, if a student caught the snitch, their house gained points; Hufflepuff (seniors) won the class clash game, receiving 100 points.
The sports recap video highlighted the fall sports, showcasing their notable and memorable moments within their season. As it was playing, each team cheered and clapped when their team was featured, proud of their hard work.
Following, was a dance performance, a hip-hop jazz-funk routine to “That’s Right” by Ciara (ft. Lil Jon). Marking their first performance of the year, the dancers wore sparkling outfits and confidently did their routine, gaining the audience’s praise.
“I’m glad that dance is getting the attention it needs,” stated senior Jennifer Huynh, one of the dancers. “Hearing the crowd cheer for us made it feel like we were giving a great impression.”
Following, there was another class clash activity, “Sock Pop,” where three participants from each grade were to pop balloons to find a sock. The seniors won, gaining 100 points.
The next live performance was Cheer, who did stunts and danced to remixes of songs by Beyoncé and Kelis.
“[While I performed] all I heard were the counts in my brain along with the music to keep myself on pace and I have inner cues to myself,” said senior Jocelyn Gu, all-squad cheer captain.
Spread around the gym were different references from “Harry Potter”, including a shining deer patronus and Hogwarts acceptance letters hanging above the ceiling. Symbolizing each grade level were corresponding banners from the four Hogwarts houses, with Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, and Hufflepuff for freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors respectively.
According to Schilf, the mission this year is to boost school spirit so underclassmen can keep the consistency of upbeat energy.
“Gabrielino students do not have a lot of spirit, and this year […ASB is] really trying to hit [that],” Schilf stated.
