Wheelwright Whiteout
When the clock struck 8:30 p.m. last Saturday night, 50 Wheelwright residents wearing white t-shirts adorned with a glow-in-the-dark ‘W’ welcomed students into Grainger Auditorium to kick off the 2019 Wheelwright Whiteout Dance.
To advertise the dance, the Wheelwright residents created a large banner and hung it on the balcony of Jeremiah Smith Hall. Senior and Wheelwright proctor Hannah Littlewood expressed excitement for the setup. “It’s really fun with the black lighting,” she said. “The proctors always make t-shirts for the dorm...it’s a cool dorm bonding event.”
Assistant Director of Student Activities Kelly McGahie was also very pleased with the decorations. She praised the efforts of the organizers from Wheelwright. “Wheelwright did a great job of explaining what they wanted,” she said. She also noted that the level of energy and commitment of the dorm members was commendable. “They all showed up on time to bring the stuff over to decorate, and they were enthusiastic for it,” she continued.
After a successful dance last year, Wheelwright proctors sought to recreate the atmosphere for this year’s event. They believed that bringing back the same DJ would ensure that the music quality would be high. “I definitely think the DJ was the best part,” said Littlewood.
This choice garnered praise from the public as well. “I thought the dance was really fun. The music was really good, too,” senior Ela Ferhangil said.
McGahie recognised the DJ’s appeal and style. “[The students] liked him because they like the black light cannons that light up the whole room,” she said. “They also liked the fact that he mostly does music requests.”
Lower Hassane Fiteni complimented the dance, adding comments about his enjoyment of the music. “It was fire music,” he said. “It really got you moving, and people were vibing with it.” In addition to the fluorescent lights, the DJ also brought strobe lights that he synced with the beats of some songs. As people flooded onto the dance floor, the room easily became crowded and felt energetic throughout the dance.
Students requested songs varying from Beyoncé’s hit “Single Ladies” to The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside” to the widely popular song, “Mo Bamba” by Sheck West. A large crowd gathered near the DJ booth where students rushed to the center, but the Wheelwright girls maintained a fun dance circle that invited everyone. “It was a smaller dance when you compare it to some of the bigger ones where we don’t have a wall up, but I thought it was perfect for the space. I thought the energy was good,” McGahie said.
However, the room felt small for some. “I know that some people really like having it only in half of Grainger, but it was so hot in there,” Ferhangil said. Yet, despite the lack of space, many Exonians had an overall positive experience at the dance.
Reflecting back on her four years of events at Exeter, Ferhangil thoroughly enjoyed this year’s dance. “Honestly, this may have been my favorite Whiteout,” she said. “The music was really good, especially in the beginning, [and] the energy was up.”
McGahie attributed the success of Whiteout to the continual dedication of the Wheelwright girls to the event each year. “I think that’s key to any successful dance—it’s to have the people that are planning it actually show up,” she said. “It was a good dance to me [and] a nice, chill way to start spring term.”
The DJ closed the night with “Fire Burning” by Sean Kingston and gave Wheelwright a shoutout for hosting the dance. People slowly filed out as the song ended and took their final photos in the lobby.
Whiteout was the last school-wide dance for the class of 2019, but the energy of the night made sure that every student would remember the incredible, neon dance for years to come. “Wheelwright’s an awesome dorm,” Fiteni asserted. “It was great to see a lot of my friends organize such an incredible dance.”