Viral Dance Class with Mr Thong Wai Keen

Jointly reported by:
Ng Yan Wen Sr1ScF 17188
Ng Choon Hau Sr2A 16066

High school biology teacher by day, rhumba dancer by night. On 27th and 28th of May, Mr Thong Wai Keen held his ‘Viral Dance Class’ in conjunction with the school’s Lively Holidays Carnival. This just goes to show that our teachers live their own glamorous lives as well.

The punny name, combined with the snazzy dance routine and charismatic teacher pulled in an initial attendance of around a hundred students. The aforementioned snazzy dance routine happened to be Jennifer Lopez’s choreography from this year’s Superbowl event, which had recently become a trending Tik Tok challenge.

Mr Thong had chosen this dance due to its popularity among the tech-savvy teens and its medium difficulty. “Rhumba dances are too advanced,” he said. The dance had required some above average flexibility, but the warm-up exercises Mr Thong had everyone do were specifically picked to help in that area. In the end though, the dance was still simplified so that everyone could do it together one last time with their cameras on.

In an interview following the class, Mr Thong told us the reason he decided to host this class. Turns out, some teachers, aware of his experience, had approached him regarding the carnival. He thought it would be fun for everyone to relax and learn some dances, so he took up the job.

It was quite tiring behind the scenes, as he had to multitask a lot. He had to constantly replay the music, act as his own cameraman, and admit late students into the Zoom classroom mid-session, on top of teaching and dancing for a full hour in order to fill the time slot. The verbal and physical workout was, predictably, taxing.

However, despite the technical difficulties, it certainly was another colourful addition to the carnival that livened up our holidays! Thank you very much, Sir.