Earlier this school year, you may have seen a B-lunch dance-battle between two seniors; one of which possessed extraordinary prowess. The victor’s name is (as those of you who witnessed the showdown may have heard chanted rhythmically) Rayne.
Photo By Madeline Burger
His old school called him Ryan, his family name is Raynodius Estophar, but he prefers the epithet “Rayne.” This year is Rayne’s first at LM; he moved here from Brooklyn last June, and appears to be fitting in quite well for a newcomer. However, it is not Rayne’s conventionality that allows him to fit in so easily, but rather his uniqueness.
Rayne’s interesting blend of talent, eccentricity and humor was quickly evident upon our introduction. To my surprise, Rayne told me he has only been dancing for three years, and has never had a single formal dance lesson. He picked up the activity in Brooklyn, where most of the people around him were dancers of some sort. He taught himself all he knows, with a little help from the Internet.
“I am a graduate of the YouTube dance academy,” he says. “I basically get the basics from YouTube, and from there I branch off and do my own techniques.” One of his more notable techniques is called “tutting.”
“Tutting involves making intricate angles with your hands and arms in a rhythmic motion.” While his tut is exceptional, his favorite dance is “waving.” When asked about this, he promptly demonstrated what he calls “a fluid waving motion of [the] arms and legs. If you get good enough at it, you can carry it through your whole body and bring it back up.” His brief demonstration of this technique was impressive: his torso undulated with a motion that seemed simultaneously reptilian and robotic. “This,” he says, “was the hardest technique I had to learn.”
Waving and tutting are only a few of the skills contained within Rayne’s expansive repertoire. “I do anything from hip-hop to waltzing to salsa. I like to expand myself as far as dancing and arts in general.”
It is natural to question why Rayne is not a part of the LM Da n c e Te am. We l l , R a y n e b e l i e v e s t h a t their dancing is “quite different” from his. “But,” he says, “I have a respect for all dancers. As a group, dancers have to respect each other’s craft. I respect their craft, and they are very good at what they do.”
Rayne’s creative passions do not stop with dancing. In fact, Rayne intends to go on to pursue graphics and film after high school, while possibly running a small dance class on the side. He is currently working on a movie and corresponding novel, called Revolution Neoz. (Find out more about this at www.raynodius. webs.com)
Some words of advice, from Rayne to all of you aspiring dancers: “Never conform to one style. Always expand; always learn more. If you’re a hip-hop dancer, learn about ballet; if you’re a ballet dancer, learn about meringue; if you’re a classical dancer, learn about hip-hop. Just be yourself.”
Jake Wellens
Class of 2011
