Dr. Harriton, an incredible performance of eight upperclassmen sharing their talents with the school, while raising money for charity, exudes school spirit and excitement. This single night brings together the entire community (albeit virtually this year), including underclassmen, family members, friends, and more. The Harriton Banner had the opportunity to chat with two contestants, Lucas Reiner ‘21 and Jared Markowitz ‘21, to hear about their experience thus far.

The Harriton Banner: What were your first experiences with the Dr. Harriton show (ie. going to the show when you were a freshman, having an older sibling go through the experience)?

Lucas Reiner: I first saw the show in my sophomore year and wanted to be a part of it ever since. I always thought it would be fun to be on stage and also a great way to get involved in the school. While Harriton unfortunately lacks a lot of school spirit, I think Dr. Harriton is still one of the unique parts of the school year that [engages] almost the entire community.

Jared Markowitz: My first experience with the Dr. Harriton show was in my Freshman year. After watching the intro dance, I was amazed by the students being able to dance perfectly in sync with each other, while also having a fun time. I immediately knew that I wanted to participate in it when I became an upperclassmen, and have been eagerly waiting since then.

THB: Why did you decide to take part in Dr. Harriton?

JM: I decided to participate in Dr. Harriton because I wanted to showcase my hidden talent to the entire school, while also being able to raise money for charity and show school spirit. I also spoke to many past participants, who all said that it was one of the best experiences of their life, and that I could not pass up the chance (after just a week of practice, I found this to be very accurate).

THB: Describe how you are feeling for the night of the show.

LR: There is definitely a lot of uncertainty surrounding the night of the show, especially in regards to who will be allowed to attend. However it ends up, I think it will still be a great night, and will be unlike any other Dr. Harriton show previously. I am excited to see how it will turn out.

JM: I am extremely excited for the night of the show. Collectively, we have put a ton of hard work into making sure that our performance is as smooth as possible, and it will be awesome to put it all together and be able to showcase it to the entire school.

THB: How is the Dr. Harriton experience different from anything you have done before?

LR: Well, aside from the occasional Just Dance game with my sisters, I had zero dance experience prior to joining the show so learning all of the routines was an entirely new experience. It was especially hard trying to dance for long periods of time with masks on. I also haven’t done any sort of live performance before, but I look forward to performing in front of hopefully a good size audience.

THB: What has the experience of preparing for Dr. Harriton been like so far for you? Could you share any funny rehearsal stories or a lesson that you learned over the past months?

LR: My favorite parts of practice have been when someone spontaneously suggests a new stunt to add in the routine. We could be practicing something simple, until someone says “Why don’t we add in a back flip instead” and the choreographers find a way to work it into the routine. It’s great when we get the stunts on the first try, but that is a pretty rare occurrence and so we usually have a bunch of bloopers.

THB: For any rising juniors and seniors reading this, what do you believe are characteristics that a ‘Dr. Harriton’ should have?

JM: If you are planning on trying out for Dr. Harriton, there are certain characteristics that you must have, if you want to be successful. A Dr. Harriton participant must be outgoing, hard-working, and collaborative. We have practices every day for 2+ hours, so it is a large commitment. Also, there are many times where us participants struggle with learning parts of the dance, so it is very important to stay focused and refuse to give up.

Are you ready for May 21st? Get ready to show up and cheer on Lucas and Jared, as well as six other hardworking upperclassmen. You won’t want to miss it!