Bright lights illuminated six dancers as they shimmied, leaped and pirouetted across the stage. Time after time, the dancers dazzled the audience and judges as applause echoed throughout the auditorium.

The DECA club held the second annual “So You Think You Can Dance” on Friday. The volunteer event raised over 1,300 dollars for cancer treatment benefitting biology teacher Melanie Toth’s son Ben.

Unlike last year’s event, this year’s So You Think You Can Dance featured dancers ranging from four-year-olds to high schoolers. Only one Whitman student danced in the event – senior Paulina Reyes.

“Once we heard about what happened to Ben Toth, we decided to reach out more to everyone else in the neighborhood, like the Pyle kids and the Bradley Hills kids,” said senior Naomi Senehi, who organized the event.

The night began with the younger performers taking the stage. Four-year-old Maccabi Hollis gave an energetic performance to a “Gangnam Style” and “Party Rock Anthem” mix. First grader Ava Elise Faghani improvised a ballet routine to “The Sugar Plum Fairy.” The crowd went wild, excited and impressed by the enthusiasm of the young dancers.

Judges Daniel Chen, Stephen Hays, Meg Thatcher and Rachel Stender also hit the stage and danced to “Gangnam Style.”

“My favorite moment was when the judges did ‘Gangnam Style,’” Senehi said. “I was nervous, because I actually asked them at lunch the day of to do the dance, but from the crowd’s response I think it went well.”

The performers in the next category were Pyle Middle School students. Their category kicked off with 7th grader Charlotte Alden performing a graceful, lyrical number to Taylor Swift’s “A Place in This World.” Sixth graders Lauren Gates and Chloe Bernard also performed a duet.

The section of the performance ended with 8th grader Julia Eisenberg dancing to Chris Brown. Eisenberg brought in hip-hop and contemporary elements to her dancing.

“I’m hoping I get to see you as a Whitman Pom,” Stender said to Eisenberg.

After a 15 minute intermission, So You Think You Dance continued with older dancers senior Paulina Reyes and senior Justin Robinson, who is homeschooled. Robinson danced to Michael Jackson, incorporating ballet and contemporary as well as some of Jackson’s signature moves.

For the final dance of the night, Reyes performed a contemporary number to an Imogen Heap song, dazzling the crowd with leaps and turns. The judges were blown away by Reyes’ artistry and strength, they said.

“I felt amazing. I was full of energy and it was really fun,” Reyes said.

Unlike last year’s event, the judges didn’t decide on a winner. Instead, audience members voted for their favorite age group to help the club decide how to run the event next year.

“It was a very professional event. It was really nice to have the community involved especially with the elementary school kids,” club advisor Demitra Marafatsos said. “It was a success.”