On wed. Feb. 8, a few junior and senior leaders shared their Rosary pride with future Royals at the Red and Gold workshop.

As a way to introduce the essence of Red and Gold, the class of 2027 was split into five categories: dance led by Amber Lizardi ’23 and Finley Hawkins ’24, drill taught by Justine Avalos ’23 and Marlie Machado ’23, choral led by juniors Sage Baumgartner and Natalie Naylor, drama led by Madison Hayward ’23 and Mia Kennedy, and publicity/fashion led by seniors Kimi Watanabe, Bella Barretto, and myself.

In Amber’s dance, incoming Royal Delilah expressed how “fun and kind of stressful it was to learn a dance in such a short amount of time.” Sweatshirts flew off, hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and leaps started to sprinkle the Karcher Center. Amber’s choice of song had a little Latin twist which was fun to listen to and even better to watch. Together, the class of ’27 got out of their comfort zone and expressed themselves– the epitome of a Royal.

As Marlie and Justine taught their iconic Red drill, Justine recalls, “I was getting flashbacks from when I was at the Red and Gold workshop four years ago. I remember making so many friends at this event, and I saw many moments where friendships blossomed.”

I can fully agree with Justine; the drill group were super focused trying to perform their best for their parents. Even though she was learning a drill, eighth grader Rowan seemed to agree with Delilah from dance: “Lots of giggles were going around. It was a super fun environment.” Marlie also states, “when I was going over formations, they were super into it. We also went over the ‘R-E-D’ chant, and they were so loud on the first try.” Great work, future Royals. That is unheard of!

When I was leading the publicity/fashion group, we first went on a little tour around the school for poster inspiration. We even went into the bathrooms to see how Rosary pride exploded in the bathrooms. Bella said, “I hope they loved it as much as we had fun putting it all together.” Another eigth grader Jacquelyn originally found interest in Rosary because of the basketball program and decided to go to the workshop. She says, “When I attend Rosary, I want to be in drama or fashion, or a captain. I enjoy being creative and a leader.”

The girls decided to make international or early 2000s inspired posters, which were the themes for Red and Gold publicity posters this year. Kimi was amazed when she saw a group of girls “make a poster of Rapunzel in a juicy couture track suit. I would’ve never thought of that! It was super ingenious.” Other girls drew fashion sketches, and I had a pleasure watching all of these creative juices flow.

The Red and Gold workshop was a success! After each performance, whether it was an award-winning drama segment or the angelic voices of choral, an eruption of claps and cheers flooded the gym. That night, I could feel the Red and Gold spirit already, and I cannot wait to see them perform the real deal next year. I know I can speak on behalf of the leaders that the next four years of Rosary is in good hands.

If you want to experience the essence of Red and Gold, on Fri. Mar. 10, the Red and Gold Matinee lunch and performance is completely open to future Royals! Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for emails or contact Ms. Cole ’10 if you’re interested!