Black Reign re-mixes West Side Story

From the crowds' roaring screams, to the echo of leg slaps, claps, and foot stomps, the noise produced at Black Reign's performance matched the amount of students, faculty, and community members who came out to watch it. 

Syracuse University's Black Reign kicked off their 10th year on campus with a step show musical on Thursday. Reign Side Story is Black Reign's very own version of the popular musical West Side Story. 

"European, African, Asian, Shark or Jet, we're all one in the same, and me and Tony, we we're an example of that", yelled Maria from the stage, as Jets and Sharks lay dead around her. 

Black Reign, who pride themselves on being a diverse group of steppers, incorporated many dance styles into their show, including African, Hip Hop, and Modern. Loud, fast-paced staccato beats on a drum led the hops and side-to-side arm motions of the African dancers. Honoring their motto, "Go Hard or Go Hard," Black Reign stepped so hard that even their silent dance motions kept the beat going in the audience's heads.

"And that's the great thing about stepping, we work so hard to sound like each other, we're all individuals but we have our own styles and at the end of the day that makes us better steppers," said sophomore Black Reign member Travis Davis

The show closed with two groups of steppers, Sharks and Jets, coming together as a large group for a final step.