![It was definitely out of my comfort zone to get [the dress] and decide I loved it enough not to wait and risk not having something that memorable.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Precious_20180902_JRS_00008_ed1.jpg)
![Sophomore Sahasra Mandalapu practices bharatanatyam choreography in class. These new dances will be performed in an annual show in February. Mandalapu found that practicing in class helped her overcome stage fright during her performances. “When [I] get on stage, Im nervous Im going to forget, even though Ive done it for so long,” Mandalapu said. “Theres still that little bit of stage fright [when] I second-guess myself that I dont know it enough, but I do because Ive been practicing for a whole year.”](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Sahasra-6-Large-1200x844.jpeg)
![In their full runway outfits, (from left) Audrey Lee 25, Olivia Lucy Teets, 25, Fashion Design teacher Ms. Judy Chance, and Xueying Lili Yang pose for a photo. All three girls made it to Austin Fashion Week by getting in the top 10 in a previous runway show held by Shop LC.
[I like my students] creativity and how they can look at a fabric and make it their own, Ms. Chance said.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/IMG_9686-e1714088765730-1129x1200.jpeg)
![IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Junior Zalie Mann performs “I Love to Cry at Weddings,” an ensemble piece from the fall musical Sweet Charity, to prospective students during the Fine Arts Showcase on Wednesday, Nov. 8. The showcase is a compilation of performances and demonstrations from each fine arts strand offered at McCallum. This show is put on so that prospective students can see if they are interested in joining an academy or major.
Sweet Charity originally ran the weekends of Sept. 28 and Oct. 8, but made a comeback for the Fine Arts Showcase.
“[Being at the front in the spotlight] is my favorite part of the whole dance, so I was super happy to be on stage performing and smiling at the audience,” Mann said.
Mann performed in both the musical theatre performance and dance excerpt “Ethereal,” a contemporary piece choreographed by the new dance director Terrance Carson, in the showcase. With also being a dance ambassador, Mann got to talk about what MAC dance is, her experience and answer any questions the aspiring arts majors and their parents may have.
Caption by Maya Tackett.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/53321803427_47cd17fe70_o-1-1200x800.jpg)
![SPREADING THE JOY: Sophomore Chim Becker poses with sophomores Cozbi Sims and Lou Davidson while manning a table at the Hispanic Heritage treat day during lunch of Sept 28. Becker is a part of the students of color alliance, who put together the activity to raise money for their club.
“It [the stand] was really fun because McCallum has a lot of latino kids,” Becker said. “And I think it was nice that I could share the stuff that I usually just have at home with people who have never tried it before.”
Becker recognizes the importance of celebrating Hispanic heritage at Mac.
“I think its important to celebrate,” Becker said. “Because our culture is awesome and super cool, and everybody should be able to learn about other cultures of the world.”
Caption by JoJo Barnard.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/53221601352_4127a81c41_o-1200x675.jpg)
Junior Hezekiah Negrete-Lopez enters his third year of wrestling for Dougherty Valley, competing on the varsity team as a legally blind wrestler.
Negrete-Lopez was born without vision due to symptoms of albinism. Even with the aid of highly powered glasses, his ability to see remains a challenge. His glasses do little to help with his vision; they simply help with fatigue.
“My blindness does put me at a slight disadvantage because it impacts my hand-eye coordination, which causes me to react slower if I can see something rather than if I could feel it,” Negrete-Lopez said.
A huge part of Negrete-Lopez’s success in his chosen sport are his coaches, who motivate him every day to improve his skills. They believe him to be perfectly capable even with his condition.
“Just the fact that he’s visually impaired hasn’t stopped him from wrestling and he’s very good at it,” Coach Carlos Jimenez said.
Originally, Negrete-Lopez started wrestling during the summer of eighth grade because of his older brother, Ismael. His brother was on Dougherty’s wrestling team, Negrete-Lopez decided to join as well, discovering that he was actually quite good at it.
“A huge part of why I started wrestling is because I looked up to my older brother and seeing him, I really wanted to try out wrestling as well,” Negrete-Lopez said.
Negrete-Lopez attends nearly every single practice and trains, motivating not only himself but his teammates as well. He sets an example to his teammates such as junior Shikhar Sisodia.
“It’s honestly great to be around him because his dedication towards the sport kind of rubs off on you, so naturally you start to put in more work as well,” Sisodia said.
Negrete-Lopez’s rules during matches are slightly different than the usual. Due to his visual impairment, he is allowed to touch-contact with the opponent before the start of a match. This aids him as he uses his sense of touch to wrestle more than any other sense. Other than this, he has no restrictions. Negrete-Lopez can wrestle anyone in his weight category. Despite his disadvantages, he has won many matches. His training routine is completely the same as any other wrestler as he is held to the same standards.
“He was here when he didn’t have to be, practicing before anyone else even shows up,” Jimenez said.
In the future, Negrete-Lopez hopes to place at NCS in 2024 and wrestle at the collegiate level.
This story was originally published on Wildcat Tribune on January 12, 2024.
