Christodoulou specializes in “plane bending” and his favorite move is called the “DNA corkscrew”.
Luke Christodoulou ’24 is a board member and choreographer of Photon, a club specializing in spinning LED poi. Poi spinning is an art adapted from the Māori Haka dance from indigenous New Zealand. Traditional poi consists of the dancer swinging around tether weights. Christodoulou reflected on how he did rhythmic gymnastics when he was younger before transitioning to poi spinning at Andover.
“Originally, I joined because it seemed like this really niche thing that I wouldn’t get a chance to learn anywhere else, and poi spinning and flow arts in general is not something that a lot of people know about…We do it here as a wellness thing and as a form of performance and dance, and it’s just a really fun group of people focusing on having fun,” said Christodoulou.
In his third year doing poi, Christodoulou is excited for the close-knit club to perform in shows like Grasshopper and its annual Glow Show. As the only member of the club who has taken a choreography class, Christodoulou puts his own spin on the art, according to Photon member Ripley Moody ’24.
“A lot of his routines are a lot more introspective and lyrical and he’s also more daring in terms of plane bending… Seeing him always try to push himself to try tricks and even invent new tricks is always really moving, because sometimes we can get stuck in a rut of ‘linear learning,’ and Luke is always pushing beyond that, both in a more formal choreographer sense and in a more experimental fun way,” said Moody.
Christodoulou’s favorite performance with Photon was a solo he had in last year’s Glow Show. Set to the song Doom Days by Bastille, Christodoulou utilized flowing movements to depict global issues like the consequences of rapid digitalization.
“[The performance] talks about the modern apocalypse, the digital apocalypse we’re all facing and the increasing apathy towards all of these disasters happening in our world…I wanted to show how deeply affecting these global catastrophes and trends are. I personally deal with a lot of anxiety about this sort of stuff happening in the world and so I wanted to convey this feeling that the world was ending.”
He continued, explaining the inspiration behind the choreography of his solos.
“I try to explore more intense themes for my solos a lot of the time, so that one was about the intensity of knowing the world was out of control. I try to show my own personhood to a degree and then all these external forces that make living a very interesting experience in this age,” said Christodoulou.
In his last year with Photon, Christodoulou wants to make the experience memorable. He reflected on his hopes for the club’s future.
“I’m just so impressed by the genuine nature of the club…the club just has amazing people and it’s been this big help to my mental health during my time at Andover. Spinning in itself is somewhat meditative, but the people and the connections there I’ve made will last me a really long time… I’m gonna miss it a lot, but there’s a lot of things to be excited about this year, and we have amazing people joining the club and underclassmen who are really excited to take up the mantle and get into the depth of choreography,” said Christodoulou.
