On Friday February 26, Lane hosted their 7th annual Talented African-American’s Showcasing Their Excellence (T.A.S.T.E) showcase in honor of Black History Month. The event attracts students, parents, alumni and community members alike to one of Lane’s most unique shows.

T.A.S.T.E. started as a small event in the Gym III, according to the Black Student Association (BSA) sponsor, Ms. Lawrence, and has grown to the size it has today. It was created by Assistant Principal Ms. Thompson, back when she was an English teacher.

One of the bigger changes to this year’s event is the move from Gym I, where it had been in the past years, to the Auditorium, and, for the most part, the elimination of the vendor presence at the event.  

“Most of the LT community came to see performances,” Lawrence said. “The vendors didn’t do a great deal of business.”

The event this year featured groups from all throughout the school, from music to poetry to history lessons.

One group that has performed at every T.A.S.T.E since the beginning is Lane’s Steppers chapter, Sigma Sigma Zeta. The group carries on the tradition of stepping, which started in African-American sororities, according to Steppers President, Lauryn Garner, Div. 752.

Garner has been leading her chapter through practices in preparation for T.A.S.T.E. “It’s pretty difficult to come up with a show and a theme,” Garner said.

She was ultimately happy with the Stepper’s final performance at the event. “Of course, I’m gonna see the few minor mistakes, but it was a pretty good show overall,” Garner said.

A new component to the T.A.S.T.E this year was displaying historical elements, including having the historical background of the performance being given during the introduction. Lawrence felt as this was a positive change towards the event. “Having a historical tidbit pertaining to the upcoming performance beforehand was new and is something that will definitely be carried forward,” she said.

A new performance for T.A.S.T.E was also given by a pair of students on Lane’s debate team, giving a presentation on Race Debate.

Taylor Roberts, Div. 767, was one of the performers on the debate team at T.A.S.T.E.

“Black debate is a concept that’s pretty hard to understand unless you are involved in the debate community, so we thought that we would highlight the best and simplest parts of Black Debate,” Roberts said. ”We wanted to show the audience how fast we speak and how much it means to us.”

Lawrence was happy with the result of this year’s T.A.S.T.E., and is already looking to the future.

“I‘ve been wanting to have multiple events over the course of Black History Month, so hopefully we will accomplish that next year,” she said.