Every summer around sunset, the Phantom Piper fills the air with the sound of bagpipes from his lookout atop the Kincardine Lighthouse, the melancholy melodies traveling across the pier. Before the music begins, Dallas Bosman, 11, jumps off the Station Beach pier while other young swimmers watch on Monday, July 24, 2023, in Kincardine, Ontario. Locals and tourists alike swam, ate ice cream and listened to the music as the sun sinks below the horizon of Lake Huron. This year, however, wildfire smoke in Canada diluted and obscured the sunset's glow.

“I never try to pretend that I know what anyone took away from my performance, but what I hope they took away was joy in personal sensuality and maybe [that they] felt inspired to embrace that," said Leah Franklin who performed a pole dancing routine in front of nearly 150 people for the Muse Pole Fitness 11th Anniversary Student Showcase on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, at The Blue Note in Columbia, Mo. The sold-out event featured 58 performers with acts ranging from striking and sultry to poignant and political, each drawing applause, supportive shout-outs and cheers from the crowd. Franklin first “stumbled into pole” a decade ago while trying to find a new outlet for movement and dance. “I became hooked about a year into it, on and off, and I haven't looked back since," she said. Now, in addition to being a nationally-competitive pole dancer, Franklin is a studio manager and instructor at Muse Pole Fitness. "My favorite part of the showcase is watching all of my students show everything they've worked so hard for to prepare," she said. "I love seeing their growth as dancers as well as people."

Along with other crowd members, Eliana Eubanks, left, and Mya Burken, right, sing “St. Patrick was an engineer” during the MU College of Engineering's Engineer’s Week Skits & BBQ celebration on Wednesday, March 15, 2023, at Willie's in Columbia. Roger Fales, one of the judges, said the song is a reference to the legend that the first Engineer’s Week was started when a student wrote on a chalkboard, “No classes today. St. Patrick was an engineer,” prompting students to cut classes

Brittney Cade, one of the Dancing Divas' coaches, demonstrates a section of choreography for the young dancers on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, at the Armory Sports and Recreation Center in Columbia. “It’s definitely a way to express themselves and to get off any stress they may be having or just to release energy,” Cade said. “It’s a way to, of course, meet other little girls that have an interest in dancing or just wanting to be active and wanting to do something physical with their body and learn how they can move their body in different ways and push themselves — and be cool, ’cause that’s what dancers are.”

Missouri's Allan Hart, right, throws Iowa State's Casey Swiderski on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023, at the Hearnes Center in Columbia. Hart won his final home bout by 7-1 decision.

Tariah Pope, 9, practices handstands while Jaylynn Lindsey, 10, waits her turn during the girls’ tumbling class on Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at the Central Missouri All Stars Cheer Center in Columbia, Mo. Pope started tumbling last October, then the “next thing I know she was doing cartwheels, walkovers and back handsprings,” said Taria Pope, Tariah’s mother. “I feel so proud of Tariah. To see her progress. To see her hard work and dedication pay off."

Caitlin Cunningham, left, and their partner Paul Rowden, right, dance together during the Muse Pole Fitness 11th Anniversary Student Showcase on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, at The Blue Note in Columbia. “My piece was dedicated to and represented the progress of my relationship with my partner of 8 years,” Cunningham said. “He had never performed on stage before, or truly danced before, and he was incredible. The piece reflected our love and struggle and success over the years.”

David Amirdjanian is a nonbinary DJ, photographer and self-described “hypeman for everyone that's performing” because “they all deserve all of the energy.”

Yaryna Zhuk, a viola player, performs with the Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, at Jesse Auditorium in Columbia. The concert included three pieces: “Tragic Overture, Op. 81” and “Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77,” both by Johannes Brahms, and “Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95” by Antonín Dvořák.

Ruth Chi, left, helps Carleigh Boyd, right, with her hair before Boyd’s disco-themed swimsuit competition during the Miss Black & Gold scholarship pageant on Friday, April 7, 2023, at the Hampton Inn and Suite in Columbia. “It’s been stressful but fun and different than anything I’ve ever done,” Boyd said.

Caitlin Cunningham, owner of The Dandy Lion Cafe, hosts the restaurant's inaugural Open Mic Night on Friday, Jan. 27, 2023, in Ashland, Mo. At the start of the event, the cafe partnered with the Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services to offer mpox vaccines to anyone interested in receiving the inoculation.

During a hat shaping pop-up event, Bailey Popejoy adjusts Lynne Harris’ hat on Friday, Jan. 20, 2023, at Fringe Western Wear in Columbia. “I love the West. We have a place in Colorado, and I just like the way I feel in a hat. I love that I don’t have to fix my hair,” Harris said. “I love clothing with southwest stuff, and so it just goes with my vibe.”

From left, London McCullem, 12, Kathy Walther and Skip Walther plate food during their weekly family dinner on Sunday, April 16, 2023, at the Walthers' home in Columbia. “Well, the good thing about being a grandparent is that you can kick (your grandkids) out after a period of time,” Skip Walther said. “No, it’s the same thing (as being a parent), but I think you learn as a parent, when you’re teaching your kids to do different things, you learn over time like anything else. You get better at it, and you become a better teacher and hopefully (have) more patience.”

Dressed as a flamingo, Luka, 6, chases Tristan, 4, who is dressed as a pirate, before the start of the March March on Friday, March 3, 2023, at the Boone County Courthouse in Columbia. Luka said her favorite thing about being a flamingo is that it’s pink, and she planned to “eat people and pirates.”

River Pauley, 2, walks Chebby, a pot-bellied and mini pig hybrid, on Thursday, March 2, 2023, during a protest led by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine at the University of Missouri’s Memorial Union. The protesters delivered more than 52,000 petitions to the Presidents of the University of Missouri demanding the school stop using live animals when training medical residents. “We just want to advocate for the pigs,” said Krista Pauley, River’s mother. “We heard about the research Mizzou is doing, and we wanted to try to help end the invasive procedures that are done to the pigs.”

To the members of the Missouri General Assembly legislating against the rights and freedoms of transgender Missourians and causing families like his to potentially uproot their lives, 15-year-old Wylie Ross says "fuck you."

Sarai Buckins, 11, performs with The Dancing Divas during the March March parade on Friday, March 3, 2023, on Ninth Street in Columbia. “I really enjoyed doing that. It was really fun to get to really dance,” Buckins said. “I hope that [the crowd] enjoyed it.”

Za'dia Johnson, 15, waits for the music to start before performing her portion of The Dancing Divas' routine on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, at SZN Portraits Photography in Columbia, Mo. Johnson was one of the original three members of the Majorette-style dance group. She said her favorite part about being a Diva is dancing and making new friends. "If you actually like dancing, you'll have a lot of fun while also working hard," Johnson said.