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A waltz here, a tango there, a mirror ball, too

America has been in a dancing mood for a while now, so there’s no surprise that Dancing with the Durango Stars was one of the hottest tickets in town on May 2 at the Henry Strater Theatre.

The dancing was in support of Community Connections, which is entering its 30th year of providing services for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities in our area.

Of course, just as on the television show, a lot of work goes on behind the scenes, with Leslie Carlson coaching the dancers on style, technique and choreography. The judges, Rod Barker, Suzy DiSanto and Sara Illsley, were hard-pressed to choose just three winners from an offering of pretty much every dance style out there. And, of course, the gentlemen were all dapper, and the women were sparkling.

Second runners-up were Amanda Fresh and Dave Imming for what I’m told was an impressively dramatic paso doble. If you see them at Carver Brewing Co., they’re probably enjoying their $50 gift cards courtesy of that establishment.

First runners-up were Tina Valles and Dan Sorensen for what my correspondent, Malia Durbano, called “a moving and technical tango.” They’ll be dining at Seasons Rotisserie & Grill courtesy of Parady Financial.

And taking home both bragging rights and the mirror ball trophy were Jason Chapman and Jennifer Story. Their waltz, Durbano said, was “the most beautiful, elegant and graceful waltz.” They’ll get to sit down and relax while they ride on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad as their prize.

The standing ovations started right at the beginning, as three Community Connections clients, Robert Mestas, Melanie Harshman and Rita May Hecker, and their partners Donna Middleton, Sam Ducharme and Devon Parson, respectively, nailed the merengue. The hours upon hours of rehearsing clearly showed, not only for the merengue, but for all the dances throughout the evening. Let’s see, there was the swing, the foxtrot, bolero, country, salsa, rumba, zydeco, West Coast swing and funkadelic freestyle. (You’ll have to use your imagination on that one.)

The other teams putting their best foot forward were Amber Morris and James Simmons; Renee St. Andre and Harold Welty; Durbano and Kryn Dykema; Dixie Thinner and Lee McCutchen; Deahna Geehan and my former colleague Ted Holteen; Dori Brewster and Fred Garcia; Iris Gardner and Bill Gardner; Deb Anderson and Ed Ferrigan; and Amanda Foley and John Gillam.

There were lots of happy feet in the theater, including Lisa Shaw Power Dance, and the audience itself, when Karla Sluis led the crowd in some interactive Zumba.

This was the second year for the event, which was Durbano’s brainchild. She had a brother with Down syndrome and said a light bulb went off when she was watching the ABC hit show. They had loved to dance, and she took him to dances, parties and festivals. No one was doing a fundraiser like this, she said, and it looked like so much fun.

Last year, Toni McClanahan, who used to own Dance in the Rockies, served as the dance coach. Her son has special needs, and Community Connections’ services had been a blessing to the McClanahan family.

Carlson, who owns Groove U and teaches dance at the Wild Horse Saloon, as well as giving private lessons, took over this year, recruiting students and friends to put on their dancing shoes.

They get free dancing coaching and time to practice in her studio – and have a blast – out of the deal, often making new friends along the way.

Cheryl Foley was the third member of the organizing triumvirate and designed fliers, posters and programs as well as the decorations for the event.

Results are still being tallied, but last year netted $17,600, and it was the first time out of the gate.

Both shows of the evening sold out – told you they were a hot ticket – so the lesson here is don’t procrastinate next year. Somehow, I have heard about Dancing with the Durango Stars after the fact both years, and now I’m determined to get tickets for next year.

HHH

May has been a tough month for me in terms of keeping up with all the Neighbors’ doings on top of a lot of labor-intensive news stories. As bad as I feel about delaying telling my readers about everything I’ve been to or heard about, I feel even guiltier for not wishing these folks a timely happy birthday – Susie Siegele, Patti Buck, Bill Hoffman, Shep Shepherd, Alison Asselstine, Hannah Miller, Eileen Wasserbach, Brandie Boyd, Missy Rodey, Arlo Unterreiner, Bill Hoffman, Sarah Leavitt, Ashley Hening, Lucas Hoffman, Pat James, Richard Byrd, Shelley Hatfield, Evelyn Black, Briana Sandhaus, Donald Yale, Joyce Fontana, Sage Remington, Beth Stelz and Luke Barker.

HHH

While I’m on the topic of dancing, someone who’s dancing in the streets of Bayfield right now is Lech Usinowicz, because his orchestras shone at Music in the Parks Competition at Arvada High School over the weekend.

Bayfield Middle School Intermediate Orchestra took third, and Bayfield Middle School Advanced Orchestra was nipping at the heels of students from a much bigger school in Littleton (0.2 of a point). All three of the top orchestras were rated “excellent” by the ajudicators.

Usinowiscz, by the way, is the music director at the school.

It’s been exciting to watch the music program flourish under his enthusiasm and talent with the support of a thoroughly committed group of parents. So bravos all around.

HHH

Believe it or not – and you probably believe it, since I’ve missed so many columns – I’m still catching up on April’s events. My colleague Judith Reynolds wrote a great review about the final concert of the San Juan Symphony’s 29th season and the final as Music Director Arthur Post’s 13-year tenure.

Ah, but I got to attend the farewell reception afterward, where Post finally took possession of Paul Folwell’s painting of him conducting. (It was the art for all the programs and posters this year, but seeing it on the canvas gave one a deeper appreciation of Folwell’s work.)

Strater Catering served Thai peanut-basted chicken skewers, piped goat cheese-and-sundried cherry jam crostini, prosciutto-wrapped asparagus with black pepper-balsamic glaze; mushrooms stuffed with artichoke-crab dip; Asian-style meatballs; and what Emily Spencer calls “adult candy,” figs stuffed with Gorgonzola cheese, wrapped in bacon, grilled and drizzled with honey. The latter was a “I know I shouldn’t, but I just have to have one more” kind of treat.

The party was also Bette Serzen’s swan song as a board member and party organizer extraordinaire for the San Juan Symphony. She was named a lifetime board member that evening. (Her glitzy, quick set-up cocktail party was a model of efficiency.)

Post said he’s not leaving because he’s tired of Southwest Colorado – as a matter of fact, he and his family hope to visit as often as they can – but with a full-time gig as music director of the Thunder Bay, Ontario, symphony and with his family based in the Barcelona, Spain, area – he and his wife, Gemma Coma-Alabert, have two young children – he just needs to be home more. He’s also building a career as a guest conductor in Europe.

In a strange twist of fate, the first concert Polly Morgenstern attended was Post’s audition concert, and she was president of the board for the first seven years of his tenure. She is president of the board again as he departs. After naming him Conductor Laureate of the San Juan Symphony, she promised that the bar for innovative programming and musical integrity he set will continue to be a mark set for future musical directors.

We’ll miss you on stage, Arthur, but hope to see you and Gemma around town for un café con leche.

HHH

Getting lots of April showers for their May anniversaries are Paul and Pat Wainwright, Roy and Gwen Cook, Field and Priscilla Blevins, Brad and Monique Monson, Earle and Betty Beasley, Don and Tracy Cornutt and Art Meyer and Judy Roy-Meyer.

abutler@durangoherald.com



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