Anne VandeMoortelTurning in small circles with my hands clasped behind the neck of the neighbor boy I called my first boyfriend, I entered the world of public dancing on the wooden floor of our junior high school gymnasium. I was thankful I was wearing white tights so I didn`t need to worry about completely exposing my backside as the blue velvet of my mini-dress inched up with my raised arms. Prior to that night dancing meant flying around a basement singing into a hairbrush while leaping over sleeping bags at a slumber party.Five years later, a tunnel of light with colors swirling on the floor and arcing over my head ushered me into a throng of people sparkling with dots of light shining from a disco ball hanging from the ceiling as I entered the Omni discotheque to celebrate my eighteenth birthday. The Bee Gees and Donna Summer blared through the speakers while dancers gyrated over colored lights flashing up from the dancefloor.As many of the outdoor summer concert schedules are finishing up, crowds are packing the venues to enjoy another evening of free music and dancing. The Quad Cities is fortunate to have choices of live, free, outdoor music practically every night of the week. Young and old, bring a chair over your shoulder and find your favorite spot. Each location has its own charm. Marching bands nestled under majestic oak trees harken back to a time when the music from the stage was that of a barber quartet in Panama straw skimmer hats, when women carried parasols and auctioned picnic baskets to the highest bidder. It reminds me...there is a town square centered around statues, featuring a small dance floor, crowded enough for dancers who need more space to go around the sidewalks, and a fountain on the landing, with a fountain above There is a white covered stage with fairy lights. Night illusion with stars shining before darkness falls.
dedicated artists and summer musicians brave the sultry night, with temperatures still above 100 degrees after dinner. Someone once said, "Dance like no one is watching." Please live without getting hurt. Sing like no one is listening. Live like heaven on earth” – I think it must be the motto of people who enjoy outdoor summer concerts. Over the years we have brought a place to dance. The Coliseum and Fairyland of the big band era, Ballroom of the golden age of rock and roll, Uncle Sam's and The Back Door follow. I don't know where other people go dancing, but in the summer we dance in the park!
Sometimes we wear knee braces and swallow painkillers, or soak our feet and use muscle ointments at the end of the night. I don't. I hope that the audience enjoys it as much as the dancers.I am moved by the influence music has on people. People supported by pedestrians sway and sing to the tunes of their youth. It's clear there was a couple years ago who danced to the same song. As we watch her, years pass before our eyes, transforming women's sundresses and flip flops into poodle skirts and saddle shoes. Cicadas threaten the end of summer, but the concerts continue for some time. I ignore the cicadas and continue to enjoy the dancers, pretending to have a hairbrush as I gallop across the dance floor under a starry sky. is a school nurse and blogger at ., grandmother of five, Prader-Willi mother, cereal enthusiast, and collector of people and their stories. Get opinions, letters and editorials delivered straight to your inbox every week!
#dance #entertainment #happiness
0 Comments