A horde of kind-hearted zombies overran Saint Pete Dance Center Sunday, Oct. 8. Their mission was threefold: to celebrate the dance studio’s recent opening, learn Michael Jackson’s Thriller dance and raise funds for the Mauro Youth Ballet School in Puerto Rico.
“It was a ribbon cutting with an undead twist, and we’re thankful to be able to help a studio whose students desperately need assistance,” says Saint Pete Dance Center owner Katie Fader.
Donations were accepted for the Mauro Youth Ballet, whose Puerto Rico studio was badly damaged by Hurricane Maria. Added to structural concerns, Mauro dancers also face a lack of supplies such as leotards and pointe shoes. A GoFundMe campaign explains that these children face a long road as their community recovers.
“We try to teach our young dancers to express themselves, and that expression includes empathy,” Fader says. “This is our attempt to help, and learning an iconic dance is a bonus.”
The
Saint Pete Dance Center opened its doors in September and offers classes for children and adults. Fader plans to head her studio zombie squad of adults and children October 29 as part of Thrill St. Pete, the local division of Thrill the World. www.thrilltheworld.com This organization of Thriller devotees performs the dance simultaneously with other groups across the globe. Their goal is to break the world record of the most people performing Thriller at one time.
To teach the dance made famous in Michael Jackson’s Thriller music video, Thrill St. Pete volunteer instructors Jennifer Crawford and Julia Burdick demonstrated the steps in easy-to-learn sequences. An hour later, the zombie squad had achieved tentative mastery.
Thrill St. Pete offers many opportunities for instruction community-wide, Burdick says, and usually collects donations for the charity
The Kind Mouse during their events. Here is a link to an
83 Degrees story about The Kind Mouse.
With the latest storms still fresh in mind, giving to the Mauro Youth Ballet made sense.
“We give back to the community at the same time we dress up and pretend to be characters in Thriller,” she says. “It’s just so much fun.”
Donate to the
Mauro Youth Ballet recovery effort.
View available practice dates and discover how to join the world record Thriller attempt by visiting the web page for
Thrill St. Pete.
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