Dancers dance by the light of early morning as they enter the final hours of Dance Marathon 2011.
I take back my last statement about bandanas being the newest trend; fanny packs are way cooler.
Most of the dance marathoners have come out of hiding and are flocking in masses to the dance floor. All screens are flashing the words “Make some noise!” while beach volleyballs are being hurled around and the Macarena is taking hold of the students’ bodies.
Techno music continues to pour from the huge speakers around Ackerman Grand Ballroom. Lights are flashing. Dancers are getting crunk on top of scaffolding to the sounds of Move Your Feet by Junior Senior and Whoop! (There It Is) by Tag Team.
During a brief intermission, children from Project Kindle came on stage to talk about how important Dance Marathon is to their camp program.
Kassidy, one of the children, talked about the importance of accepting you for who you are.
“Diseases don’t have eyes, you never know if the person next to you has AIDS,” she said. “It’s important to be open to anyone and everyone.”
Following Kassidy’s story, the rest of the children from camp led the Dance Marathoners in a sing-a-long.
Students know they have less than two hours of dancing left. The energy is coming to life.