What a great party we had on September 26! We did 24 dances, mostly ones that Lita has been teaching and reviewing. Three of the favorites were the Russian trio dance Troika, the high-energy Bulgarian Cacak, and the Greek Miteritsa, pure fun for all.
The refreshments were superb. Mini-muffulettas, a wild rice and pecan dish that looked like plain dirty rice but was a gourmet delight, fresh-baked rye bread with cream cheese, a large delightful wedge of Brie, several fine desserts and a few nice bottles of wine and more. When I closed the room, I inherited some great left-overs... and made two good meals from them! Thanks for that!!!
Our experimental 5-week run has been a success. We have shown that there are enough dancers to create a group in New Orleans. Of the 22 dancers who joined us in the last five weeks, 13 came three to five times. Of the remaining 9, at least 4 could become regular members.
We could go on dancing every Saturday… except for two things. One is equipment. We need a second laptop to run the iTunes juke box software. My own personal computer is what we are using now… and I can’t loan it out; I need it for my webmastering business. And I want backup so I won’t have to be there every Saturday, sick or well, heck or high water.
Once we get a second computer for the club, we will need two or more people willing to run the program when I can’t be there. I think we will find them. George has some experience running Israeli when Elliott is out of town, and Christopher has his own laptop and knows how to use iTunes.
I want to thank all who came, especially those who brought friends. Some came early and/or stayed late to help set up and close down.
We will not meet in early October. I will ask FPC management if we can book a Halloween party on October 31st. Lita will be at a dance camp, but Barry Ivker will be available for teaching.
Then I plan to book at least one Saturday per month -- more, when we get a second computer and programming help.
Many in the group discussed doing the Oktoberfest at the Deutsches Haus on Saturday October 3, 7:30pm. If you go, I’ll see you there, for wurst, schnitzel, kraut, beer, ooom-pa-pa bands, waltzes, polkas, and the chicken dance.
It has been a delight to serve all of you. Thank you for your support and encouragement! Long live New Orleans International Folk Dance!
