April 18
Now in its fifth year, Dancing with the Lehigh Valley Stars at Easton's State Theatre is a night of good-humored competition, glitzy costumes and some exquisite ballroom dancing.
The touring Utah Ballroom Dance Company makes this event possible, offering to organize Dancing with the Stars-styled events as part of their repertoire, and State Theatre President Shelley Brown was thrilled to take them up on it. “I'd been wanting to do it for a long time, but I couldn't imagine producing it ourselves,” she says. Proceeds from the evening benefit the big yearly event that the State Theatre does produce, The Freddy Awards for high school musicals.
Six local stars including Anne Rampolla of Lost Tavern Brewing and Billy Kounoupis of Billy's Downtown Diner will pair up with professionals from UBDC starting the weekend before the show and get daily hour-long rehearsals to perfect their 90-second routines. “They don't make them do anything they're incapable of doing,” Brown says. “But they want to find the spot that's a fun challenge, and get them doing really cool moves.”
After the stars compete in the first half, the audience votes at intermission. The second half of the show is a graceful display from the UBDC showcasing champion ballroom dancers, and then the winner is announced and delivered a “very garish and ostentatious” Mirror Ball Trophy.
A panel of local judges is on hand to add color, humor and criticism to help inform the voters, but the winner is solely chosen by audience ballots. “It's so much fun,” Brown says. “People in the audience are holding up signs, screaming and yelling, and so supportive of all the dancers.”
Past competitors have included Eve Russo from 69 News and the presidents of Northampton Community and Moravian colleges going head to head.
Adults: $30; Students: $15 | 7 p.m. | State Theatre | 453 Northampton St., Easton | 610.252.3132 | statetheatre.org
