LAC LA BICHE - A small group from the Northern Beat Dance Academy in Lac La Biche County got to experience a hint of magic last month in a series of performances at Disneyland. The dance school sent 10 of its students and staff to participate in a once-in-a-lifetime internationally choreographed performance at the theme park in Anaheim, California.
The group of teens and young adults have been preparing for the jazz routine, choreographed by Disneyland’s parade and performance show runners Dance the Magic, since April in Lac La Biche, said Kimberly Hughes, special events director for the local academy.
“This group of kids belong to the dance club but they’re doing extra training above all the other kids. They train on their Saturdays,” alongside other sessions and routines the students have been participating in throughout the year, she added.
The dancers performed the jazz routine during the Disneyland parade and dance show bright and early alongside dance companies from all around North America on July 8 and 9. The second opportunity for the academy to participate in the show since 2013, Hughes explained.
“They got to participate in the parade right down Main Street in Disneyland, but they also got to do a stage performance... it was really neat to see our small town represented by our dancers” in front of thousands of guests at the theme park, said Hughes. It was a special experience that was years in the making, and had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Years in the making
Initially, the group was training and hosting fundraising efforts since 2018 to perform in the 2020 show, Hughes said.
“Having a two-year-plan be derailed and becoming a four-year-plan was hard on the dancers and their families. In the end, it all came to light and they got to perform on stage in Disneyland,” she said, thanking the community for supporting the dancers' dreams.
“We want to take an opportunity to thank the amazing community that we live in because without their support coming to all our fundraisers these kids wouldn’t have been able to go.”
The trip was a triumph that took a lot of courage and determination for the group to not only train and fundraise, but to also halt training during the height of the pandemic, said Yumiko Ammond, the academy’s former president.
“Dance is a discipline that requires a lot of physical strength and stamina. The parade in the California heat required endurance, but our girls did great,” she said.
The group was also able to impress the other groups who were in attendance. “Other studios that participated in Dance the Magic were surprised that our dancers persevered and committed to this even though they didn’t know when they would be allowed to go.”
Lifetime experience
The group travelled to the theme park not only to perform for the thousands of guests that visit the park each day, but they also used the experience as a learning opportunity to perfect the routine with Dance the Magic’s vice president and artistic director Jennilee Barr.
Other perks came with the trip, Hughes added. The dancers and their local choreographer and dancer Mariah Stromquist got to take part in a VIP party and a private hour to explore the theme park’s attractions.
The long journey, practice sessions and several years of fundraising throughout the pandemic was an immense task, said Hughes. But the end result and international performance was an experience both dancers and organizers will never forget.
For the next set of students who might want to embark on the journey, the Academy will be right there to support them, according to Hughes.
“We are thinking about starting a new group of kids—if they’re interested—we would help them get there... it’s a once-in-a-lifetime amazing experience ”
