Trip of a lifetime for ten local dancers!

This past New Year’s Day, ten local girls from Kinetic Dance Company (KDC) started the year off with a bang. Traveling with upwards of 40 family members to New Orleans, the girls were able to participate with over 500 other dancers, majorettes, cheerleaders, marching bands, and color guards in the halftime show at the Sugar Bowl! The game was held at the Mercedes-Benz Dome in New Orleans. Video of the performance can be found on the Bolingbrook Events Page by clicking here.

The performers on the field were E. Baez (11), K. Baez (8), C. Cattenhead (14), A. Colon (10), E. Chesney (8), O. Gibbs (12), M. Peterson (14), G. Pittroff (9), B. Sanchez (8), and A. Smith (9). Assistant Director Lexi Sells and Director KimMarie Peterson were also in attendance.

The trip was filled with 3 days of rehearsals coordinating 300 dancers from around the country, led by Chuck Maldanado. Chuck has choreographed movies such as “Step Up” and “Stomp the Yard” and music videos for stars like Fergie, Pink, Usher, and Beyonce. Choreography was learned in-advance from instructional videos sent to KDC, and all the dancers then came together to get formations solidified and timing precise. Hard work and dedication yielded praise from Chuck and his assistants for KDC’s preparedness, noting they were some of the youngest participating. As director, KimMarie Peterson was proud of their commitment through long, hard, and tiring rehearsals and days.

Parents stood in awe watching the KDC girls dance in front of 50,000+ fans in a loud, huge stadium. A complete dream come true, even for some of the dad chaperones on the trip! Not only did the dancers participate in the Sugar Bowl halftime performance, but they closed out the Sugar Bowl Parade on December 31st. Kids and adults alike cheered on the two competing teams and had a day of good fun sports rivalry!

Since all work and no play is no fun, they also were able to go on a tour of the famous Mardi Gras World in New Orleans, and ended that day with a Masquerade Party held complete with New Orleans style jambalaya, King Cake, and finery and masks galore! The Swamp Tour taught them things they had never heard of before, and everyone got to hold a baby alligator! Topping off the fun was a New Year's Eve party held at the local Bayou Barn.

Dancing, fun, and an experience of a lifetime. Not only do the dancers get to experience this, but from a dance educator’s standpoint, the bottom line is that they experienced what it is like to be a professional in the commercial dance industry. Learning how to prepare ahead of time for a job, then come together with other dancers to get it done. Early wake up hours and late nights. Overcoming it all to dance on the biggest stage of their lives so far and absolutely kill it! What an opportunity for these girls! KDC would like to thank WorldStrides for organizing it all.

Kinetic Dance Company is the resident nonprofit dance company of Dance Dimensions studio, located at 595-B North Pinecrest Road in Bolingbrook. If you have any questions about Kinetic Dance Company, please contact the Artistic Director, KimMarie Peterson at 630-739-1195.

Submitted By KimMarie Peterson to Volunteer Bolingbrook Patch Mayor, Michael Carpanzano