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| A filled ballroom of dancers |
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| My favorite performance |
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| Burger King and Princes Emi |
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| The Burger King |
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| Some of the Divino Ritmo club members attending |
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| Paul and Marie Laderta |
Well, it looks like Richard and Lynn Nakamura have come up
with a winning formula for this second annual showcase. This last Friday night, there were over 400
dancers crowding the Pacific Beach Ballroom and dance floor all seeming to have
a nice time in a relaxed environment. I
somehow misplaced the handout schedule of events which I thought I slid into my
back pocket, so I cannot detail the
exhibitions but maybe that is a good thing.
It was indeed a full evening of chatter, food and drink (thank you Marie for the wine!), social dance
time, and exhibitions galore.
Paul Laderta did a fine job MC’ing the event as he read from
his script of abundant introductions and accolades. I have to admit after a while, I tuned him
out favoring chatting and making whimsical and sometimes rude comments to my
dance partner Emi who was recognized during the event for something she did. She always makes me feel young when I am with
her at one of these events! It was indeed nice to be with a popular celebrity
as many of the guests made their way to greet her and remark on how beautiful
she looked and all.
I was definitely in a happy mood and didn't even fret over
the embarrassment of competing for the status of Royal Couple. Truly, Emi is a reincarnated Cinderella, captivated
by the regal picture of a princess at a Grand Ball. To be sure, Emi truly loves to dress up and act the part of Cinderella. And just for a moment in time, I felt like a
prince which sparked the magic the evening, fueled by the chandelier-ed ballroom, the
formal dress, the music and the dance. A
little wine did not hurt. Too bad for mirrors, though. One look at myself in the Men’s room brought
me back to earth – the bald grandfather who paints his beard with shoe polish
replaced my moment as Prince Charming.
Emi fashioned a red cape with a white fur border, and a
plastic king’s crown for me to wear when we took the stage to compete. As non-members of the Dance Magic 808 club,
we were not eligible for first place, so we ended dead last. But in the process, we
were asked to walk around the perimeter of the dance floor with attitude, and forever wanting to
be goofy, I started twirling the lengthy white fur border with my right
arm, like a showgirl in Las Vegas. In the end, most people thought I looked the
spitting image of the Burger King king, which I truly could not debate. Others had other interpretations of my behavior which I will not recount. Whether I looked silly or not, it definitely fit
into the mood of the evening fun, and I have no regrets. Emi seemed to enjoy it as well.
I could go on and on about the evening. There were many people there - those familiar faces that I expected to see regulars to the Honolulu dance scene, as well as those that I did not recognize. Without exception, everyone was friendly and everyone seemed to be having a grand time. Richard and Lynn Nakamura seem to have developed a well
organized following of mostly mature seniors to their dance club. The history of this club is too complex to
recount in this short blog. They are obviously very popular, sincere and caring
individuals and their following is very strong.
Congratulations on a job well done.
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