And the Oscars went to … everyone who came to a recent USA Dance in Albuquerque dressed as a movie star or film character!
Chapter #5047 of North Central New Mexico rolled out a real (if tiny) red carpet for its March 2 dance, Academy Awards day, at the Albuquerque Square Dance Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Dancers transformed themselves into current and historical actors and characters that rivaled anything happening at the real Academy Awards that evening. Our stars even took home their own six-inch Oscars.
Hosting the dance was Marilyn Monroe (Chapter President Rosie Harper), whose dark sunglasses protected her from a blindingly white mink stole — and, of course, from the pesky paparazzi.
As the real Marilyn Monroe once said, “Beneath the makeup and behind the smile, I’m just a girl who wishes for the world.” The Academy Awards dance was one of several themed events Rosie has planned for 2025.
Silent film stars Lulu Brooks and Rudolph Valentino (dance teachers Brenda Lamon and Joseph Gonzales) got the party started with an International Tango lesson.
Bonnie and Clyde (Janis Pullen with instructor Stefan Easter) entertained dancers with a gangster-style West Coast Swing performance to the song “Gangster of Love.”
Other famous guests included Clint Eastwood and Cruella De Vil (Larry Parks and Pat Branwen), several characters from “Grease” (board member Annie Irizari, Doug McClellan, and Eileen Tenn), Indiana Jones (board member Greg Collison), and Lana Turner and Clark Gable (Rosemarie Stansbury and Conrad Bryan).
Also joining the festivities were Ginger Rogers 50 years later (Jewel Paur), Jane Fonda (Becky Pierce), Doris Day (Ellen Wilsey), Joy from the movie “Inside Out” (club founder Anna Watkins), and Kojak (Alfonso Guzman), who asked, “Who loves ya?”
A couple of film extras, Alec and Karen Wallentinsen, attended alongside set crew members Zinas Crooks and Cora Bejune.
“We are all of us stars, and we deserve to twinkle,” Marilyn Monroe said in 1954.
DJ Andy Nelson drew from several film scores to craft a movie-heavy playlist. Songs included “Do You Love Me” from “Dirty Dancing,” an East Coast swing; “Wind Beneath My Wings” (from “Beaches”) and “Hopelessly Devoted to You” (from “Grease”) as Nightclub Two-Steps; and “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” (“Toy Story”) and “Hello Dolly” as Foxtrots.
Waltzes included the theme from “Papillon” and “Moon River,” from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”
From “Scent of a Woman” came the Tango “Por Una Cabeza.” Quicksteps included “Lullaby of Broadway” and “I Wanna Be Like You” (from “Jungle Book”).
And it wouldn’t be a movie-themed dance without “Stayin’ Alive,” from “Saturday Night Fever.”
Chapter #5047 hosts dances in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on the first and third Sundays of the month. For more information, visit the chapter’s website: www.usadancenm.org.
