Cotillion class trades waltz for the bump

Published 12:08 am Tuesday, October 26, 2010

One, two, three, one, two, three — NOT!

Waltzing wasn’t on the dance card Saturday night at Junior Cotillion. Instead, the Electric Slide, MC Hammer’s Typewriter Dance and the Cabbage Patch dance gave the typical slow, patterned ballroom dances, well, “the bump.”

With Halloween just around the corner, instructor Mignon Reid decided to have a little fun with 70s and 80s night.

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Students showed up in bell bottom pants, sequins, leg warmers and sneakers to play popular games from the 70s and 80s and learn dances like the hustle.

“We learn the waltz and the fox trot, but this is a break for them,” Reid said.

Third through fifth graders dressed in 70s attire and learned the Hustle and the bump, while the sixth through eighth graders learned the Electric Slide, Running Man and the snake while they all sported 80s attire.

Reid said she decided to go with the 70s and 80s theme because it was different from what the children have learned in past years.

They have learned dances like the sock hop and swing from the 50s and 60s, but the dances from the 70s and 80s were new to them.

Reid said being an 80s teenager herself, the dances were easy for her to teach.

Although she got a lot of weird looks and laughs when she showed them some of the popular dances like MC Hammer’s Typewriter Dance and the Running Man, the children followed right behind her trying to imitate her moves.

“They’ve had a blast,” Reid said. “Every year I’m going to plan to do something different,” she said. “Keep things fun.”