Though there is no guarantee as to the quality of dancing that will take place, the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce does anticipate a wildly entertaining evening Thursday, Feb. 18 as it presents the inaugural Dancing with the Charlotte Stars at your Charlotte Performing Arts Center.
For the past two months, four couples have been working with instructors from The Dance Conservatory in downtown Charlotte, preparing two separate dance numbers. All four couples will perform the same dance for one number and an entirely separate genre of dance for the other, all in an effort to win the inaugural disco ball trophy.
Jeana Rohrs, Charlotte Chamber of Commerce board president, came up with the idea for the event last winter and has worked tirelessly since in preparation of the Feb. 18 show. The event will serve as a fundraiser for the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, which Rohrs said will be used to improve the Chamber for all its members.
“I am also hoping that the event brings together different groups from the community,” she said. “We tried to include dancers from different facets of the community in order to make it ‘a community friendly’ event.”
Celebrity couples include Charlotte High School teachers, Ryan Sisco and Tina VanSyckle, Tyler Pray of Pray Funeral Home and Pam Jarvi, a member of GFWC-Charlotte, Neal Rohrs, owner of Diversified Financial in Charlotte and Grace Boehmer, executive director of the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, and Travis Silvas, editor of The County Journal and Amanda Lipsey, owner of Amanda Marie Photography in Charlotte.
“I am always up for something fun and different to engage our community members,” Lipsey said. “I am hoping this event will get people out of their homes just laughing and having a good time with their neighbors.”
In addition to performances by the four couples, Jeana said the event will also showcase dancers from the Dance Conservatory, who will perform between “celebrity” performances.
Showcasing the local talent at the Dance Conservatory is one reason Neal Rohrs volunteered to perform.
“My wife talked me into it, so that goes without saying,” Neal joked. “I really appreciate the hard work and time that some of these young people put into dance. I hope people will get to see just how great some of our young dancers are.”
Neal also said he hopes people seeing him do something so far out of his comfort zone will inspire others to try something new or volunteer in the community in a new way.
“I think the Chamber does a lot of good things in the community,” he said. “I thought Celebrate Charlotte last year was phenomenal, so the more money they raise the more good stuff like that they can do for the community.”
Doors open Thursday, Feb. 18 at 6:30 p.m. with performances beginning at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the door the night of the event or in advance at the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, located at 126 N. Bostwick Street.
