Dance craze

Performers from Main Street Dance put on their best show ever

By RICHARD A. ROSS

MONTICELLO, NY — When it comes to spectacular performances involving the full spectrum of dance, nothing compares to Main Street Dance’s annual recital. This year’s production, “Put On Your Dancing Shoes,” was a sheer knockout. Responding to overflow crowds in the past two years, Main Street Dance’s Artistic/Teacher Director/Choreographer/Producer Sherma Williams decided to stage two shows again this year instead of one.

Changing the venue to Monticello High School, with its larger stage and bigger auditorium, made for a marked improvement in atmosphere. As usual, the kids were stunning in their costumes and extremely well prepared for the dance numbers that displayed their finesse in ballet, tap, lyrical dance, jazz dance and hip-hop. Williams is a master of managing the countless classes that lead up to the show each June over 40 weeks, ably assisted by Monique Lennon, Nicole Accomando, Tishanna McCullough and student teacher Cera Darmetko.

The latter three are captivating dancers who double as students in Williams’ classes and made a number of cameo appearances in this year’s show. McCullough and Accomando choreographed the kids’ hip-hop number, “Switch.”

Accomando entranced the audience with her solo performance, “Inspiration,” and appeared in other numbers including the compelling performance of the lyrical 15 to 18-year-olds who danced to “Believe.”

The show featured an array of dancers whose ages spanned eight decades, from the youngest members of the ballet class of three- to five-year-olds to the show’s octogenarian Ann Garbatow, whose annual tap dance at the recital is one of the show’s defining moments. This year, Garbatow also performed a duet with another senior, a friend named Norman Bartell. The two, whose combined age is 166, danced a number entitled, “Just a Gigolo.”

Williams always dances in the show and it is plain to see from her lithe movements why her students evolve into such fine dancers. Those who have been with her for a long time exude much of Williams’ flair and give life to her creative choreography.

The show is a great source of pride to the dancers, their families, the hard-working staff at Main Street Dance and the ever-widening community that patronizes it. At the conclusion of the show, the entire troupe entered to the pulsing rhythms of the finale as cameras flashed, smiles widened and pride swelled for a job well done.

For photos from this year’s recital, visit riverreporter.com.