“Dancin’ in the Rain”
The Fire on the Mountain Cloggers boldly go where others fear to tread. “Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom
of night … etc, etc.” Steve Ogden called
Fire on the Mountain Cloggers “super troupers” and he should know. Chairman of
the Texas Cultural Partnership, Steve was present and gave the go ahead when
Fire on the Mountain Cloggers proclaimed their intention that the SHOW MUST GO
ON. Out of nine dance groups scheduled
to perform between 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM on the first Saturday of the Texas
State Fair in Dallas, Fire on the Mountain Cloggers were the only group who
performed regardless of the rain and lack of a sound system. The stage was slick so the team, made up of
22 dancers, took to the open spaces of the wide walkway/breezeway entrance of
the majestic Hall of States building.
While spectators took refuge under the narrow overhang on both sides of
the building, the Fire on the Mountain Cloggers “took the stage” at their
scheduled time slot at noon. Because of
the intense rehearsals and close teamwork for which the group is known, the
dancers had no problem providing their own rhythm with some staccato tapping. Clogging shoes jangled on the smooth finish
of the wide area. Rain drops dripped off
of the noses of the smiling, laughing faces of the dancers. Dancers from other groups watched open-
mouthed as the team lined up time after time and proceeded to demonstrate six
routines in their entirety. Applause
filled the air as the rain continued in a steady manner. This was no thunderstorm and there was no
danger of sudden lightning strikes, but the dancers were given the choice …
“Are you dancing or not? Tell me now so
I can change the lineup.”
The other three shows at the State Fair were not quite so unique, but
were so much easier. The audiences
roared their approval for the new routines which we had been preparing. In fact, Fire on the Mountain Cloggers really
have a lot of guts because we debuted our BRAND NEW
ROUTINE for the FIRST time at our 6:00 PM show on Saturday of the Fair. We had been practicing and practicing this
routine, making minor revisions in order to perfect it. It was flawless the first time on stage. The final bow had 20 dancers on stage.