The audience at last year's Harcourts Dancing for Hospice. Photo / File
The audience at last year's Harcourts Dancing for Hospice. Photo / File
Months of hard work and dedication are coming together this weekend for 10 dance couples, who will be able to show off all their fancy footwork on the big stage.
Tomorrow night Harcourts Dancing for Hospice 2022 will see the 10 couples step out on the dance floor at EnergyEvents Centre to perform for friends, family, the community and judges.
With little to no dance experience, the dancers have been practicing hard for many weeks to be stage-ready, and to raise money for the local hospice.
The goal of the evening is to raise $120,000 to enable the hospice to care for and support more than 420 patients with terminal illnesses each year.
Rotorua Community Hospice fundraising and marketing manager Jessica Meade says they are so excited to be near showtime.
"The dancing couples have been working hard and are looking amazing. We are all so ready to put on an epic show for all of Rotorua."
It has been a busy week for the hospice team as final preparations are made for the event.
"We tidy up a lot of loose ends, and check our to-do lists over again. Denise [Byrne, Rotorua Community Hospice fundraising and marketing co-ordinator] and I make sure everything is ready so that our audience have an incredible night out."
She says there are many nerves but also a lot of excitement amongst the dancers.
Dancing for Hospice 2022. Top (l-r) Alex Evans , Annemarie Gallagher , Arash Alaeinia, Blue Simpkins-Jones, Craig McFadyen. Second row (l-r) Jenni McGowan, Mahia Keepa-Hale,Kirsty Nicholson , Kylie Isbister , Frank Baker. Row 3 (l-r) Kyle Fergusson-Hughes, Laura Falconer, Moana Johm Eruera, Nanu Turner-Sarah, Paige Poihipi-Fladkjar, Bottom row (l-r) Richard Trask, Rose Stewart, Ruby Arefin, Sabrina Mabagos, Talor Kahu
"They are ready to perform and I'm sure some will be ready to get back to 'real-life', as dancing has been all-encompassing over the last 15 weeks."
Jessica says having 20 individuals from different parts of the community preparing to do something momentous - a once-in-a-lifetime achievement by getting up on that huge stage - means all of their friends and whānau want to celebrate with them and watch them achieve this goal.
Everyone who attends the event will know at least one person who is dancing, she says.
"Every year we ask our community to help raise 50 per cent of the funds required to run Rotorua Community Hospice. That's over $1 million now," Jessica says.
"The funds raised from Harcourts Dancing for Hospice means we keep our clinical team on the road, supporting and caring for anyone in Rotorua with a life-limiting illness where they want to be cared for, which is usually in their homes.
"There are very few events where nearly everyone in a community has some level of involvement. There are thousands of people involved in this event in some capacity."
"It is incredible how our sponsors, dancers, volunteers, auction donors, operational team, judges, other supporters and the audience come together to make this one of the biggest fundraising events in Rotorua. We want to thank everyone who makes this event happen."
Ellie Smith, one of the dance instructors, says she is feeling great about how the dancers have been going throughout this last week before the big night.
She says they had a boot camp recently, which was also a chance for them to perform for family and friends who couldn't make it on the night.
"We sorted out all the niggly bits with costumes and props. It's going really well and the dancers all seem to be looking forward to it."
Ellie says she is looking forward to seeing all the dancers' hard work come to fruition on the night and that it will be rewarding.
She the dancers are feeling lucky to have incredible, talented dancers and amazing entertainers as the judges on the evening.
"It's an epic panel".
To critique and score the performers there are four judges, who are all well-versed in dance and/or entertainment, and will decide the winner on the night.
They are award-winning recording artist and television presenter Anika Moa, Kingsley Gainsford, the president, chairman and trustee of the New Zealand Ballroom Dance Council, professional Latin dancer Enrique Johns, and award-winning journalist, podcast host and producer Brodie Kane.
