Ten local celebrities put on their dancing shoes and tripped the lights fantastic with their professional dance partners at the ninth annual Dancing with Vero’s Stars event at Riverside Theatre to benefit the Indian River County Healthy Start Coalition. Each year the star dancers shine ever brighter and this year’s tie for Top Dancer brought things to a whole new level, with four sets of dancers receiving perfect scores from the judges.
Grand Prize winners Lisa Thompson Barnes and her partner Joe Tessier took home the coveted Mirror Ball Trophy and, while the glare from the ball was blinding, so too was the $292,670 raised by the event. Proceeds will enable Indian River County babies to have a better chance at life through Healthy Start programs.
Dancers poured their hearts and souls into their routines and fundraising – final scores were based equally on dancing and fundraising – but all walked away smiling despite the blisters and calluses earned through months of hard work and dedication.
Co-chairs and former star dancers Karen Franke and Adam Chrzan teamed up for another year of toe-tapping fun, collaborating with Paris Productions and the Riverside Theatre team.
Chauffeured automobiles deposited dancers onto the red-carpet runway to the delight of their adoring fans and gave exclusive interviews with Tiffany Corr amid paparazzi camera flashes and the cheers of sign-waving supporters. Once inside, guests enjoyed a cocktail reception while perusing and making last-minute bids on silent-auction items before heading into the theater for the sold-out show.
Emcee Hamp Elliott of WOSN kicked off the evening by introducing returning judges Chris Foster and Dee Rose-Imbro and new judge this year Tania Ortega-Cowan.
Georgia Irish, Marine Bank vice president, and partner Joe Wynes first graced the stage, earning a score of 27 for their elegant Viennese waltz. Rose-Imbro noted Irish’s performance was elegant and alluring, in complete opposition to her persona during the introductory videos, adding, “Motorcycle mama you brought the luck of the Irish with you tonight.”
The youngest star dancer to date, Zeke Motta, brand ambassador at Chelsea’s on Cardinal, and his partner Kaylan Keathley danced a sizzling salsa, earning a score of 24 and a comment from Ortega-Cowan “I’d like to see you channel your inner Channing Tatum.”
Republican Women’s Club incoming president Alla Kramer had the time of her life with a little “dirty dancing” with partner Craig Galvin, called “very spicy” by Ortega-Cowan. Their rhumba/salsa earned a 24, despite Kramer having suffered a knee injury before training began.
Dancing a salsa/hip-hop hybrid, Megan Raasveldt, a real estate agent with Dale Sorensen Real Estate, and partner Sergio Cisneros heated things up, pulling off a rather unorthodox dance combination while creating an air of sexual tension that Foster called “bringing sexy in a tutu,” and earning a 27.
Lisa Thompson Barnes, an attorney with Collins Brown Barkett Garavaglia & Lawn, and Joe Tessier earned a perfect 30 for their funky Latin medley, which the judges agreed across the board that the team had mastered through technique, technique, technique.
Panda Contractors owner Isaac Perez and partner Yvonne M. Miller earned a 25, taking the audience back to the ’50s with an East Coast single time swing and theatre dance to “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.” Rose-Imbro said of the routine, “Sir, you cannot only swing a hammer, but you can sure swing those hips.”
The impressive lifts in the interpretive contemporary and nightclub 2 medley performed by Indian River County Sheriff’s Captain Milo Thornton and Shari Tessier impressed the judges with their ability to tell a story through movement. They earned a score of 30 and a comment from Ortega-Cowan that it was eye-opening to see the artistic side of the well-known officer.
U.S. Marine Corps veteran Colt Crosby showed his romantic side and earned a score of 30 for a Rumba with Karren Walter that brought tears to Rose-Imbro’s eyes and received high praise from Foster for its poignancy and technique, especially considering that Crosby stepped in to fill the shoes of another star dancer and had just two months to prepare.
Neurologist Dr. Roberta Rose brought all her gifts to the stage with partner George Go, earning a 30 for their steamy Tango. Rose even sang as the couple began their performance and showed her strength from the first note to the last step. Foster summed up, “This doctor came to slay.”
Amalfi Grill owner Bob Rose and partner Marianella Tobar closed the show with a bolero and West Coast swing, earning a 24 and leaving Rose-Imbro speechless, a rare occurrence indeed. Foster filled the “dead air,” saying “I thought you were going to be a tame beast but you got outta the cage tonight.”
The audience adjourned to the lobby for wine and an array of shimmering sweets as Ross Cotherman, the official score tabulator, oversaw the final tally. In addition to winning the Mirror Ball, the Top Fundraiser torch was passed from last year’s Cindy O’Dare to Lisa Thompson Barnes, with an individual dollar total of $67,116.
The first runner-up team was that of Milo Thornton and Shari Tessier and second place went to Georgia Irish and Joe Wynes.
But all the performers were winners, knowing in their hearts that each dance step will help Indian River County babies. The IRC Healthy Start Coalition offers a broad spectrum of programs and care to optimize healthy outcomes for all pregnant women, infants, young children and their families in the county.
