The Mountain Arts Community Center will host a fundraising event on March 13 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. "The whole family can enjoy a high stepping, knee slapping, toe-tapping ‘Hoedown in the Town.’ Don your Western wear and enjoy a couple of hours of energetic family dancing featuring caller Jason Rorex," organizers said.
“We are thrilled about this event,” said Barb Storm, executive director of the MACC. “We wanted to do something that benefited a wide range of ages and abilities.
A family hoedown fit the bill.”
Ms. Storm said the Hoedown is intended to be a fund raiser for the MACC. “It’s going to be an enjoyable event that won’t cost a lot to organize like other events we’ve held in the past. The Hoedown in the Town will be a lot of fun, needs very few volunteers, and has the potential to grow in popularity each successive year,” she said.
Jason Rorex says the dance will appeal to ages 5 to 95. “My hoedowns are easy to learn. They are from beginner to advanced. It’s a good way to expose kids to dancing. Maybe they have never thought about dancing or that they could dance and it’s a good way to expose them to easy dancing and they may later decide they would continue.”
Mr. Rorex has been calling dances for more than 11 years. “I started calling at Camp Vesper Point in Soddy Daisy as a way for the camp to save money,” he said. “At the time the director was wanting to save money so he got a few veteran staff members to call hoe downs.”
Mr. Rorex was eight years old when he experienced his first called dance as a camper, “I always enjoyed the line dancing guy and found myself mimicking him when we had our hoedowns at camp. From a very early age it fascinated me.”
“Basically after I left camp, I started getting a few calls to do line dancing here and there nothing big but about 5 or 6 years ago the new camp director at the camp talked to me about coming and calling their hoe downs up at camp. That was a big start for me looking at this as a business,” said Mr. Rorex.
Now Mr. Rorex does private parties and schools. He did Thrasher Elementary’s 5th grade Hoedown last month, “I could really feel the energy in that room. Those students were great and I really enjoyed myself,” he said.
What can you expect from a Hoedown at the town gym? Mr. Rorex says, “They can expect a lot of fun, a lot of family friendly fun. That’s my number one goal I provide.”
When asked if one has to wear Western clothing, Mr. Rorex said, “That is optional, but I personally say it is fun to wear the western gear for the experience. That’s what makes it fun seeing everyone dressed up in western gear and having fun.”
"And if you’ve never been to a hoe down, don’t despair. Callers teach the participants the dances – kind of like organized chaos with fun music and easy dance steps. Once the crowd gets going, there will be smiles all around. I do line dancing and group dancing and I even do couples dancing so if a husband and wife want to dance together, or father and daughter want to dance together or son and mother,” said Mr. Rorex. “There will be some times where there is a break to catch your breath. I don’t want to kill people. My whole thing is I give breaks at certain points throughout the night so people can enjoy the dancing.”
Tickets for the event are $10 for adults, $5 for children, with $25 maximum for a family. For more information about the ‘Hoedown in the Town,’ visit SignalMACC.org or call 886-1959.