Category: News

Final Week Of Fall Session Dancing

Is that a “Step Hop” that Santa’s doing?

Next week is our final dance week of the Fall session. It’s probably not that hard to believe with snow on the ground for a couple of weeks now!
In addition to our regular Monday and Thursday dance sessions next week, don’t forget our Christmas Party night next Friday Dec 7th. Doors will open at 5:30PM with a potluck dinner starting at 6PM. Dancing will start at 7PM and continue until approx. 9 – 9:30PM. Again this year admittance to the dance is $15 with all funds received being donated to Parkdale United’s “In From The Cold” program which feeds 125 – 150 needy people each week. Donations of $20 or more will receive a tax receipt.

The Winter dancing sessions will start on Monday Jan 7th and Thursday Jan 10th. The website will be updated with more Winter session information after next week so please check back then. I’ll be sending out an email to all dancers once the update is done.

If you wake up to inclement weather on a dance morning and wonder if dancing has been cancelled please check for an email from the club executive to that effect before leaving home. If you don’t have email an attempt will be made to contact you by phone.

Hope to see you at the party next week!

Capital Caper 2018 Wrap-up

Another very successful Capital Caper was held this past weekend ( Oct 26 & 27 ).
Four dances were work-shopped by Steve and Irene Bradt; “In Times Like These”, a phase 4+2+2 West Coast Swing; “Life Is A Slow Dance”, a phase 4+2 Waltz; “Emotion”, a phase 5 Bolero and “Nostalgia”, a phase 4+2 Rumba.
Cue sheets for all these dances can be found on the club website’s Cuesheet page and demos of the dances performed by Steve and Irene at the Saturday evening dance are now on Dropbox at the link below.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/4blylyk5dewqqhj/AACNVd9Wh77C_v9xz0icUEi9a?dl=0

Thanks to all who worked so hard to make this event such a success. A special thanks to the out-of-town dancers who traveled considerable distances to attend and as always Steve and Irene Bradt for their excellent instruction.

Thursday dancers remember there is no dancing this week on Nov 1st.

Remember it’s Halloween this Wednesday night. Please be careful  when you’re trick-or-treating and don’t eat too much candy!

Capital Caper is just 3 weeks away.

We are just 3 weeks away from this years “Capital Caper” and if you’re planning to attend this excellent workshop given by Steve & Irene Bradt, please fill out your registration form and submit it ASAP to help with final planning for the event. More info and a registration form are available on this website; just click on “Capital Caper Weekend” found in the menu at the top of each page.

The club is approaching one month operating with it’s new pre-cued music format. Things seem to have gone pretty smoothly all-in-all. A few issues with music sound levels but work is being done which should resolve this problem.

Remember Monday dancers that there is no dancing this Thanksgiving Monday 8th October.

Wishing everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!

 

An Anniversary Dance We Won’t Forget!

 

 

 

 

 

The “pot-luck” dinner portion of Capital Carousel’s 5th Anniversary Dance took place on Friday 21st September. Unfortunately the dance portion of the evening was cancelled due to the violent storm system which caused power failures throughout the Ottawa area. The power went out at 6 PM so the dinner took place with rapidly fading daylight and a single emergency light. There was no shortage of delicious food items to choose from. A big thank you to all who contributed. There was also a wonderful 5th Anniversary Cake thanks to the club’s social convenors Ian and Ann Webb.
The club was honoured to have past dancers in attendance; Ian and Ann Wilkerson and Al and Eulice Harris. Also John and Barbara LeGrow who aren’t regular dancers with the club.
The evening came to a close shortly after 7PM when the hall was plunged into complete darkness due to an exhausted emergency light battery. Clean up took place using the flashlight “App” on multiple cell phones.
Special thanks to our Social Convenors, Ian and Ann for their hard work organizing the meal, Pat and Jill for decorating the hall, Pat Black for making up the program, which we unfortunately never got to dance and all who lent a hand to help in some way.

 

5th Anniversary Dance


Our first dance sessions for each group this past week seemed to go smoothly with no major hiccups.  Both groups were well attended and it was great to see all those familiar faces up on the dance floor once again.

The big news for the coming week is Capital Carousel’s 5th Anniversary Dance on Friday 21st September at Parkdale United Church. I’ve added the flyer at the top of this post but it won’t hurt to go over some of the details here.
The hall will open at 5:30PM with a “Pot-Luck” dinner taking place at 6PM followed by dancing from 7 – 9PM. There is no charge for entry but if you are able to bring something for the “Pot-Luck” it would certainly help out.
Even if you’re no longer an active dancer we’d love to have you come to this celebration and enjoy  meeting “old”friends.
Our Dance Program creator, Pat Black, would like feedback for creating an appropriate dance program for the evening. You can RSVP Pat by email at
program@capitalcarousels.ca
The club looks forward to seeing many familiar faces at the dance.

Just 2 Weeks To Go


Dust off your dance shoes because there’s only a couple of weeks before the start of Capital Carousel’s 6th season.
If you were dancing with the 3-5 group on Wednesday evenings in the past, please don’t forget that your group will now dance Mondays from 10AM-Noon starting on Monday  Sept. 10th.
The 3-4 Thursday group will start on Thursday Sept. 13th from 10AM – Noon. As always please remember to bring your own coffee mug to help save the environment. Dance rates this season for the 12 week Fall session are $60/single or $120/couple if paid in advance or if paying weekly the cost will be $8/person.
This season without Donna at the helm things will operate a little differently using a group of “operators” that Donna trained last year to handle setting up and tearing down of the equipment and playing pre-cued music much of which is cued by Donna.
The club’s anniversary dance this year will be held on Friday Sept 21st. There will be no charge, hall opens at 5:30PM with a pot-luck meal at 6PM.
The annual benefit dance in support of Parkdale United’s “In From The Cold” program will be held on Friday Dec 7th. The dance will start with a pot-luck meal at 6 PM (hall opens at 5:30PM). Donations of $20 or more will receive a tax receipt.

Don’t forget this years “Capital Caper” will be held on October 26th and 27th. You can find more information about this excellent workshop and dance event on the club’s website under “Capital Caper Weekend”. A link is included to print out a registration form to fill out and mail in as well.

Looking forward to seeing you all on the dance floor soon!

 

Summer Update

Well summer is definitely here! I hope everyone is staying cool through this current heat wave.
Some updates on what’s happening with the Carousels dance club for next season. First we are pleased to announce that Robert and Jean have filled the vacant “Directors At Large” position on the executive. Robert and Jean fill the vacancy left by Charlie who leaves the club after serving on the Executive since the club’s formation 5 years ago. We’ll all miss Charlie bringing smiles to our faces on party nights as he took one of his great photos in his position as official club photographer. Thanks for your service to the club over the past 5 years Charlie.
The other big news, the 3-5 group which previously danced on Wednesday nights will now be dancing on Monday mornings from 10AM until noon. It’s hoped that the morning time slot will bring out dancers who didn’t relish the drive to the church on dark winter nights.
Monday dancing for the 3-5 group will start on September 10th at 10AM and for the 3-4 group on September 13th at 10AM so please mark your calendars!
There will be two special dances this Fall session, the Anniversary Dance will be held on Friday September 21st and the December benefit dance in support of Parkdale United’s “In From The Cold” program will be held on Friday  December 7th.
Don’t forget that the National Square & Round Dance Convention takes place in London, July 19 – 21.
That’s about it for now other than to wish everyone a great summer and safe travels.

Carousels Season Finale

The club’s regular dance season came to a close with a great dance party-night on Wednesday May 16th. The evening was hi-lighted by a special tribute to Donna, our club cuer, as she retires from the Carousels. Donna has live-cued for the club since it’s inception in 2013 and we will really miss her. In addition to cuing, she handled numerous other tasks some of which included developing and maintaining the club’s website and Facebook page, teaching dances and serving on the Executive Committee just to name a few. The club will continue to operate using her repertoire of music, which she has pre-cued  and kindly loaned to the club for as long as it’s needed. Over the last few months she’s worked to ensure the future operation of the club by training a number of  members in setting-up and operating the sound equipment and with Arlo’s help created a manual so we won’t forget how to do it. Thank-you  so much Donna!
In appreciation for her work she was presented with gifts, cards, a beautiful flower basket and a lifetime Capital Carousels membership. We all wish Donna success in her future endeavours and look forward to her visiting the club from time to time.

The club’s AGM was held midway through the dance.
The executive positions for the 2018/2019 season are:
President ………….. Gavin
Vice President ….. Ziggy
Secretary ………….. Arlo
Treasurer …………. Tom
Programs/Teaching …Pat
Social Convenors ….. Ian and Ann
Webmaster/Facebook …… Mike
Members at Large ….. Wayne and Toni
Members at large …… To be filled later

Special thanks to Brian & Ann and Ian & Ann for keeping us fueled with coffee, tea and refreshments throughout the year.

Have a safe, enjoyable summer everyone and we’ll see you with your dancing shoes on in the Fall.

 

It’s The Last Hurrah!

Originally published by Donna Stewart May/10/2018 08:36 PM

After being your webmaster for the past 5 years or so, this is my last blog post and website update. Writing this post does stir up some bittersweet memories, as I remember the countless hours put into developing the site as well as the growing amount of content that has developed over the years. The Capital Carousels website was primarily developed in the beginning as a method of communication for our club members. Somewhere our dancers could look to see what dances were on the dance program and just getting those tidbits of information on club events through the blog entries. Our gallery added a personal touch for our members to relive memories in pictures. Over the years, the website grew in content with a few areas I am particularly proud of. The expansion of our LINKS page showing not only organizations of interest to us, but also dance video sites, cue sheet sites, online instruction sites and videos to purchase information. This also recently expanded with Mike and Lyn’s DropBox contribution which is so helpful for teaches we have learned at the club and subsequent information not only found on video, but also in document form! A few years ago, in an effort to create interest in beginner lessons, I developed a movie clip which could be viewed on our site here. That video was also posted to our Facebook Page (which I am also administrator of) and created a lot of interest in other areas of the round dance community as an innovative way to advertise.
Yes, the website takes a lot of work, with weekly updates required during the dance season and other bigger builds required at times, but to me, it was well worth it, as I know you all appreciated the site!! I heard it many times over these years and I thank everyone so much for the support shown me, and the pride we have had showing others in the dance community OUR WEBSITE! Many positive responses within our club and beyond for the site. That is what has made all that hard work, WORTHWHILE!
Although this is my last post and update as webmaster, fear not, as we have a very capable club member who will be taking over in a little under a week. Several months ago, Mike Cosham was approached to take over as webmaster and after some careful thought and a bit of ground work on his part, decided to take on the task! Mike has had previous webmaster experience with his church and for the past several months, Mike has not only duplicated my site, but he has also been performing the weekly updates along with me on his site. Mike’s site will have a slightly different look, but he has taken special consideration to make sure that content is where you have found them in the past. Mike has used a different program for his site, but believe me, you will have no problem navigating his site. You will see Mike’s new site effective next update (or even after the AGM if you are so inclined!). A special thanks to Mike as despite what I considered to be a big part of the transition for me (remember I do more than just webmaster for the club), his work and do-diligence with the project made the transition quite seamless! Thanks Mike! Also thanks to Arlo, who neither Mike or I could work without for his work behind the scenes with the web host. An invaluable contribution!
I leave the website in good hands and although I will not be involved with the club after this season, it will be a joy to go to the Capital Carousels website and see what is happening on the dance floor at Parkdale! Happy Dancing and of course…Happy Surfing on the Capital Carousels Website!!

End Of Year Dance Coming Up!

 Originally posted by Donna Stewart April/27/2018 07:53 PM

Can you imagine…next week we will be in May! Where has our season gone? Counting this coming week, we only have two weeks left in our regular season. Instead of starting anything new and no dance followup to practice anything new until next September, Pat has decided that we will have all dance days through the remainder of our season. We will get lots of chances to practice what we have learned this year as well as dance to some of our favourites. Also a chance to have some nice “downtime” for the next couple of weeks.
Our final dance of the season will be held on Wednesday, May 16 which will give everyone from both clubs a chance to get together! It will be an all dance night and at about the 1/2 way point. we will have a short club meeting to bring you up to date on next year’s plans and elect next season’s executive. At the end of the evening, we will have a chance for some socializing over some very tasty tidbits! We all are well aware that our members are great cooks and we are asking for everyone to bring one of their favourite finger food creations! Ian and Ann have created a signup sheet which will be on Gavin’s desk at our coming dance days, so please sign up. My mouth is watering already! Of course, we are a dance club and there will be plenty of that going on, on May 16. Pat will have a dance program which will not only cover many rhythms we dance, but will be something for everyone whether you dance on Wednesday or Thursday. You can also expect many dances we have learned this season to be on the program. Donna will also be cueing the entire evening giving our sound equipment operators a well deserved break and a chance to enjoy the evening.
We hope you will plan to attend our final dance of the year! It’s a great opportunity to get together as a club and just have fun, dance and talk about our summer plans. Come and join us for our final dance of the season and by all means….LET’S DANCE!!