Pleasanton, Jennifer Kelly, 9/4/16

Sincere congratulations to everyone.  Yesterday’s performance was indeed close to spectacular most of the time. Our problem starter medley went much better than I had dared to hope and then the Highland dancers wowed the audience with their snappy hornpipe and great new costumes and we were off to the races. It was wonderful to have such pleasant weather so that you were able to enjoy the dancing without wondering if you would expire before it was over.  Kudos to Stephen for great piping and to Laura and Rachel who were both under par with colds but gave no hint of it in their demeanor. Special congratulations to Rachel and Dilip,who came through their first Red Thistle Pleasanton performance with flying colors. The balance of the program was great, no 2 items alike, including the Highland dances Kamrin picked, which kept the audience’s attention throughout. Several knowledgeable dancers congratulated me on the choreography and your excellent execution of even the most challenging pieces. As usual the music was fabulous, even though we missed Michael’s always interesting contributions. Everyone looked really sharp throughout the program, no drooping socks or dipping petticoats or fidgeting with hair or sporrans - truly professional. Even those with fast costume changes managed to return to stage looking composed and properly put together. To give you an idea of your accomplishment, Country dancers, you performed 15 dances in 9 different formations using 55 figures, depending on how one counts figures, but any way produces an awesome total, and some of you managed Highland as well! With so much coming up for us to dance in the coming months let us build on this success and strive not to forget all those dances before we manage to organize the next video session. See you on Thursday, but the following week there is no class, whilst the floor is refinished. Jennifer

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HI!  So sorry to be so tardy, but I wanted to thank "my" Highland dancers for such a great performance at Pleasanton!  I was very relieved that the guys did not fall through the floor during the Double-Threesome Broadsword!  Thanks to Samantha, Deborah, Candice, and Kevin, who all had costume changes--you were organized, efficient, and done so quickly that I didn't have to worry about you being ready.  THANK YOU!  Thanks too, to Stephen for playing two different sets of pipes--you were a great addition to the Hornpipe and Bonnie Dundee.  Even with the costume "changes," Stephen was ready to go when needed.  Thanks again, to everyone and congratulations!!  You should all be very proud of your performance!!

The country team looked great, too, so congratulations to you, as well!  The musicians were stellar, as always.  We did miss Michael, especially for the sword salute.  Finally, thanks to Jennifer for announcing.  Overall, it was a great performance!  I heard a lot of very nice comments from the audience about the program and the dancing. 

Let's keep the momentum going!

Thanks, Kamrin