Review Chicago column preview: “Oprah’s Magnificently Choreographed Block Party”
“Go big or go home” is one of my favorite life philosophies, and on Tuesday, Sept. 8, along Chicago’s Magnificent Mile, Oprah substantiated it once again. I believe if you’re gonna have a party, you may as well go all the way and make it HUGE.
- Oprah’s 24th Season Kickoff Party stage set during the soundcheck.
The set crew closed off four blocks of Michigan Avenue at midnight on Labor Day, and people started lining up as early as 2:o0 a.m. Tuesday morning in hopes of securing a spot close to the stage.
Upon hearing that my Ultimate Favorites (aka Oprah and the Black Eyed Peas) were coming together for a free block party in my hometown, I knew I had no choice but to be there!
What was even greater about the experience was the fact that I was able to be one of the many dance choreographers who had rehearsed for 12 hours the previous day, scouted through a modeling agency. On Labor Day Monday, several hundred people gathered for nine hours at the Windy City Field House to learn and rehearse the dance to the Black Eyed Peas’ current #1 hit single, “I Gotta Feeling.”
- The casting directors organized us into groups ranging from 1 to 18. Go Group 3!
Our job was to teach the rest of the “general public” the moves so that the entire crowd of 20,000 attendees could join in the dance as well! We were given special wristbands (and additional ones for any friends who wanted special access) and were told to return the next day at noon to be allowed in the front area.
***
Read the rest of Charlotte’s column and see her exciting photos here at Review Chicago dot Com.
(More behind the scenes stories, soundcheck secrets and video footage coming soon!)
[...] While perusing the crazy stuff I’ve written about over the years (thanks to my great new WordPress plugin which generates related posts at the end of each entry), I re-stumbled upon the blog from the two days I spent learning and teaching the dance for Oprah’s 24th Season Kickoff… [...]