President Hogan dances the night away

The UConn Ballroom Dance Team took the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts by storm Friday night at the Dancing with the UConn Stars show. The UConn stars paired with members of the ballroom dance team included professor of molecular and cell biology Arlene Albert, professor of physics George Gibson, President Michael Hogan and School of Pharmacy dean Robert L. McCarthy.

"I think that it is great to get the community and the faculty involved, especially President Hogan," said Joe Williamson, a 1st-semester pre-teaching major. "I came with the pharmacy learning community today to cheer Dean McCarthy on."

The show opened with a Lady Gaga medley in which Hogan showcased his skills on the dance floor. After the opening performance, Hogan remarked how he is "no Tom DeLay at dancing," adding that he has been practicing the dance routine in the bathroom for quite a while.

Some of the dances performed included the jive, waltz, rumba and the foxtrot. Modern interpretations made the dances upbeat and fun to watch. Sarah Schilling and Evgueni Chaoulski, the celebrity dancers for the night, danced the cha-cha to the song "Sexyback" by Justin Timberlake. George Cometa and Stephanie Douglas danced the Samba to "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" by Pitbull.

"I think that it is cool that people are still doing these dances and incorporating upbeat modern music," said Lindsey Cunningham, 5th-semester journalism major. "This makes the dance more reflective to the students."

The UConn stars spent the past couple of months training for Friday night. Members of the ballroom dance team helped the faculty members learn the steps and the choreography.

"I really want to thank the members of the UConn Dance team for preparing the dances for the past seven months," said McCarthy. It was a lot of fun learning them. It took time to learn the steps and we learned the choreography little by little."

Dancing with the UConn stars was co-sponsored by SUBOG and HuskyTHON and is the first of many upcoming events in the Huskies Headliners series.