With a little more than three weeks until the big event, the DemonTHON’s team has been working since last year to make this year’s event successful. For the third annual event, DemonTHON isn’t concerned about the numbers but hoping to build off of last year.
“It’s really just about growing every year,” Dance Relations Director India Mayer said. “It’s only our third year and we’ve been really lucky to grow quickly. We’re looking to get one dollar more and one more participant from last year.”
Executive Director Blair Janis said last year they were just shy of 300 registered dancers and that they set a goal of more than 400 dancers for this year.
“This year the committee has worked incredibly hard to make sure that the dance marathon is presented to all students,” Janis said. “They have worked really hard to reach out to students that may not be involved in anything else, like residence halls. I think it’s a really good opportunity for first year students.”
Mayer recognizes that DemonTHON has grown quickly over the past three years.
“I think being on the board for the first time I’ve realized who much more awareness we have on campus,” Mayer said. “In the past two years (DemonTHON) had to be more explained but now more people know about it.”
This week begins ‘dancer week’, which is a time to get people excited about the event, Mayer said.
“It’s a great opportunity for dancers to come out and see what DemonTHON is a all about about and get hyped up,” Mayer said. “We want to get people excited and help them realize that it’s not just the 24 hours of May 16-17.”
Just a week after last year’s event, applications were put out and the management positions are picked first followed by the full board. About 30 students make up the full DemonTHON board, including assistants.
“The process is really long, we are basically working on it full force from September through May,” Mayer said. “It’s like another job or class. We put in a lot, and depending on when your position really picks up, it’s a long process.”
With dancer week coming up, registration for DemonTHON closes at midnight on Friday, April 25.