Spring Tour

NORWEGIAN DANCERS SPRING TOUR 2007

'07 Florida Spring Tour

Schedule (doc, pdf)

The Stoughton Wisconsin High School Norwegian Dancers “good will ambassadors” will be touring in the Tampa/Naples communities March 29 through April 2nd. The group began in 1953, performing for their home community at Syttende Mai (Norwegian Independence Day). Today, they share their talents all across the United States, entertaining young and old and leaving all with a warm appreciation for their Norwegian heritage.

SPRING TOUR 2006 (recap)

The Stoughton Norwegian Dancers once again departed the confines of Wisconsin to make their annual Spring Tour. This year the group made its first ever trip to the nation’s capital -Washington D.C.

As is tradition, 23 dancers, 10 chaperones and various other companion travelers departed during the wee hours of March 23rd from the High School on a tour bus in order to catch a flight from Chicago O’Hare’s airport. The troupe touched ground in Washington DC, caught a quick lunch after gathering their gear and headed to downtown Washington for their first performance at Thomson Elementary, the adopted school of the Norwegian Embassy. They were met at the school by an envoy of the US Ambassador from Norway.

Remarkably, the group was able to make two more goodwill performances that day before heading off to their home-stays for the evening. One was for a homeless gathering at a downtown church. The other was for an inner city school arranged by the office of Tammy Baldwin. Both groups were utterly delighted with a style of dancing that they never even thought existed.

The Dancers performed 10 other times over the next several days including other schools and retirement homes, the VA Hospital and the famous Union Station. The highlight performance of the entire trip was a picturesque venue at the Tidal Basin stage for the annual Washington DC Cherry Blossom Festival directly in front of the Jefferson Memorial. Several hundred milling onlookers stopped and were fascinated at the Dancers elegance, grace and athleticism that has become the trademark of our community.

In between performances and right before they returned, the group was able to see and experience many of the historical memorials and monuments of Washington DC. They also were taken on tours of the massive Washington National Cathedral, the Norwegian Embassy (where they met the Ambassador), the Capitol Building and even took a trip to nearby Annapolis for a tour of the Naval Academy.

The group returned a week later on March 29^th with the satisfaction of knowing that they have once again able to leave their indelible mark on other parts of the country. One really has to partake in this experience to truly appreciate how the Stoughton Norwegian Dancers touch the lives of so many people where they travel. Tears are shed, hope is given and goodwill is spread everywhere. Stoughton should truly be proud of these high school participants who do such a great job of being our worthy ambassadors to the rest of the country.