It started with a percolated interest.
For Dale Burl, his interest in clogging lead to the founding of the Erie Canal Cloggers in 1994.
“One day Dale said that there are going to be cloggers at the Jordan Fall Festival,” program director Richard Hawker said. “I said, ‘Clogging? What the heck is that?’ So, I went with him.”
After the performance, Burl went up to the group and inquired about joining. The group was from out of town, but they directed him to the Adirondack Mountain Cloggers in Mattydale. Burl repeatedly encouraged Hawker to go, urged him to give it a try. After being coaxed, Hawker caved … and loved it.
The rest is history.
Now 17 years later, the group just finished up its 2010-11 clogging year with five days of dancing at the Great New York State Fair in front of a standing room only crowd. On Sept. 27 the team will begin its 2011-12 campaign.
As the program director, Hawker is already busy formatting what the team will be learning through the year for the upcoming summer performances.
“We will start learning new dance routines for [next year’s] New York State Fair show starting Sept. 27,” said Hawker, “Every month we learn a new routine which means steps that are choreographed to music. I’ll pick the music and Dale, Aliccia or myself will write the routine. We might even use one of the international clogging instructor’s routines from different workshops we have attended.”
By the time next July and August comes around, it will be time for the cloggers to perform. This year, the Erie Canal Cloggers performed for four nights and one day at the New York State Fair.
“We had a lot of good audiences,” Hawker said. “They love cloggers.”
The most satisfying part of being a part of the Erie Canal Cloggers, Hawker notes, is the camaraderie and family oriented atmosphere that this type of dancing involves.
“Clogging has brought about so many friendships,” Hawker said. “We are very welcoming and all speak the same language.”
There is currently three generations participating as Erie Canal Cloggers including Hawker, his daughter and granddaughter Aliccia, who also handles all three levels of instruction— beginners, intermediate and advanced. The Elbridge deputy town clerk and her daughter are also in the group.
The group also carries on and dances in memory of Phyllis Antos who lost her life in a car accident coming home one night from a lesson. Phyllis was a co-founder of the group and she was killed in a car accident after dress rehearsal for the fair in 1999.
“We continue to dance because of her,” Hawker said.
The primary goal of the Erie Canal Cloggers is to share their joy of clogging with others through teaching and performing throughout the Central New York community. The group currently has over 35 active members with ages ranging from teens to 80 years old.
The group meets every Tuesday night at the Christ Episcopal Church Parish Hall on 25 North Main Street in Jordan. Beginner lessons will be from 6 to 7 p.m., 7 to 7:30 p.m. for advanced cloggers and 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. for intermediate classes.
For more information, call 689-1211 or visit its website eriecanalcloggers.com.
