Maybe it’s a “busman’s holiday” but I love to put on my leopard flats and head on out for a night of dancing.
And what could be more fun than to do that just five minutes from where I live in Irvine.
Irvine’s Great Park located on the site of the old El Toro Marine Base (think enormous orange balloon off of Sand Canyon and the 5 freeway) has had a summer of entertainment that keeps even my experienced feet dancing.
Called Flights & Sounds, the Great Park offers Friday night dances and Saturday night concerts for free with $8/car parking from August 1st through September 26th 2009.
Their musical selections feature something for everyone: from Irish fiddling to Creole Jazz to Afro-Latin rhythms to Swing, Country, Hawaiian, European techno, Reggae, classic R&B, Salsa, accordians, Persion fusion and Bollywood disco.
I can’t decide if I want to get out my belly dancing skirt or my cowboy hat!!
Click here to see their web site for more information.
But last night I really couldn’t resist the place and about 7:45pm joined a long line of cars inching slowing into the Park to see none other than the Big Bad Voodoo Daddys live in concert under the stars.
Ok, I should have gotten in the line-up a little earlier… we snaked on into the Great Park for about twenty minutes and then hopped into a shuttle toe-tapping our feet all the way to the old hanger with runway lights still a-blinking in the ground and the enormous balloon going up and down on its cable in the hot night sky.
Dressed in their signature zoot suits the Big Bad Voodoo Daddys gave a short but fantastic show with some of the old favorites and a few of their new tunes just out on CD. Afterward they milled about signing autographs and all the kids dressed in costume got some great pictures.
So who says you can’t “swing it” just about anywhere?
And as long as we’re talking swing – last Friday night the Great Park featured an awesome swing dance party with Pete Jacobs and his Wartime Radio Revue complete with a trio of Andrew sisters-like singers! I must admit to swinging up a storm at that one too!
Now I just have to throw out there that either of these groups would be awesome at your wedding…
Ok, we can dream, can’t we???