At a time of year when many men will soon be receiving presents like a tie or golf gear, some Calgary dads are enjoying a different kind of Father’s Day gift: spending hours dancing with their daughters.
A dozen dads are now rehearsing with their young daughters at the Soul Connexion Dance Studio, preparing for a Daddy/Daughter recital this week.
“We’re just kind of bonding through the same experience,” Greg Smith said. “Getting to spend time with our daughters in something that they love to do.”
The girls range in age from three to 16. Many of them have several years of dance training.
“It’s cool to see what it’s like for them, get a feel for what they do on stage,” Chris Mayerson said.
“You get a lot more respect for what they do. It takes a lot!”
The daughters are patient with their dads and, with many of the men brand new to dance, the girls enjoy taking the lead.
“Because he’s the boss,” six-year-old Blakely Tougas said. “Now we’re the boss of ballet!”
Watch below (April 23): A group of Edmonton dads surprised their kids by performing their own cheer routine.
Keeping their dads in line means coaching them on the steps.
“Yeah, because he doesn’t remember it,” seven-year-old Kylah Mayerson said. “So I get to tell him what to do.”
The dads don’t want to let their daughters down. They’ve been rehearsing together since January.
“I just love how committed these dads are,” Soul Connexion’s Cara Poppitt said. “They work hard, they practice. They wanted extra rehearsals just so they could look good.”
The dads and the daughters get their chance to shine on Saturday, June 8 at Soul Connexion.
All of them are looking forward to performing for the moms and other family members and friends.
“It’s spawned into this amazing thing with the other dads leading up to Father’s Day,” Nick Tougas said.