In their colorful national dress the dancers of Randlane carry on the folk dance traditions of their Estonian homeland, the small Nordic nation near the Baltic Sea that shares a linguistic heritage with Finland. They regularily perform at ethnic festivals and other events on the East Coast and Canada. Based in Lakewood, long a haven for Estonian immigrants, the Randlane dancers wear traditional colorful tunics, nine-foot long hand woven belts, pleated skirts and exquisite jewelry. Many of the high-stepping routines and tricky foot work of line and ring dances, contra dances, waltzes, mazurkas and polkas are uniquely Estonian. They will invite the audience to perform some of these dances with them.
Folk dance has a fascinating history, it is fun to watch, fun to learn and , most of all fun to do.
This unusual program promises to be a very lively and entertaining experience that you will only find at Manasquan First Night. He has had leading roles with many shore area theatre groups in plays and musicals. Bernadette Ulrich has performed in a variety of plays, musicals, operettas and concerts in many of our shore area theatres. She teaches High School English, Voice and Drama. Accompanist Douglas Barclay has performed in area concerts on the piano and organ and has appeared with the Williamsport Symphony Orchestra.