The University of Wisconsin Dance Marathon, an event held annually since 2001 to raise money for charity, ended anticlimactically Saturday with 10 dancers finishing the 18-hour dance-off at Memorial Union’s Great Hall.
The marathon, a student-run event that ended about an hour early, raised approximately $4,300 to benefit AIDS victims or victims’ families and children, significantly less than the $15,000 raised from last year’s all-night dance party. The marathon gathered about 25 registered dancers early Friday night and attracted about 100 guests at the height of action around 9 to 10 p.m. Friday evening. Eighty volunteers worked in two-hour shifts passing out cookies and managing a raffle at the “Welcome to the Jungle”-themed event.
UW sophomore Jamie Cohen, public-relations chair of the Dance Marathon, said the turnout was “disappointing,” though the effort will pay off.
“On a positive note, it was really nice to have an event to benefit [AIDS victims],” Cohen said.
Cohen said the dancer turnout was not the only shortcoming of the event. Some of the bands scheduled to appear did not show up, though the music never came to a stop. DJ Machine, a New York native, spun for nearly 12 hours to fill in for the absent performers. Cohen blamed poor communication with entertainment chairs for the band turnout.
Sara Lind, an executive of UW’s Dance Marathon and UW student, blamed lack of concern on students’ behalf for the low turnout.
“I think this is a result of apathy on campus,” Lind said. Lind added that the marathon’s closeness to winter break may mean word did not get out in time for students to prepare for the long boogie haul.
Sabrina Malen, a UW sophomore, was one of the registered dancers who survived the 18 hours on the dance floor.
“It’s pretty exhausting. I came home and crashed,” Malen said. Malen was disappointed at the turnout as well. “It’s kind of sad that no people came … but the idea behind it was rewarding. It was kind of a letdown.”
Malen, the most successful fundraiser, raised nearly a quarter of the total by earning more than $1,000 in donations. Every registered dancer was requested to raise $180, or about $10 an hour. Her secret to raising all the money was sending e-mails to family and family friends.
“I just kind of got lucky,” Malen said. “It’s not the story of me knocking on every door for the last three weeks.”
Justin Ballheim, a senior at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., compared his university’s success to UW’s in a phone interview. He said that in past years, Northwestern has raised between $400,000 and $500,000 annually. This year’s marathon will be Northwestern’s 30th, perhaps a preview of the future if the event continues at UW.
“It’s one of the defining Northwestern events. The event itself is the event on campus,” Ballheim said, adding that there are events all year leading up to the dance marathon.
The money earned at the marathon will be split among three charities working to help the lives of those affected by AIDS, either AIDS victims or their families. The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and UW Children’s Hospital will receive donations from the marathon, and Camp Heartland will be its main beneficiary.
Dance marathon guests who did not register beforehand were asked to give a $5 donation.
