Dancing cavemen ... and not from that TV commercial

By ROBERT VILLANUEVA rvillanueva@thenewsenterprise.com CECILIA — Since its origin 11 years ago, the Cecilia Days “Almost” Talent Show has gained in popularity, to the point that some see it as a top draw of the annual festival. “It’s just grown and become a community hit,” event chairperson Joni Hill said. In fact, in Hill’s opinion, the show has become the highlight of Cecilia Days, which is Friday and Saturday. The show is so popular, area residents are eager to find out the theme of the next show. “People just ask all year long,” Hill said. “We don’t usually give out too much information.” The “Almost” Talent Show first appeared 11 years ago when Cecilia Community Ruritan Club members asked Hill to come up with a show to fill in a time gap in the festival. Hill put together a themed show consisting of family, friends and community members. Mainly for “laughs and entertainment,” Hill called the event a “good, clean family show.” This year the show will be at 6 p.m. Saturday instead of its earlier slot of 4 p.m. in previous years. The stage also received a make-over of sorts by Ruritan member Raymond Wooden to allow visibility of the show on three sides rather than just the front. “We call it the ‘Almost’ Talent Show because we don’t claim any fame or talent … just almost of both,” Hill said. This year’s show is called “The Evolution of Dance” and was inspired by a six-minute YouTube video that depicts a man performing a variety of popular dances from decades gone by. The Cecilia Days version will consist of 58 songs and run about an hour long. “Since it’s called ‘Evolution,’ we start with cavemen,” Hill said. Audiences should be prepared to see the Flintstones, Egyptians, pirates and others in a production featuring dances such as the Charleston, swing dancing and the tango. “Just something for everyone,” Hill said. She said a committee of about eight people put the show together. About 40 people — including representatives from Ky. 86 Fire and Rescue and The Hardin County Sheriff’s Office — take part in the show. Friends, family and church members also are involved, she said. “We have all ages, and we just have fun,” Hill said, noting the youngest person in the show is 16 months old. In previous years, the theme of the show has run the gamut from a “hippie era” production to one that featured oldies from the 1950s and 60s. The most popular show was one with the theme of "Hee-Haw," the television series. “We’ve managed to do something different every year,” Hill said. Turnout for the event has climbed to what Hill believed was about 1,000 people during some years. Most years the audience ranges from about 500 and up, she said. “It always amazes me,” she said. Weather affects attendance, but this year’s later start time might help provide a little cooler production, she said. But the audience seems to be a pretty die-hard bunch. “Even when it rains, they stand out there in the rain,” Hill said. With that kind of dedication from the audience, Hill expects the production to weather most any condition Mother Nature might dish out. “So the show will go on,” she said. Robert Villanueva can be reached at (270) 505-1743.