Movin' on up to the west side of campus
Dancers, committee members prepare for challenges as marathon gets new home

By DARYL LANG
Collegian Staff Writer

After a tornado sent Dorothy's house spinning through the sky in The Wizard of Oz, it placed it neatly back on the ground with only a few scratches.

In moving the 1999 Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon to Rec Hall, organizers hope to pull off the same sort of trick.

Of course, Thon is a bit more mobile than a farm cottage, and Rec Hall is closer to the White Building than Kansas is to Munchkinland.

But Thon thrives on annual rituals such as the line dance, the dancers' walk around the building, the opening run from the HUB Ballroom -- rituals that depended on the logistics of the White Building.

After years of growth, though, it's finally time to pick up the traditions and carefully set them down in another building.

"Things are going to look a little bit different," said Meghan Marshall, overall morale chair, explaining some of the changes.

Dancers will start the weekend by running from the Nittany Lion Inn to the Rec Hall gym by way of the Nittany Lion Shrine.

Bathroom breaks will be led from the back of the gym instead of near the stage.

A reformatted line dance will account for spectators viewing it from dancers' right side instead of the left.

The list goes on.

However, one of the greatest changes will be an increase in spectators.

Throughout the event, Rec Hall's bleachers will be able to hold thousands of fans who drop by to cheer on the dancers.

With more space for the audience, Thon organizers hope to keep doors open to the public longer than they could in the White Building, which quickly filled up during the last hours.

To keep the masses happy, Thon will now have public restrooms, a snack bar and merchandise for sale.

"I think it will get more of the campus involved," said James Larson, who is dancing for the Blue and White Society.

In spite of the new building, Larson said he anticipates the atmosphere will be the same as in years past.

Marc Hoecker, who is dancing for the Ultimate Frisbee Club, agreed.

"The enthusiasm will still be there, regardless of what kind of line dance they do," Hoecker said.

Thon committee members have been working since the summer to facilitate the move to the new building.

The last time Thon changed locations was in 1979, when the event moved from the HUB Ballroom to the nearby White Building.

Last February, the event was so crowded that officials had to turn away some spectators toward the end of the 48-hour event.

Robyn Brown was a member of Thon's operations and physical plant committee last year and is dancing this year for Alpha Rho Chi fraternity, 320 S. Fraser St.

Rec Hall will be a great improvement for spectators, said Brown, who remembers throngs of visitors being herded through the crowded White Building last year.

But like other dancers, Brown said the core of Thon will stay the same wherever the wind blows it.

"The attitude?" she said. "You can't change that."