Ballarat's newest dancing stars are preparing to take the stage at Civic Hall on Saturday for a night of ballroom glitz and glam.
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Ten local identities have been learning and rehearsing their dances with experienced dancers from Ballarat's The Dance Studio under the guidance of studio owner Shelley Ross since March.
It has been a massive community effort to raise funds and awareness for the Ballarat Foundation.
Guests will see the results of months of hard-work at the Dancing With Our Stars gala evening at Civic Hall on Saturday night and be part of a campaign to hit the Ballarat Foundation's $100,000 fundraising goal.
The dancer who has raised the most funds will be named the people's choice award winner and judges will select a winner for the best dance.
Community members can vote for their favourite dancer online. One vote is $1 and one entry to win a diamond ring valued at $22,400 donated by Ballarat business Gems and Jewels.
MEET THE STARS
LIANA SKEWES
Ballarat blogger, photographer and actor Liana Skewes will dance the Samba with partner Adrian Misseri.
Read more about Liana here.
SAMANTHA MCINTOSH
City of Ballarat mayor Samantha McIntosh will dance the Viennese Waltz with dance partner Mark Vanderkley.
Read more about Samantha here.
GEORGE FONG
Tech guru and regional development advocate George Fong will dance the Tango with dance partner Ashlie Ross.
Read more about George here.
AMY MCDONALD
VFL footballer and disability support worker Amy McDonald will dance the Quick Step with dance partner Robert Powell.
Read more about Amy here.
MALCOLM ROBERTS
Canberra Hotel owner Malcolm Roberts will dance the Waltz with dance partner Hollie Sewell.
Read more about Malcolm here.
SHAUNE MOLONEY
Ballarat Clarendon College middle school leader and former North Ballarat Roosters captain Shaune Moloney will dance the Cha Cha with dance partner Erin Cornwill.
Read more about Shaune here.
ROSEMARY ALDRICH
Ballarat Health chief medical officer Rosemary Aldrich will dance the Slow Foxtrot with dance partner Scott Cornwell.
Read more about Rosemary here.
ROBYN UPTON
Alfredton Rotary member and dog-lover Robyn Upton will dance the Swing Waltz with dance partner Brenton Thomas.
Read more about Robyn here.
MARK NUNN
Buxton Real Estate co-director and dad of three Mark Nunn will dance the American Smooth with dance partner Vanessa Stephenson.
Read more about Mark here.
DYLAN LESOCK
Clarke Clean owner Dylan Lesock will dance the Jive with dance partner Emma Learmonth.
Read more about Dylan here.
MEET THE DANCE TEACHER
The Dance Studio owner Shelley Ross has been volunteering her time and her studio to prepare Ballarat's dancing stars for the Civic Hall stage.
With 10 dancing couples taking two to three lessons per week, it has been a mammoth effort to create time in both her and her studio's busy schedule.
It adds up to around 30 extra hours of lessons on voluntary time per week on top of her usual studio teaching schedule.
Read more about Shelley here.
MEET THE HOSTS
Bubbly Power FM breakfast host Julia Zass and theatrical former Federation University Arts Academy director Bryce Ives have mobilised community interest for the Dancing With Our Stars fundraising night of glitz and glamour.
The long-term friends will share their energy on stage and have guests laughing and cheering for Ballarat's dancing stars.
Read more about Julia and Bryce here.
ABOUT THE CAUSE
The Ballarat Foundation is aiming to raise $100,000 through its biggest community fundraising effort yet - Dancing With Our Stars.
The philanthropic organisation's purpose is to unite community to break cycles of disadvantage.
In December the organisation estimated it delivered around $700,000 worth of community value throughout 2018.
READ MORE: Ballarat Foundation's big community impact
The foundation gifted $96,000 in grants to more than 20 community organisations, donated 6000 books through the Ballarat Reads program and distributed $10,000 in vouchers to assist vulnerable families with back to school vouchers last year.
More than 90 young learner drivers were given the opportunity to gain more than 3500 hours towards their license through the foundation's L2P program and 36 young drivers graduated from the program.
ABOUT THE EVENT
Guests who have purchased a ticket to Dancing With Our Stars will enjoy the event live at Civic Hall on Saturday night.
If you did not secure tickets to the event, you can watch the live stream on the Ballarat Foundation's YouTube channel or follow The Courier's live coverage of the evening online.
The Courier's live coverage will kick off from 6.30pm. Look out for a live Facebook video to welcome you to the event around 6pm on Saturday night.
We will have a full gallery of photos and videos for you on Sunday on The Courier website.
HOW TO VOTE
You can vote for your favourite dancer until 9.40pm on Saturday night on the Ballarat Foundation's website.
The dancer with the most votes will be crowned the people's choice award winner and another award will be given to the best dancer.
One vote for your favourite dancer is a $1 donation to the Ballarat Fondation and equals one entry to win a diamond ring valued at $22,400 and donated by Ballarat business Gems and Jewels.
Visit ballaratfoundation.org/ to vote and for more information on the fundraising event.