PORT ANGELES — For dancer Lydia Samperi, Christmas time once meant making toys — a passel of them — for the Salvation Army.
But one day Samperi, leader of the Hapy’s Oasis bellydance troupe, realized she could create something bigger.
And so Dancing for Toys was born, setting a diverse flock in motion. The 2014 show brings nine troupes and soloists with salsa, Zumba, vaudeville, various bellydance styles and even a Filipino folk dance to Peninsula College’s Pirate Union Building on Saturday. Curtain time is 7 p.m. in the PUB, inside the J building on the main campus at 1502 E. Lauridsen Blvd.
Admission to this 12th annual event is a new toy, not wrapped, or a teenager-appropriate holiday gift for the Salvation Army drive. Jennifer Capehart Mora, an organizer of the show, also invites patrons to bring finger foods to share.
Samperi, who will turn 64 on Saturday, is no longer the orchestrator of Dancing for Toys. She suffered a heart attack earlier this year, and “we realized we should be doing this,” Mora said.
Samperi has given the local arts scene “a fabulous dance show,” she added.
“The Peninsula’s best dancers are going to be there. We have a big dance community that a lot of people don’t know is here,” and they’re bringing their favorite songs: “Salsa Pura y Nada Mas” for the PA Salsa group, Pitbull’s “Fireball” for the Zumba dancers, “Jingle Bell Rock” and “Who Let the Elves Out!,” among other numbers, for PA Cabaret.
As for PA Salsa’s folk dance from the Philippines, “I’m excited to see what that is,” said Mora.
Ana Belle Gulin, a bellydancer from Port Townsend, will perform a seven-minute piece titled “Egyptian Fantasy Lotus Pool,” and Denise Williamson of the Shula Azhar troupe will offer her interpretation of “We Three Kings.”
The rest of Shula Azhar, the Port Angeles-based performers who have appeared at Seattle’s Folklife and other festivals, will dance the finale in three numbers: “Daret al Ayam,” “Lila, My Love” and “Shimmabulous.”
Samperi remains a fan of “Dancing for Toys,” noting it’s a family friendly event. In the PUB, “the kids don’t have to sit still,” she added. This is a dance party, after all.
