Ludwig & Dalton Dance Team Win “Orcas Has Talent” Competition

Laura Ludwig and Charles Dalton explode with glee as they're announced winners of 2011 "Orcas Has Talent"

The dynamic dance team of Laura Ludwig and Charles Dalton advanced from the ranks of the “Orcas Has Talent” finalists to win the competition in a lively evening of entertainment that packed the Orcas Center Main Stage and the Madrona Room on Saturday night.

Ludwig and Dalton started the evening with a defiant sensuous tango; they went on with five other contestant acts — Carl Burger, “Practice Makes Awesome” youth band, Marlene Dickey, Al Bentley& Matthew Wallrath, and Marissa Veldman for the second round of competition.

Burger, through the wizardry of electronics, accompanied himself on banjo with a trademark, Orcas-quirky rendering of the folksong “Karaoke from Muskogee.”

Practice Makes Awesome Band, made up of Julia Bailey, Christian Bailey, Kellen Comrie, Jessica Gudgell, Emmy Carter, Lisa Carter and Marissa Veldman performed a popular song, complete with kazoos. Marissa Veldman again wowed the crowd with a completely confident, sultry number with a patter-like verse, “Run For Your Life,” outfitted in a black fedora a la Sinatra, short black skirt and callf-length black boots.  Marlene Dickey accompanied herself on guitar and played a funky, rhythm-stretching version of the Alain Toussaint song made popular by the Pointer Sisters, “I Know We can Make It.” The sax-tuba horn duo, Al Bentley and Matthew “Wally”  Wallrath had too much fun, decked out in butterfly wings and playing impromptu, repetitive riffs.

In contrast to their first-round number, Ludwig & Dalton, decked in floral colors, performed a lyrical dance in which they mirrored each other in moves reminiscent of figure skaters, until the final moments when they came together in a dos-y-dos before finally embracing.

Voters brought back finalists were Marisa Veldman, who appeared in a long red dress and crooned a slow, yearning “Moment Like This.”  Bentley & Wallrath (who’d changed from his Green Bay Packers wardrobe into a yellow shirt) again performed improvised and easy, coordinated horn jazz.  Ludwig & Dalton switched gears again, this time rocking to a high-energy hip hop number.

"Orcas Has Talent" Final contestants: From left, Julia Bailey, Jessica Gudgell, Emmy Carter, Christian Bailey, Kellen Comrie, Lisa Carter, Mikaela Hanson, Marissa Veldman, Al Bentley, Matthew Wallrath, Sue Weiss, , Marlene Dickey, Laura Ludwig and Charles Dalton. ( Carl Burger and Zach Edwardson not pictured).

This was the first year the Orcas Island Prevention Partnership (OIPP) adopted the “Orcas Has Talent” format, branching out from the singing-only “Orcas Idol” program of the past five years. The event is the main fundraiser for the island prevention/intervention program. OIPP Director Marta Nielsen reminded the audience that this is the first year OIPP is  operating without federal funding; that in the past OIPP  has helped pay for the Orcas Island School Elementary Counselor, and the Funhouse mentoring program.

More recently OIPP has been instrumental in founding the island nonprofit,  Island Reproductive Health Initiative, to ensure medical attention for “all women of child-bearing ages.” OIPP also displayed information from the campaign, “Drawing the Lne,” a community response

Mark Padbury emceed the event, coordinated by Donna Laslo. During intermissions between rounds, while the audience votes were tallied, Laslo presented a short “documentary” film, entitled “Orcas Has Talent,” which profiled various islanders performing their “talents,” from eye-spinning to reciting Jack Nicholson’s sneering  “You can’t handle the truth” speech from the movie, “A Few Good Men.”

“Orcas Has Talent” Junior winner Mikaela Hansen competed in the first round of the the final competition, and the Junior competition’s first runner-up, Matthew Laslo-White, performed his Magic Act during another intermission, assisted by Julia Bailey.

DVDs of the show, made by Patrick Bennett, are available through OIPP, at www.orcasprevention.org, or 376-4768