In the first part of this three part special feature, find out how Dancing with the Cherry Hill Stars originally started.
On April 29, the Cherry Hill Education Foundation’s largest fundraiser, Dancing with the Cherry Hill Stars, will take the stage for the 10th time.
The show, featuring members of the Cherry Hill community dancing with professional dancers, has become one of the biggest annual events held in Cherry Hill. The show sells out each year, and thousands of others vote online to donate to their favorite dancer. CHEF has raised more than $1 million since 2007, with most of that money raised through Dancing with the Cherry Hill Stars.
For the 10th Dancing with the Cherry Hill Stars, the theme of the show is celebration.
Those who have been involved with the show since 2008 plan to make the 2017 show the best one yet.
“This is a celebration looking forward to the next million dollars and looking back at what we accomplished,” Cherry Hill Education Foundation President Eleanor Stofman said.
Bringing out the stars in Cherry Hill
In 2007, a group of community members revived the Cherry Hill Education Foundation. Stofman knew the group needed a large event to help with fundraising and started to brainstorm ideas.
“One of my passions was dancing,” Stofman said. “I love to dance, and I was taking lessons with Arthur Murray Dance Studios.”
At the same time, the TV show “Dancing with the Stars” was a big hit on ABC and one of Stofman’s favorite programs. She decided doing a dancing stage show would attract community members and sponsors.
Stofman went to work getting the support of community members. Two of the first people she approached were Cherry Hill High School West principal and current Superintendent of Schools Joe Meloche and then-Cherry Hill High School East principal John O’Breza. Both loved the idea and Meloche even agreed to dance in the first show.
Once the show got the green light, Stofman knew she needed an experienced director to make it successful. She turned to Cherry Hill West alum Drew Molotsky.
Molotsky, who has experience directing local theater productions, remains the director of the show today.
“When Eleanor asked you to do something, you do it,” Molotsky said with a laugh. “I have a strong fondness for the Cherry Hill schools.”
Molotsky had a team of technical personnel who worked with him on other local theater productions. He enlisted his team to try to produce a strong inaugural show.
“We had to try to highlight the things we had going for us,” he said. “To try to do it the way they do it on television wasn’t going to work. I approached more from the standpoint of a live musical production. I’ve tried to add other live entertainment elements, live music, so it has the more broad feel of the show.”
Molotsky’s team hit a homerun with the production. The first show was wildly popular and set the stage for the years ahead.
Meloche and his partner, Marjie Major, were the final act of the night and danced to the Donna Summer song, “Last Dance.”
“It was an incredible experience for me,” Meloche said. “We were in the final dance at the end of the night. It was an experience I’ll never forget.”
