FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. — Patty Morrissey isn't alone when she says performing at the Minnesota State Fair is an experience like no other.
"We consider this like our Christmas," said Morrissey. "We get ready, we think about it, we plan for it, we get the right clothes."
All necessary for Morrissey and the rest of the dancers with the Wild Rose Cloggers, as they prepared for Wednesday's performances at the Cosgrove Stage.
"It's super exciting to be here," said Tammy Cohen, who started the group back in 1995. "The crowds are usually pretty good. We dance because we love it, but we also dance to get new students, and this is the venue where we pick up the most new students every year."
Wild Rose Cloggers is open to students of all ages and all levels of experience.
"There are three people who do have a tapdancing background, one with an Irish dancing background, and pretty much for everyone else, this is their first dance experience ever," said Cohen.
Clogging, which incorporates several step-dancing styles from around the world, originated in the Appalachian Mountains in the 1700s. It started to gain popularity in Minnesota in the 1970s, and has been going strong ever since. The Wild Rose Cloggers have been performing at the Great Minnesota Get-Together for nearly 20 years.
"It really is fun," said Stephanie Brody, who joined the group in 2019. "You get to hoot and holler!"
The group is diverse in age — ranging from teenagers to dancers in their 70s — and for Morrissey, that makes the group even more fun.
"It's incredible because we are very, very different," Morrissey said. "We wouldn't necessarily have been in the same friend groups, but we find ourselves together and everyone has been very, very accepting and tolerant of each other. You find people of all different walks of life, different religions, different race, different socioeconomics, and we all meld together and we all take care of each other."
There's plenty of range when it comes to the music selection, too.
"Clogging incorporates lots of different music and dance, so you can clog to almost anything," said Elli Lindstrom of Eagan. "You can clog to Irish music or you could clog to Lady Gaga."
Both were on display in Wednesday's performances on the fairgrounds.
"It's nice to be able to do that many songs all at once," said Mary Adolfer about dancing at the State Fair. "I just think it is really fun to get out and dance."
For more information about the Wild Rose Cloggers, visit their website.
Watch more from the Minnesota State Fair
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