Koshares Get 'Northern Exposure'
Koshare News
Spring 1993
The Eskimo people especially could not get enough of the boys; they just loved them...
They must have, since a lot of them drove 75 miles just to see one show!
Whether they were performing in front of packed crowds or sampling such regional favorites as reindeer sausage, salmon and "Eskimo Ice Cream" - a blend of whale blubber, seal oil and fresh fruit - the Koshare Indian Dancers had their hearts captured by the warm people of the frozen north.
At a recent Koshare family night pot luck supper, dancers who made the spring break trip to Alaska to take part in the Camai Dance Festival recounted the adventure for friends and family members.
"It was pretty killer," said former head chief Mark Smith. "As the only dance group from the lower 48 states, every time they would announce us, people would just pack in to see the show... They were crazy about us."
March's trip, which was arranged by Kosahre board member Joe Clay, included an opportunity to perform in Anchorage shows sponsored by Western Alaska Council of the Boy Scouts of America and the Camai Dance Festival in Bethal, Alaska.
There was also plenty of time for fun.
"My favorite part was the bobsleadding," said head chief Matt Ehrlich, noting that after only two days practice at Camp Gorsuch, an Alakan Scout camp, Koshares were making the run at a time just six seconds shy of the camp record.
Sponsored by the Behthel Council on the Arts, 11 Koshares and four leaders made the trip, leaving La Junta March 22. The trip was an uneventful one, Clay said, except for a misunderstanding with the airline about transporting the Koshare "coffins," - the large 2x6 foot prop boxes.
THE GROUP ARRIVED in Anchorage first, where they performed two shows at a local high school. They also performed "mini shows" for two Anchorage Rotary clubs and took in local sites, including two Alaskan travelogues at an I-Max type theater, the visit to the scout camp and a tour of the Air Force base where they stayed.
The scouts also visited Portage Glacier Park, Beluga Point State Park and were hosted at an ice cream party at the home of Alaskan Scout executive Don Wilson and his wife Ruth.
"And we met a La Junta friend," Clay said, noting that former La Junta resident Robyn Rockwell attended the Anchorage shows, brought food for the dancers and assisted at a table selling Koshare patches and video tapes.
"Anchorage is about the same size as Colorado Springs, but it seems more like a home town, like La Junta, because of the pace," Smith said.
March 26 saw the troop depart Anchorage for Bethel, a town of 5,000 on the Yukon River "400 miles from the next paved road," Clay said.
Koshares flew to Bethel on Mark Air, the only way into the remote village other than the river, which is driven on during the long frozen winter and navigated by barge in the summer.
The Koshares, who were one of 17 dance groups attending the three day festival, performed three shows to standing-room-only crowds and hosted tow workshops, where dancers explained the Scout program.
"The Eskimo people especially could not get enough of the boys they just loved them... They must have, since a lot of them drove 75 miles just to see one show!" Clay said.
KOSHARES GOT A TASTE of the rugged life in Bethel and learned what it is like to live without running water and some of the other amenities taken for granted in the lower 48 states.
"It would not be a bad life, if you were the outdoorsy type and were into ice camping and such ... You could't pay me enough, though, to live that isolated from the rest of the world," Smith said.
The boys stayed in dorms at the University of Alaska, Bethel campus, which was arranged by university instructor Joyce Martin. They were also introduced to Beverly Hoffman, a professional musher and former Ididarod competitor, who took each of them for a dog-sled ride.
"That was pretty killer too," Smith said.
Plans are already in the making to return to Alaska next year.
"We've had no fewer than a dozen calls wanting to set it up again," Clay said. He said that if all goes according to plan, next year's schedule will include shows in Seward, Hope, Anchorage and Fairbanks, as well as return performances at the Bethel dance festival.
Scouts who made the 1993 trip included Smith, Ehrlich, Luis Aragon, Chris Armstrong, Michael Bryant, Jeremy Manyik, Jay Manyik, Chris Mascarenas, Benny Owensby, Aaron Root and Justin Stevens. Chaperoning were Clay, Ron Armstrong, Ken Ehrlich and Tom Seaba.
