Christmas Flash Mob

“I have an idea only you could love” was the text that appeared on my phone one crisp December day. Our friend and co-conspirator, Pam Land, Theatre Arts Director for Howard County Public Schools, want to put together a quick, participatory show in honor of the holiday season. Who knew hundred of others would love the idea as much as we did, as more than 500 descended on Columbia Mall to spread some holiday cheer.

“I have been struck for while a by the magical and joyous aspects of flashmobs. The idea that a group of people can come together to create a moment of fun that adds a smile and brightens a day is just lovely to me,” explained Land, “this to me, is the bedrock of good Theatre. We need more reasons to share good times as a community. I am so excited by something that requires human interface and that can be shared by all generations right in our back yard.”

We each sent invitations to a few dozen personal friends, and set up a Facebook Event page to disseminate information about the single rehearsal and the event itself. Word spread quickly to nearly 5000 people, with more than 500 (including several local elected officials) joining us in a high school auditorium to learn the dance before heading to perform at the mall. After consulting with mall administration, we used four video cameras and two still photographers to document the event, and uploaded an edited video within the hour. Word spread quickly, with coverage on all the Washington and Baltimore 11pm newscasts, several radio appearances for organizers the following day, and over 80,000 YouTube views to date.

Multi-camera HD Video | YouTube | Facebook | Twitter