ESTO 84 was very memorable for me as it gave me my first and (so far) only taste of show business, as a neophyte entertainer in a large arena. No, I wasn’t a rock star or concert pianist, but rather a mere folk dancer in a cast of hundreds who performed in the gala ESTO VISIOON that was held in the old Maple Leaf Gardens. This was on the same floor that the famous Maple Leafs skated on, before a full house that may have held some 14,000 people.
This enormous spectacle entailed choreographed folk dancers, musicians, choirs and rhythmic gymnasts weaving separately and jointly to multi-coloured lights and music. To have been able to contribute in a tiny way to the ultimate success of this event, and to soak in the applause, was unforgettable to this day. Once show business gets in your veins it never leaves.
But as with all successful shows, this was not an overnight happening and some background is useful. Being from a small city in Eastern Canada, I had never been immersed in Estonian group culture and didn’t know Estonian folk dancing from American square dancing. After moving to Montreal in 1980, I participated in a few local Estonian community organizations, one of which was a nascent Estonian folk dancing group. A Montreal dance group was originally started in 1951 but had become defunct. It began again in 1981 as Kuppari, and included mostly university-age students who met every Sunday evening in the Estonian church with our dedicated accordionist, Innar Teose and teacher Kaia Sunne and later, Helle Leitham (Miss Esto 80 in Stockholm). A good time was enjoyed by this rambunctious crew.
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