During the four hours on Saturday before Dance Marathon moved completely to Club DM, dancers saw Boomshaka, Graffiti and a whole lot of shakin’ in the Louis Room. Because brevity is the soul of wit (or something like that), we’ll be brief.

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This video contains footage of dancing from throughout the block.

1:36 A.M. - Dance Marathon is officially over, as all remaining dancers who stayed in the Club DM are leaving to gather their belongings.

Dance Marathon 2008 raised $933,855, which tops last year’s record of $708,710.97. Proceeds will go towards the Bear Necessities Pediatric Cancer Foundation and the Evanston Community Foundation.

Before they announced the total, the executive committee told the crowd that the two girls who collapsed earlier were “completely fine.”

“You guys, you know we had some unfortunate things happen tonight, but we’re going to keep on going because you worked too hard, and the two girls, that’s what they’d want us to do,” the crowd was told.

Delta Gamma and Zeta Beta Tau won first place in the large group tier by raising $120,002.78. They were followed by Sigma Phi Epsilon and Kappa Alpha Theta, which raised more than $34,000.

The top fundraising couple was Wade Askew and Meredith Cluess, both sophomores. By raising $2,700, they won a free STA trip for two to Europe.

Dance Marathon has resumed after coming to a stop when two people collapsed in Club DM, the heated tent next to Norris University Center.

The tent fell silent as word spread, and an area was cleared to give the collapsed dancers and emergency personnel space.

The Evanston Fire Department and Northwestern police responded at about 12:20 a.m. to Norris, and brought two stretchers to the tent. One dancer was put in a stretcher and taken to an ambulance. Another was walked out of the tent by fire personnel.

NU police said they were unavailable to discuss the incident until Monday. The Evanston Fire Department was unavailable for comment.

DM committee members rushed cases of water to the remaining dancers.

Some participants left the tent to gather belongings or sit near the Norris Starbucks. The tent remained largely full, with many students still energized and vocal, and emcees Todd Johnson and Adam Welton pumping up the crowd.

DM released a statement early Sunday morning that said, in part, “After tonight’s situation at the very end of Dance Marathon, the Dance Marathon Executive Board as well as the Norris University Center staff followed the standard procedures that are in place in case of such situations.”

If the “Bohemian Rhapsody” post below didn’t key you off, writing about the final block of Dance Marathon is more of an experiment than a news story. The same thing happens at every block 10, here is the breakdown.

1. Dancers have boatloads of fun
2. Dancers do lots of good for the world
3. Celebrity video
4. Various announcements
5. Balloons!

So yeah, indulge my flowery writing and strange music explorations, please.

But I did hear a hot little rumor on the dancefloor regarding the A&O Ball band for 2008. According to my sources, which really shouldn’t be trusted since I said this is a rumor and that means exactly what you think it means Medill tools of the world, A&O aired a video during block 8 featuring various clues as to who would be performing at NU this spring. Apparently they were a bunch of…wait for it…COUNTING CROWS….song titles. So, current rumor (RUMOR!) is that Counting Crows will be coming to NU this spring. If my sources are true (insert joke about Dean Lavine here).

Back to Club DM, where I hope I’ll find another weird story for you folks.

My revelation after hearing Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” in Club DM and observing dancer reactions to the multi-part song.

Phase one: Sadness - The day started rough for DM dancers. As the sun rose (or, didn’t rise since a snowstorm decided to just make the whole affair a little more depressing), the realization they still needed to go through double digit hours combined with the slow deterioration of their physical form. I bet most dancers would have loved to do what they did during the sad piano-driven opening to Queen’s most ridic tune - form circles, throw their arms around fellow dancers and sway together in the desolate world around them. Assuming they could feel their appendages.

Phase two: Hope - What’s that giddy noise I hear? Why, the giddiness of hope, good sir! Yes, the morning sucked, and some people would probably have preferred another Queen song (”and another one bites the dust….”), but as the day grew and dancers reached the halfway point, something inside them pressed them to go on, to not give up. If what dancers did at Club DM is any indicator, that something is the urge to type a paper on a typewriter glued to the ceiling.

Phase three: ROCK! - You know, forget our problems! We came this far, and we are here to jump around and play air guitar, an action slightly more embarrassing than doing the Electric Slide but less embarrassing than playing Guitar Hero. At some point Saturday, dancers discovered the best way to deal with your problems is to ignore them and just rock out.

Phase four: Psychedelic dude - Queen decided to step a little back from the hard-rockin’ they were doing in favor of a little mellower psych-rock. Dancers experience a similar feeling once they actually make it to the final block…the feeling of despair and athlete’s foot is replaced by a drug-like euphoria and a nice toasty sensation on the toes. After surviving (and I do mean surviving), they get lost inside themselves, experiencing a joy only possible through ectasy or some other, better designer drug. Also, Freddy Mercury was on some drugs, let me tell you.

Phase five: Melancholy - Queen couldn’t end on a super positive note, and neither can DM. This year, four-year hosts Todd Johnson and Adam Welton will emcee their last DM, as they graduate this year. TnA, as they are dubbed, are beloved by anyone who has participated in Dance Marathon these past four years, and will be missed. So, a little bit of sadness must be acknowledged.

Then, play Shakira’s “Hips Don’t Lie.”

The first hour of the final block draws close to an end and, as dancers continue bringing sexy back with the aid of a Justin Timberlake song, I’m going to give you my quick take on Club DM as the 10th and final block location. I was very skeptical heading into the final block, especially after it became clear the tent only had one entrance and dancers would have to wait a little bit before shaking lose. But after an hour inside the Club, I think Club DM serves as a solid and equal, albeit different, venue for Dance Marathon’s most powerful stretch.

First, the negatives. Obviously, the single opening really slowed down the final block’s start, leading to many dancers sitting down and even propping feet up against one of several poles in the middle of the dancefloor as if this was a 10-minute intermission. The final block of DM rules because of the constant, surging energy running through it and no part, especially the beginning, should spill out any of that momentum. The only other major complaint against Club DM is how unattractive the inside looks. I’m not a fan of corporate advertising, but at least the Louis Room, even while being plastered in Apple and Wholefoods ads, doesn’t look like the livestock arena at a county fair. A few more decorations need to go up besides the final money board, even if they are lame ads for Petsmart or something. Not to mention the slightly dirty back of the tent, where stray trashcans and other refuse dwell unattractively.

But Club DM nails all the elements the Louis Room housed so well. The lights look and move great, the speakers sound excellent and, especially impressive, the temperature is very nice. My biggest pleasant surprise is how spacious the place actually is. During the regular blocks, Club DM felt big, but only because not as many people were dancing in it. Take down the rest areas in the back, though, and the place expands to biggie-sizes that could probably fit a few more dancers in. Like, a lot more actually. This leads to a lot of empty space in the back, but that is pointless to bring up, since everyone is bunched together in the middle of the dancefloor.

I’ve loved seeing the final block of DM held in Louis Room, but I’m now ready to admit Club DM isn’t too shabby, and actually holds up well against the traditional locale. I just feel a little bad for anyone trying to study within a tri-county radius right now - it is LOUD.

Update: DM staff has since told me that the dancers sitting on the floor at the start of the block weren’t sitting because of things not starting, but rather becasue this was their official break before the final block. I wasn’t aware of this at the time, or else I wouldn’t have harped on it as much. But, this does raise the good point of space, and how having dancers in Club DM rest inside the club isn’t necesarrily the most convenient idea. Why not use one of the rooms on the first floor of Norris?

DM hosts Todd Johnson and Adam Welton remained cool after the final block’s intro video came on without audio, the two improvising lines about the silent images on-screen, drawing laughs from the crowd. The video was stopped, and the duo announced “Let’s give it up for this block’s video,” to laughs and applause. Hanson’s “Mmmm Bop” served as a make-up gift for the faulty audio, and dancers ate it up.

While all DM dancers focused on busting a move, members of the Food Committee hurried in containers of water and Gatorade into the unnoticed corners of Club DM. A lot of liquid is required to hydrate the historic-number of dancers crammed into the tent, so box-after-box of Fiji brand bottled water appears on tables, soon joined by multi-colored packs of energy drink. One minor error plus last-minute liquid rushing shows even the final, best block in DM isn’t perfect. But the dancer’s don’t mind one bit, focusing only on the sound.

If the opening to the final block felt a slightly lackluster due to lines waiting to get into Club DM, the early songs have more than made up for energy lost. Britney Spear’s most adored song “Toxic” strutted out of the speakers early, the sexy Middle Eastern-tinged strings causing dancers to move hips and hands. The next song played, “Heaven” by DJ Sammy, prompted dancer’s to jump with every synth-note in the song, participants bobbing up-and-down with every electric stroke.

But neither compared to Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone,” which saw the crowd reach new levels of excitement. The scene seemed tame up until the chorus, where Clarkson’s shouts of “Since you been gone!” made dancers resemble human pogo-sticks, leaping into mid-air with arms clenched into thrusting fists. As the song progressed, the energy only elevated, more frantic sing-a-longing and fist pumping, while some dancers were lifted up by the crowd and passed along, like at a concert.

The final block just began, but the dancers have been energized excellently, and don’t look like they’ll be letting up anytime soon.

It took several minutes later than usual, but the 10th and final block of Dance Marathon is underway in Club DM. The tent’s back section, housing the dancer changing area before this block, now welcomes more dancers, the thin curtains replaced by open space, more than enough to hold the record-amount of dancers in this year’s event. Unfortunately, the tent only has one entrance, meaning all those hundreds of dancers passed through the same entry point. Dancers simply couldn’t spill into Club DM like they had in the Louis Room in year’s past, they had to wait in a large group until they could squeeze into the large tent. This lag time meant dancers couldn’t get right to shaking, but had to wait, many sitting down and staying quiet.

Once a large amount of dancers got in, colored lights and “Stacy’s Mom” blanketed dancers, who awoke quickly from their silent states to pump fists in mid-air and scream about how badly they want to sex up a middle-aged woman. Every participant wears the official shirt of DM, this year’s version a white tee with purple font, the slogan being “It’s times like these.” Even though all the dancers haven’t filed in, the energy slowly picks up in Club DM, where dancers can now celebrate lasting so long. A Cher song plays, and the crowd erupts.

Though they aren’t quite swimming around in pools of gold coins, the finance team lurks behind the scenes of DM in the Norris Scholars Room with stacks of money, counting the night away as donations keep piling up. Like the dancers, they too are kept in suspense about the grand total.

“It gets counted and recounted and recounted again,” said Medill junior Jessica Brady, a second-year committee member. “We are constantly getting numbers all night, they constantly change, and we don’t actually know what the [final] number is until right before we actually reveal it to everyone else.”

The final total is expected to be in line with past years’ totals, if it doesn’t exceed them.

“All the participants have really stepped up and raised money like I’ve never seen before,” Brady said.

Pre-DM, committee members act as individual finance liaisons for dancers and pester them with e-mails. Part of the job is getting – and keeping – the dancers financially on track.

“You truly get to see the profits of your hard work when you see your dancers at check-in and they’re excited and then you sit in there and you count how much money everyone brought it,” Brady said. “It’s just an incredible feeling to be in that room.”

Committee members aren’t exclusively hermits, though.

“It’s not just about work,” Brady said. “You need to go have fun and dance with your friends and really experience what it is, not sit in a room and count money all night.”

And while Dance Marathon is all about altruism and loving the kids and dancing until you want to collapse, DM wouldn’t be getting anywhere if it weren’t for the money.

“Tomorrow when DM’s over, the success of DM is going to be measured by how much money we raise, and we get to see that, we get to help that process along,” Brady said.

The food commitee just got its due on stage; check out what its members have been up to for the past 26 hours.

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We’re trying to capture the faces and voices of as many dancers as possible during DM 2008.

Emily Machado, SESP senior “No, I didn’t regret DM because it’s for a really good cause, since there are kids that benefit. It’s not about dancing, it’s about helping the Kids.”

Jaspreet Banga, Weinberg freshman “I don’t regret dancing because I’m a freshman here and I got to be in touch with Northwestern traditions.”

Katherine Veeder, Medill senior “I don’t regret doing DM. You actually get to see who dancing benefits. The middle part sucks, but the end is great.”

Yo-lin Cho, Weinberg freshman “No, because it’s really fun and I love dancing. Dancing is my life…. No, I wouldn’t go that far. Plus my partner raised all the money.”

As indispensable as Top 40 music, granola bars and propping your feet up against the wall, Todd Johnson and Adam Welton, better known as TnA, have been a staple of DM for thousands of dancers. The two seniors emcee their fourth and last Dance Marathon this year, with a mix of excitement and nostalgia.

For Welton and Johnson, this year’s DM is unique. The installation of “Club DM” outside of the Norris Center, to accommodate a bigger crowd, forces the two students to run from the Louis Room to “Club DM” throughout Dance Marathon.

“This is great. This is far beyond what I had imagined,” said Johnson, fiddling with his Fiji water bottle during a short break in the Arch Room in between sets. The Medill senior’s relaxed attitude contrasted with that of his partner, Welton, whose energy showed even during breaks, as he simultaneously answered questions, joked with other students in the room, and devoured a Rice Krispie treat.

The duo’s attitude regarding DM has changed a lot since their freshman year, as they gained more perspective on the meaning of Dance Marathon.

“We realized that they need to be energized, all of the dancers, so we don’t really need to do all these spectacular skits and stunts and all the craziness, it’s not really about that,” Johnson said.

“After freshman year, we realized this whole Dance Marathon was so much bigger than both of us,” he added. “What’s changed is that now we’ve realized that it’s not necessarily about the emcees or the music or being overwhelmed, it’s just about the dancers and the 30 hours being like a moment.”

Emceeing for 30 hours can be difficult, and even after four years, neither Johnson nor Welton can quite say what keeps them going.

“You can’t look it up, and see the definition of how to stay up 30 hours, you just have to do it,” said Johnson.

“There are some times when I just want to die, it’s like ‘Are you kidding me? I can’t dance anymore. I can’t be happy, I can’t be excited, I can’t rock the mike anymore, I just want to stop,’” Welton said.

Johnson and Welton never ceased to be amazed by the DM participants.

“I’ve learned so much about the dancers and what Northwestern students are capable of. They’re capable of amazing things,” Welton said. “It humbles me to know how passionate people are to do stuff like this, from the Norris staff all the way to people in the exec board — everyone has their own part, and just knowing that people can come together for one cause just amazes me.”

As the clock ticks and the 30 hours of dancing inch slowly to an end, TnA come closer to the end of their four-year stint as co-emcees.

“This is getting more and more nostalgic for me,” Welton said. “It’s heart-wrenching, but at this point, we don’t have time for sadness.”

“DM has been an extremely huge part of my Northwestern career, I didn’t envision myself doing something big like this,” he added. “We all come together for this one thing. It’s very humbling to be a part of something as big as this.”

“I’m gonna miss it, definitely,” Johnson said. “But I’m not even going to think about that now, because I just want to enjoy all of this, because it’s special.”

But Johnson doesn’t really see this year as an end.

“Dance Marathon’s going to happen next year, it’s going to be bigger than this year, and it’s going to keep getting bigger. We’ve been fortunate enough to do it for four years, and I loved every second of it, but you know… I can’t even put it in words, really.”