Mantasia is the creation of Tresa Kirbabas, 53, a former member of West Carrollton High School’s dance team, who also serves as coach and choreographer for the team of dads. Kirbabas, who lives in West Carrollton, started Mantasia in 1995 and said her goal was to provide entertainment and create a bonding opportunity between fathers and their daughters.
“The biggest part for me in the dads finally get an appreciation for what their daughters are doing,” she said. “Some men have the mentality that dancing is not a sport, but when they get here and start dancing, just trying to do just a fraction of what their daughters are doing, it makes them realize dancers are true athletes.”
The daughters of the Mantasia dads are members of a variety of competitive dance teams, including the Vantasia community team (also created by Kirbabas), Butler Kickline, Vandalia Dance Ensemble and the Tinys and Minis competition teams from Dance Expressions in Vandalia.
Most of the dads have daughters who are in first grade through high school, but some fathers still participate even though their daughters have graduated. Leon Daidone, an attorney with the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, said he enjoys the group so much he continues to participate even though his daughter, Lauren, is currently a dance major at Ohio University.
“It was a very rewarding experience and a complete joy to see my dad out there dancing,” said Lauren Daidone, who helped Kirbabas with choreography for this year’s routine. “It was a joy because I knew he was having fun and the whole reason that he was doing it was for me.”
Mantasia has performed themed routines inspired by everybody from Michael Jackson and Elton John to the Black Eyed Peas. This year’s routine centered around “Uptown Funk” by Bruno Mars.
“There is a lot of work and preparation that goes into it. They don’t just show up and mess around,” said Kirbabas. “I make them work hard.”
Starting in January, the group rehearsed for two hours every Thursday and then trained twice a week in March leading up to their performance at the Butler Kickline Invitational at Butler High School March 14.
Mark VanHoose is captain of the 2015 team and said the dads did their best to perfect a routine consisting of dance moves, spins, dives and push-ups in front of a crowd of more 1,000.
“We spent so much time learning this routine, but when we get out there and actually do it, it lasts probably three-and-a-half minutes, but it seems like five seconds,” said VanHoose, a Vandalia resident. “There’s a camaraderie we’ve developed over the years and we enjoy doing it. We hope it brings a lot of joy to our daughters and to the audiences when we perform.”
His daughter, Claire VanHoose, 18 and a senior captain of the Butler Kickline team, has enjoyed watching her father perform during the last 10 years.
“I love that my dad does Mantasia,” she said. “It’s so much fun and he always comes home in a great mood from it. He’s been doing this ever since I was little. It has always been my dream to dance and I guess it kind of became his too.”
Next stop for Mantasia is a performance April 11 at the Showcase America Unlimited Nationals at the Bank of Kentucky Center in Highland Heights, Ky.
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