Hoofers helping SPCA’s woofers

Dancing draws a crowd. Executives at ABC were so confident in that fact that they staged “Dancing with the Stars” toe-to-toe with Fox’s power “House” and NBC’s new drama “Trauma.”

Well, the SPCA has caught on … and it is hoping to cash in for its four-footed friends.

On Saturday night, local celebrities and leaders will be paired with local dancing experts in the first “Dancing with the Charlottesville Stars” at the SPCA’s Stayin’ Alive Critter Disco Ball.

“I may be adept with my hands in surgery, but with my feet in dancing, well that may be another story,” said Marty Betts, one of Saturday’s stars and a veterinarian at the Charlottesville Veterinary Clinic. “I am going to need all the help I can get to win this competition.”

Betts is one of six good sports who will be putting his best foot forward to raise money and awareness for the animals and the SPCA’s no-kill mission. He is also dancing in support of Van, a hound who lost half an ear but is still eager to find a new home.

The doc — and his fellow competitiors — will be paired with professional dancers from Terry Dean’s Dance Studio. Carrie Ann Inaba won’t be there to do the judging, but you can play a part, whether you attend or not.

Stuffing the ballot box is perfectly legal. Just go to http://www.caspca.org and cast your vote for your favorite celebrity.

Betts is going to have some tough competition. There is Glenn Rust, who is president and CEO of Virginia National Bank; David Kalergis, the CEO of Diffusion Pharmaceuticals; and someone with an inside track, Barbara Sieg.

Sieg is the Disco Ball co-chair. She also has a friend, or should I say daughter, who works at the local shelter.

“Kendall [Duffy] comes

home on a daily basis telling me all the heartwarming stories about the wonderful SPCA animals that were given a chance to see another day and a better life,” Sieg said. “Every day brings new hope for animals in our community.”

Sieg also is dancing for her mascot in search of a home — Ms. Butterworth, a gray female cat.

Of course, what would any good dance competition be without a couple of ringers? Seig, Betts, Kalergis and Rust will be going up against Dan Schutte and Rita Dove.

Schutte, who is a news anchor for CBS19, has a pretty good fan base with his buddies in the local biking and triathlon clubs. While his dancing skills may be unknown, he does have a lot of fans in community.

He has made a lot of new friends with his “Make Dan Sweat” TV series, where he has done everything from paddle with the University of Virginia women rowers to run a 5k with the boys and girls at Clark Elementary School.

And don’t forget Dove. She knows how to move people with her words. She also has a big fan base at UVa, where she teaches in the Creative Writing Program. But it is her own creative writing that earned her a Pulitzer Prize in poetry (for “Thomas and Beulah” in 1987) —and did I mention, that she served a two-year term as poet laureate of the United States? But her skills in the arts go beyond the written word. Did you know that she also can sing, play the cello, act and was a majorette in high school? Saturday, she will show us all how well those talents translate to the dance floor.

So come on out and have a ball.

The fun kicks off at 6:30 p.m. with the cocktail reception and silent auction. Dinner and the dancing will follow.

“Everyone is invited,” co-chair Scheline Crutchfield noted. “The fun thing about this is that the entire community can get involved, whether you can be at the event or not. Just go online and support your favorite dancer or mascot.”

AT A GLANCE

Stayin’ Alive Critter Disco Ball

6:30 p.m. Saturday

Memorial Gymnasium at University of Virginia

$200

http://www.caspca.org

964-3305

Can’t attend?

Vote for your favorite dance competitor at http://www.caspca.org.