The annual South Coast Ballroom Dancing Spectacular has always been a glittering event but this year there is cause for even more sparkle.
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It's the 60th year for the dance school behind the event - the Reeve Dance Academy - which was started by Ray Reeve at Thirroul in 1953.
Not only that, Mr Reeve, 82, and his wife Margaret have been organising the dazzling event for the past 50 years.
So this year's competition will be a diamond jubilee and golden anniversary rolled into one.
The spectacular, to be held at Wollongong Town Hall on August 11, will attract competitors from across Australia and some international dancers.
About 700 people are expected at the town hall to watch the amateur dancing competition, which features modern ballroom, Latin American and vogue styles.
Margaret and Ray Reeve now. Picture: ROBERT PEETFor Mr Reeve - who only stopped teaching last year - and his wife, the spectacular is one of the most important fixtures on the 2013 dance calendar.
"We're really looking forward to a nice, friendly atmosphere which is what great competition is all about," Mrs Reeve said.
She intends to add a festive element to the venue by putting up 60th birthday decorations. But don't expect to see her on the day with her feet up.
"I will be working all day," she said.
"As a public relations liaison I will be making sure it all runs smoothly, and we have 27 adjudicators to look after."
The Reeves do not dance together any more but are both still heavily involved in the world of ballroom.
"We talk about dancing all the time," Margaret said.
"We talk about technique and theory and how those two things have developed and changed over the years."
In the 1960s, Ray and Margaret - known as Reeve and Maloney - were national and international ballroom champions.
They retired in 2006 from running their long-established dance academy and handed over the reins to the next generation.
Their children, Donna and Adam, and their respective partners Alan Shingler and Karen Reeve, have re-established the academy business as Dancespace 383.
- Tickets for the 2013 South Coast Ballroom Dancing Spectacular are now available from the Wollongong Town Hall box office.
The event kicks off at midday on August 11.
