On Feb. 20, Longwood University students took part in the recent fad known as the Harlem
Shake. The event was coordinated by David Clipp over a Facebook group. Steven Sommer acted as videographer during filming of the event while Clipp dressed in a hot dog suit with an Albert Einstein mask. Before every take, Clipp was filmed doing his own solo dance. Close to 150 people took part in the video with groupies trailing behind as each location was filmed.
Three locations were used during filming: first, on the steps of the Lankford Student Union, then inside the study area of the Greenwood Library and finally finishing at the workout room of the Student Health & Wellness Center. The film taken at the Wellness Center was the portion used and uploaded for the 30 second video.
The Harlem Shake is a difficult event to describe other than one or two individuals (in this case Clipp and Elwood) conspicuously dancing in a location before the film abruptly cuts, and they are joined by others doing different and random dances with the song “Harlem Shake” by Baauer playing in the background.
Some of the costumes that were worn during the film included Santa Claus, Buzz Lightyear, Ron Burgundy of “Anchorman,” Where’s Waldo, a ninja turtle, storm trooper, penguin, banana, Luigi, a joker in pajamas and Billy Ray Cyrus.
