An evening at Dixie Stampede
Florida Guide > Dining
In July, we visited our Florida home for the first time. Anxious to keep the children happy, we let them each bring a friend on holiday. Laura’s friend, Sian, is very keen on horses and we wanted to take her somewhere during her stay that would indulge her passion. We saw a number of adverts and billboards advertising Dixie Stampede. Also we passed the building several times when travelling up and down I4 and Sian saw the horses out in the field. Now I must be totally honest and say that from what I had read, seen and heard this evening did not sound like my cup of tea at all – especially the no cutlery part!!! There are two shows per evening and we made a booking for the early show. On entering we were greeted by ladies dressed in costumes from the days of plantation houses and the civil war. The pre- show takes place in a large hall with trestle tables and a stage. There is also an upstairs level – a good place to sit if you or one of your party is a little overawed by big powerful horses. Whilst drinking your cocktail we were treated to a warm up show given by an Australian on horseback. He sang and rode his horse around the hall and in between the tables. He also demonstrated “whip magic”, on the stage, using two unsuspecting members of the audience. Once the pre-show had finished, everyone moved into the large auditorium for the evening’s main entertainment. For the next 90 minutes we were enthralled by skilled horsemanship and great entertainment. Each side of the hall is split into the Yankees on one side and the Confederates on the other. Each of the demonstrations were mini competitions and at the end of each bout either the Reds or the Blues won medals. During the show, dinner is served, Warming hearty soup in a bowl, whole baby chickens, pork steak, corns and baked potatoes – all to be eaten with your hands (except I craftily had smuggled in some plastic cutlery acquired from a previous visit to a fast food restaurant!!!) Desert and drinks complete the meal. The drinks were strangely served in jam jars. The M.C. for the evening was an extremely competent singer with a dash of Dolly Parton’s looks about her. It is said that occasionally Dolly herself makes an appearance. There are parts of the show that invite audience participation and despite my early reservations, once at the show I became totally involved and was shouting for the Yankees as loudly as anyone else!!! For my children, the highlight of the evening was at the end when the show had finished and many of the performers came to the edge of the arena with their horses and allowed the guests to stroke the horses and to ask questions. A great evening’s entertainment and one I would highly recommend. Author: Jane and Barry Tilley (Villa link: click here)
Other articles by this author: click here We aim to provide acccurate and useful information, but if you feel anything provided here is not accurate or out of date, please email us with the address of the page concerned and any commments so we can amend as necessary. Page added on: 29 September 2004
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