In the most recent comment on a now-viral video from a 2016 talent show, a viewer couldn’t believe it took so long to go viral.

“Why is this JUST NOW going viral on Facebook? This is SOLID GOLD,” marveled the woman.

Just beachy

For some reason, when people want to do a parody skit or other ridiculous performance, there’s one go-to song: Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse Of the Heart.” Maybe because it sounds so dark and serious (I mean, there’s even thunder in it!) the juxtaposition of that with lighthearted behavior makes things seem ever more ridiculous.

At Dallas Baptist University, there’s a talent show called Mr. Patriot (formerly known more offensively as Mr. Big Chief) – a male “beauty pageant.” As the website explains:

“In this all-male competition, contestants compete in three categories, swimwear, talent, and formalwear, as they set their sights on the coveted title of Mr. Big Chief!”

In 2016, Reid Towns was crowned the champion. And on his way to victory, he and 7 other students participated in a performance he called “Beach Ball Ballet” that he uploaded on his YouTube channel the following year.

It all started with a lifeguard and a beach ball. A second young man comes out, they balance the ball between them.

They twist, they turn, they look into each other’s eyes soulfully, and they crack up their audience as a result.

Ballet at the beach

Of course, there’s really nothing balletic about the performance other than some waving of arms and attempts at grace. But that hardly matters since entertaining people is what it’s meant to do (though we imagine being crowned the winner means you’re also the most amusing competitor).

These two (Reid and Zac) get a lot of laughs in the first minute of the performance. And they are pretty funny as they dance around with the beach ball between them.

It’s not elegant, but it’s not entirely inelegant either.

While other men come out eventually, it’s really all about these two – one of whom, of course, would go on to win the competition.

They’re certainly willing to put some emotion into it!

The big finish

For the big finish, the rest of their comrades come out and join them with even more beach balls.

We’re not sure what this maneuver would be called, but it had the audience in stitches.

The video was widely shared in 2018 as well and the men were invited to be on ABC’s The Gong Show. But rumor has it they got gonged.

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A post shared by Reid Towns (@excelerated_reider)

Reid said he was volunteering at a church-run camp in the summer after he graduated in 2018. We can only imagine what kind of skills he could teach campers after this performance.

But it turns out beach ball ballet is not an uncommon activity, despite being pretty quirky, to say the least. There are around a dozen other videos of men performing something similar – sometimes in tutus!

Be sure to scroll down below to see the show-stopper for yourself.

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Source: YouTube – Reid Towns, Dallas Baptist University News