You might call 90-year-old dancer Elsa Wheel a late bloomer. Aside from the occasional World War II-era jitterbug as a young woman, she rarely set foot on the dance floor. Though quick to praise her now-deceased husband as a fine man and sharp accountant, she jokes with a smile that she "had the misfortune of marrying a man who didn't dance." It wasn't until she turned 70 that the tall, willowy Burlington native discovered her passion for dance. On a routine trip to the Heineberg Community & Senior Center, an ad for a dance class caught Wheel's eye. "It was with a group called the Highsteppers. It said you didn't need a partner," she recalls. "I liked that I could get out on my own and dance." That class, taught by local instructor and choreographer Donna Zeo, proved a gateway into a new life. Wheel has been performing with Zeo's all-female group ever since. Bedecked in sequined vests, hats and feather boas, the 12 dancers of the Highsteppers — who range in age from 65 to 90 — are like a senior version of the Rockettes. They perform line-dance routines to classic jazz and show tunes by the likes of the Andrews Sisters and Frank Sinatra. Wheel is the oldest of the group. She keeps to a schedule of three hourlong rehearsals a week and three or four local performances each month. The Highsteppers have frequent gigs at the Elks Lodge and the Heineberg Senior Center and regularly perform with local jazz singer Jenni Johnson on her community access TV show "Jenni's Joint." Perhaps because Wheel led an active life as a young woman — walking and cycling often — she hasn't had an injury in over two decades of dancing. "I'm just blessed, I guess," she says. "I take it one day at a time." In a recent interview, Wheel is elegant and humble. With short white curls and a demure smile, the mother of three and former bookkeeper looks very much the businesswoman in a pink sweater, gold blazer, dress pants and flats. She's quick to question a reporter's attention on her, pointing out other women in the group who, she says, are far better dancers than she. Reflecting on her childhood, Wheel says it was surprisingly unmusical for someone who enjoys dancing so much now. "We had a Victrola but didn't play it much," she…
You might call 90-year-old dancer Elsa Wheel a late bloomer. Aside from the occasional World War II-era jitterbug as a young woman, she rarely set foot on the dance floor. Though quick to praise her now-deceased husband as a fine man and sharp accountant, she jokes with a smile that she "had the misfortune of marrying a man who didn't dance." It wasn't until she turned 70 that the tall, willowy Burlington native discovered her passion for dance. On a routine trip to the Heineberg Community & Senior Center, an ad for a dance class caught Wheel's eye. "It was with a group called the Highsteppers. It said you didn't need a partner," she recalls. "I liked that I could get out on my own and dance." That class, taught by local instructor and choreographer Donna Zeo, proved a gateway into a new life. Wheel has been performing with Zeo's all-female group ever since. Bedecked in sequined vests, hats and feather boas, the 12 dancers of the Highsteppers — who range in age from 65 to 90 — are like a senior version of the Rockettes. They perform line-dance routines to classic jazz and show tunes by the likes of the Andrews Sisters and Frank Sinatra. Wheel is the oldest of the group. She keeps to a schedule of three hourlong rehearsals a week and three or four local performances each month. The Highsteppers have frequent gigs at the Elks Lodge and the Heineberg Senior Center and regularly perform with local jazz singer Jenni Johnson on her community access TV show "Jenni's Joint." Perhaps because Wheel led an active life as a young woman — walking and cycling often — she hasn't had an injury in over two decades of dancing. "I'm just blessed, I guess," she says. "I take it one day at a time." In a recent interview, Wheel is elegant and humble. With short white curls and a demure smile, the mother of three and former bookkeeper looks very much the businesswoman in a pink sweater, gold blazer, dress pants and flats. She's quick to question a reporter's attention on her, pointing out other women in the group who, she says, are far better dancers than she. Reflecting on her childhood, Wheel says it was surprisingly unmusical for someone who enjoys dancing so much now. "We had a Victrola but didn't play it much," she…