UK’s annual DanceBlue marathon returning to Rupp Arena this weekend
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- DanceBlue, UK’s 24-hour dance marathon, is taking place April 18-19 and returning to Rupp Arena.
- Organizers moved the event from Memorial Coliseum to Rupp Arena to provide more space and opportunities.
- Since 2006 DanceBlue has raised more than $25.3 million for the pediatric clinic.
The University of Kentucky’s annual 24-hour dance marathon benefitting childhood cancer treatment is moving to Rupp Arena this year.
DanceBlue will begin at 8 p.m. Saturday, April 18, and continue for 24 hours straight. The event benefits UK’s DanceBlue Kentucky Children’s Hospital Hematology/Oncology Clinic for childhood cancer treatment and is returning to Rupp Arena for the first time since 2024.
The popular, charitable event raised a record-breaking $2.1 million the last time it was held at Rupp, a record that was short-lived until the event raised $2.3 million during its 20th anniversary in 2025.
Last year, DanceBlue was held in Memorial Coliseum in the northern part of campus. The university said event organizers sought the move to Rupp to provide more space and to expanded opportunities for the fundraiser’s growing popularity.
“Moving the marathon to a larger venue ultimately means that more individuals can experience the joy and witness our mission,” Morgan David, DanceBlue marketing chair, said in a news release. “This increases the capacity of what we are able to do for our clinic and families, which is always our number one goal.”
DanceBlue, UK’s largest student-run philanthropic effort, was created in 2006 in memory of Jarrett Mynear. He was a patient of the UK DanceBlue Kentucky Children’s Hospital Hematology/Oncology Clinic who died in 2002.
Mynear’s final request was to raise funds to improve the clinic. Since DanceBlue was founded, more than $25.3 million has been raised for the clinic.
All funds raised from the event go toward the clinic. The organization also raises money year-round, culminated with the no-sitting, no-sleeping dance marathon.
“The decision to move back to Rupp Arena was carefully considered with all of our stakeholders in mind,” David said in the news release. “Our community is at the core of every choice we make. We are excited to continue growing our relationship with Rupp Arena.
The final fundraising amount is typically revealed around 8 p.m. Sunday, and can be watched in person or on a live stream.
Community members are encouraged to participate in the event. Visitors can enter through the High Street entrance, and anyone wanting to watch the final fundraising reveal is encouraged to arrive by 5 p.m.
