On a recent evening, diners at patio tables on St. Paul's Grand Avenue paused between bites to watch a passing spectacle: About 15 people boogied, shimmied and shook their groove thing down the sidewalk while a speaker on wheels blasted songs like "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" and "Footloose."
They also carried a banner that sort of explained what they were doing. It read: "Wance."
Wancing (dancing while walking) is the latest way to test the theory that dancing like nobody is watching — even if, in fact, everybody is watching — can be a liberating, joyful, empowering experience.
"The energy from the outside people is so positive and uplifting," said Brittany Maloney, a wancer from Minneapolis. "I already know I'm weird, so I embrace my weirdness."

Wancing is the brainchild of Gabrielle Lulloff, a 36-year-old Oshkosh, Wis., resident, who said she started dancing while listening to music on her earbuds when she took walks during the depths of the pandemic.
"That really got me out of my funk," Lulloff said.
At first, she stopped dancing when she encountered other people. But then she wondered, "Why am I stopping the joy?"