The lights in the Thomas & Mack sports arena dimmed, and people hurried with their popcorn to get to their seats before Clint Holmes started singing the first notes of the National Anthem. At the end, a roar went up from the audience, tiny fireworks lit the arena, and a light show swept around the walls as the stage was raised into the ceiling.

We were ready for the game to begin. What game? Would you believe Grand Prix dressage?

The FEI World Cup Final in Las Vegas attracted the absolute best group of international dressage horses and riders today, the very cream of the crop, and people came like pilgrims from all over the world to see the 18 combinations battle it out in the Nevada desert. And what a show they put on!

Behind the scenes there were some interesting innovations, especially one that pertained to the schooling. On the day before the Grand Prix, the organizers offered an open schooling session in the arena, with the stands filled to about one-third capacity. The presence of the audience, the flashes of the camera lights, and the occasional applause prepared the horses for what was to come and generated some extra income, since it was a ticketed event.

During the horse inspection, the German cadre suffered a setback when Anthony showed some irregularity behind and was held for re-inspection. The following morning, Isabell Werth informed the officials that she wished to withdraw her horse from the competition, since she didn’t want Anthony to appear sore for his last public performance. In spite of having gone through the qualifying and the long trip to Las Vegas, Isabell was gracious and positive, showing great sportsmanship and a true concern for her horse.

And as the Grand Prix unfolded, we were a bit amazed to watch the German luck failing to the point that their top placing at the end was only eighth, a position occupied by Hubertus Schmidt, who had a bit of trouble keeping Aramis relaxed. He told me the horse had a lot of trouble settling in at the venue and needed the extra day between the classes to decompress.

Renoir and Ann-Kathrin Linsenhoff, who had been extremely successful in the European qualifiers, had one of those “off” days, when the balance and collection failed at some key movements, such as pirouettes, and some of the changes got confused. In this very strong field, that’s all it took to knock Renoir out of the A final, even though he’d scored above 70 percent! Ann-Kathrin and her horse then went on to win the B final freestyle, but that, I am sure, wasn’t her intent when she set off for Las Vegas.

We Americans had a great day in the Grand Prix, however. Even though Brentina drew second in the starting position, she and Debbie McDonald sailed through the test with conviction and placed third. Robert Dover finished right behind her with one of the best tests I’ve ever seen him put in, and Leslie Morse finished seventh with a clean and accurate go. Aragon and Guenter Seidel also scored over 71 percent and made the cut to the A Finals.

But the real sensation was that Edward Gal and Geldnet Lingh nosed out defending champion Anky van Grunsven by a fraction of a point with a fabulous, supple, confident and “happy” go, which brought the knowledgeable audience to its feet in a standing ovation.

Two nights later, the World Cup freestyle played to a completely sold-out house–almost 12,000 tickets were sold and 15,000 people attended, and the atmosphere was as electric as at any other major sports event.

This final produced a quality of performance never before witnessed in a dressage event, including the Olympics. For every one of the 12 rides, the level of both technical and artistic achievement continued to climb, so that about halfway through we said to ourselves, “It just cannot get better than this.” And then it did!

Things really started to heat up with Kingston and Leslie. The stallion was completely “on” and allowed Leslie to ask a lot of him, which only made him grow in front and set under behind, until he hardly touched the ground with his front feet. The balance and power in this horse is incredibly impressive, and he easily absorbs the heavy music from the Pirates of the Caribbean. I think we may find he has “only just begun” to take our breath away.

This time Kingston finished sixth, a fraction of a point behind Blue Hors Cavan, who had a perhaps somewhat more difficult program but wasn’t as consistent in his piaffe and passage or power as Kingston. But the Danish horse is very charming, a characteristic emphasized by his cute music, especially the many tempi changes to “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?” (from the Disney cartoon with the Three Little Pigs), which worked out perfectly and made you smile.

With the last four to go, Robert appeared on the scene, and although Kennedy looked a tad on the muscle entering the ring, he quickly settled down under his experienced rider.

The two pros presented what I thought was the field’s most technically difficult choreography. Not a moment was wasted, but one intricate maneuver closely followed another, well in beat with the “Steam Heat” music. On occasion, it became a bit hectic, and you sort of wished for a little “time out” to digest a movement, but it was all delivered with the precision and flair that has become their trademark.

If this really was Robert’s last performance in competition, he sure knows how to finish in style!

Brentina and Debbie were greeted with even more enthusiasm than the previous riders, although there was no lack of noisy welcome for anyone. Their new freestyle, as in the previous one, started out with a difficult movement. This time, it was a 20-meter circle of two-tempi changes right off the bat.

When it came to the first pirouette, the mare was as centered and as well-balanced as you could ever wish, while the second one became slightly large and probably lost a point.

Having seen Brentina in championships before, I was worried about the one-tempis, but they caused no problems, and I exhaled with relief. Passage and piaffe were absolutely even and dead on the beat, and the transitions made the French judge sitting next to me in the stands sigh with rapture.

Coming down the last centerline, Debbie snapped the audience out of its petrified fascination by waving her hand to encourage participation, and the clapping in beat with the fabulous Motown music became so loud that Brentina got a worried look on her face. It only lasted for a second, though, and then she realized it was just her fans showing her their love and appreciation for one of the best efforts in her life.

With more lift and energy than I’ve ever seen her produce, she floated to the halt to receive her fans’ jubilation.

So, once again we said, “Who can improve on this”? Well, Edward Gal had come to Las Vegas to show us who.

Being in first place puts a lot of pressure on a rider, and when he entered the ring, Edward looked a little nervous. But as soon as he and Lingh took off to the eerie Gregorian chants, a settled and confident look fell over them. The light bay stallion’s steady and round frame, and his natural balance under his rider, present a picture of unusual harmony, whether he displays flowing half-passes or dances around in passage. Transitions are easy, since Lingh is so compact and well-engaged, and the rider and horse really stayed as one while moving from a brave extended canter right into a very tight and sitting double pirouette, to proceed with forward tempi changes.

Because of the fluid cooperation and “rubber-band” connection, this pair works its way right into your heart and brain, showing dressage “as good as it gets.” Although Lingh doesn’t have as luxurious a walk as Brentina, he earned the points to pass her through his outstanding ability to collect and his never failing self-carriage.

But when it comes to music, as well as the ability to interpret it on horseback, nobody, even in this elite group, can measure up to Anky van Grunsven. She even sings her own lyrics to “Belle Histoire,” which is part of the French medley making up “Salinero’s Suite.”

With incredible precision in the choreography and the creation of the music, Anky gathered a lot of points on the artistic side of the score sheet. Since last year’s World Cup Finals, when I judged Salinero, he has improved in his canter changes, which are straighter and less “croup high” than they were a year ago. The same is true about the piaffe, which sways less from side to side and sits a bit more.

The only fly in an otherwise spectacular performance was the occasional lapses in harmony when tension showed through, such as a kick against the leg in the transition to the canter, later in the tempi changes, and a hurried first trot extension. But several 10s on the bottom of the artistic side apparently made up for these small glitches, and Anky was again triumphant.

After all the Volvos and other plush cars Anky has been awarded in her seven years of ruling the World Cup, I guess the Ford pickup truck she won in Las Vegas was a shock to her system. But she quickly recovered and surprised everyone by getting married to Sjef Janssen the following day with an Elvis Presley impersonator officiating.

This year’s World Cup Final may well prove revolutionary in promoting dressage in this country. The enthusiastic audience participation, the incredibly high-quality performances, and the fact that the event will be on TV in June will greatly elevate our visibility as an American sport.

Hold on to your top hats and enjoy the ride!