Ballroom Dance Lessons

[twojays]

This cruise on Costa was our first cruise, so I cant compare it with any other. On the formal nights my husband wore his Tux, but not many others did - The women dressed up nicely, but most men just had a suit on.

 

As regards the Dancing Competition, I think everyone must have been "watched" for a few days, so they knew who to ask to enter.

I agree that not many people would be able to do a Paso Doble or Viennese Waltz, but they all seemed quite competant in both.

[tropicalsunset]

Our dance studio is putting on a Dance Camp the last weekend of July...they have outside instructors come and have barbecues and dance parties.... I am trying to figure out if we can attend maybe the afternoon on Sunday... as Dave works on Saturday and it is also our neighborhood block party..

It is pretty expensive.... tho' I know a woman who did the whole weekend last year...she has been dancing for years and competes also... she said it was quite a workout... so I'm thinking to start small this year.....

 

Twojays... I would love to try Costa... and love to do a Med cruise one day... with all the sightseeing during the day...don't know how much dancing we'd be up to at night tho'!!!!

 

Heat wave continues here in the NE...

Hope our friends in Texas are doing alright by Dennis!

 

 

Lorraine

[texancruzer]

Been a while since I posted.... been a little crazy here. BUT - we got lucky and Emily went in far enough below us that we didnt get much at all. A little windy w/a couple of good gusts and more rain, which we needed. But have been busy getting ready just in case. Had 24 sheets of plywood in the garage I bought 2 years ago but dh spent the day sunday cutting it to fit each window etc. So now all cut and marked and ready to put up if there is a need. Still have 4-1/2 months of hurricane season left but I will breathe easier after Sept. We have not done any dancing since we took our friends over a month ago..... aagghh. But have a lesson scheduled for tomorrow night and hopefully nothing will cause us to cancel again ! One of my dream vacations would be to cruise the med or just the Greek islands. AH maybe someday..... Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Cheryl

[critterchick]

Cheryl, I'm glad you escaped the worst of the damage. That must be really scary! At least our natural disasters (earthquakes) only last a minute or so, but it can be the longest minute of your life!:eek:

 

My hips are sore today - our teacher in Rumba made us do lots of swivelling to get the feel of it. We also took an advanced foxtrot class that was fun - doing the passing twinkle & grapevine. She had us dance for a bit so she could watch what we did - one couple started to dance, immediately began squabbling in Chinese, tried again, yelled at each other some more and then stormed out. The teacher, Natalia (a Russian beauty), and I were the only ones of the other 6 who noticed, which I thought showed amazing concentration. I don't know if they thought it would be an Internationl class, but they were really going at each other!:eek:

[texancruzer]

Jean, I gotta tell ya.... I'll take hurricanes over earthquakes any day !!!! When visiting my sister many years ago in San Diego we had a 5.2 or something like that and I was scared silly. At least you can board up and leave when a hurricane is coming.... no warning with an earthquake. I love to visit sunny California but don't think I could live there.... Thats pretty funny about the couple fighting in class...and to just leave is even better. The only thing amusing that has happened to us was at our very first class.... one girl wore sandals with small wooden heels. The last half of class they decided to teach Texas 2 step. Well, the woman always goes backwards in 2 step and her heels were clonking the whole time....and to the beat. It was pretty funny and loud on the wood floor. Hopefully will make our private lesson tonight as we need the practice!!!!! Cheryl

[critterchick]

Cheryl, that must have been noisy!

 

We're starting our private classes on Monday. The instructor was able to juggle his schedule for us. I think we'll try to concentrate on learning the swing steps really well, although we're having lots of fun with waltz & foxtrot. So many dances, so little time!

[texancruzer]

Jean, yes it was !! I think the poor girl was so embaressed she never came back. We actually managed to make it to our private lesson Thursday night. Had to go over everything from past lessons as we have missed so many we needed to refresh. Then our instructor showed us some new salsa steps and we had a lot of fun. I think we have the moves down pretty good but need to practice and polish them.I am probably deluding myself - we will probably do more watching at the Salsa clubs in San Juan we plan to visit. I am sure they will play mostly the really fast salsas and we are no where near that level. We still learn and practice to a fairly slow one as salsas go. But hopefully they will play one or two and if not - well we can always tip the band or dj to do so.:p I think even if we watch mostly we will have a good time. I love the latin dances and the beat of the music. We had a lot of fun with the merengue as Mary Lee (our teacher) showed us some really eye-popping moves. Even thought it is very fast and mostly a march step the turns and hip movements etc. can be very sensual. Think dh was a little embaressed but she explained that in the latin night clubs you will see it all !!!! I can barely wait to get to San Juan and am looking forward to spending 2 nights and 3 days in Old San Juan exploring etc. Even though I am of German and English ancestry I think I must have some latin blood in me somewhere. I love the culture, the food, the music - hhmm How hard is the rhumba? Sounds like fun - swiveling the hips and all..:D

[smoothdancer]

My husband and I have been ballroom dancing, for close to 15 years now, competing 4 to 5 times a year. We take 3 priviate lesson a week with 2 seperate instructors. We actually took our first lesson for a cruise that we were going on, and just never stopped!!

 

Really, as you travel to San Juan the most important thing to remember is that you took lessons to use them and have fun with them. No matter how many lessons and years of practice you have or do, you will always been in a room with a variety of dance skill. Even if ony a few lesons under your belt this should not stop you from getting on the dance floor and "playing"!!

 

Myself, I dont think that the Rumba is hard.... There is tons of technique that you will incorporate into the dance as time goes on but the baiscs that you can use right away are great in itself.

 

Have fun dancing!!!

[tropicalsunset]

WElcome to our group, Smoothdancer...

we are DAve and Lorraine...your neighbors to the north..

we have been taking private lessons for 2 years...

I was wondering if you go to the competition in the fall in Stamford... we do not compete,, but I would like to go and check it out...!!!

 

We see alot of people at our studio that we know and they are just taking the free introductory lesson or the wedding package or 5 week special and don't stick with it... we don't understand how people don't get hooked!! of course, instead of fighting,,, we do alot of laughing and hugging....it really helps to work out the frustration sometimes!!! ;) :D :D

 

Think we need to send out a search party to Moody Gardens and find our friend Gcurry....

and Kaye from Chicagoland... did you say you are moving ?? so maybe it will be Kaye from ?????land???

[smoothdancer]

Hi Tropical,

Yes we will be competing in Stamford on Sunday. We are competing American Rhythm, American VWaltz and International Standard. This comp is a warm up for us. We will be competing in the USABDA regionals in Atlanta in October.

 

Have you never been to a dance comp???.. If not, you should absolutely go to Stamford on Saturday night to see the professional competition, it is incredible to watch. Check out the schedule on CSCDANCESPORT.COM

 

The Cody's that run this comp are a wonderful family. After the comp, in the evenings, Ron plays music and keeps the dancefloor open to wee hours in the morning. It is a lot of fun, and a very friendly comp.

 

Maybe I'll see you there!(dont forget your dance shoes!)

 

Janet

[tropicalsunset]

Our studio has a dance camp next weekend...

I think the comp they go to in Stamford is in the fall...but I could be wrong on that.--

 

Janet, I'm going to check out that website... I would love to go and watch!!

[GCurry]

!Hola Compadres! Just returned from El Paso/Juarez home to about a million salsa dancers. Actually, in my El Paso years, I learned the Cumbia, a basic salsa dance. All official occasions, Weddings, Baby Showers, Quinceneras, in El Paso Hispanic communities, include a keg of Bud and dancing.

MsGCurry and myself probably enjoy Rhumba more than any other dance. The music and the steps have the latin sex appeal, but, it's fairly slow and sensual, and you don't end up looking like Lance Armstrong at the end of a stage in the Tour de France. Also, you can use most Rhumba steps in Bolero, ChaCha, and other latin dances.

But, I'll leave the details to SmoothDancer, who can probably address the subject at length.

Dance Camps, never heard of such a thing, it does however, sound like a way to really focus and learn. Although you talk about camps of any kind at this time of the year in Texas, and people mention you should hold off till Oct or Nov if you want to survive outside.

I just brought MsGCurry home from having a Hysto, so we won't be dancing for a while, among other things!

[critterchick]

What a chatty group today! We had a group Waltz lesson before our practice party last night - the teacher is one who insists on throwing in advanced moves that people have no shot at mastering, which I think does everybody a disservice. He did the same thing when he taught the tango a few weeks ago. But we had a good time, even tough DH was grunting as he tried to spin me around - I didn't take it personally, LOL.

 

Cheryl (it was you who asked, I think), the rumba/rhumba isn't that hard. It's a slow step, so you have lots of time to coordinate your feet & arms. We're going on the Monarch of the Seas in September, and they have a Latin-themed lounge where they play all kinds of Latin music. This year we'll even be able to dance to it! There's never anybody on the dance floor, and the band is always beseeching people to get out there, so this time, they'll get their wish (be careful what you ask for...)!

[nkpeeps]

Kay in chicagoland, where do you two go dancing? We live in chicago also. Willowbrook ballroom is one of our favorites. that where we started lessons. we also go to several clubs and studios. The whole dance thing has been great for our social life. Our next crusie is in November on Holland America.

 

 

Eric and Nancy

[terri23]

GCurry, best wishes to the Mrs. for a speedy recovery!

 

I have been unsuccessful at getting DH to practice for nearly two weeks now:mad:. Oh well, apparently I need to devise some new incentives!!

[smoothdancer]

Maybe dance camps are more common in New England. I am famialir with them and have attended on occasion myself. They also have week-end dance camps(even thought they don't call them that) in the Catskills and the Pocono's... They have scheduled dance lessons all day, different dances at different levels, and you just go from lesson to lesson, for 2 days!! At night there are different rooms with different bands so you can try out what you learned..... Really a fun week-end.

 

They are kind of cool. You learn a lot of new steps, and technique and from very good instructors. You end up not remembering all that much, but you do walk away with a few new steps, new friends and tricks! The ones in the Catskills are fun... Really, you feel like you just went back 20 years in time, and it really does remind you of the dirty dancing movie!!

 

Who said the latin bands on RCCL???... We on occasion cruise on RCCL for 3 or 4 days cruises for a short getaway... I find that when the short cruises sail out of Miami there is always a latin band, and more people on the dance floor.

 

As far as dancing on a cruise, so far my all time favorite cruise was on NCL for a big band cruise... They had big bands every night , at least 16 piece orchastras... It was so much fun. NCL no longer does this cruise, such a dissapointment... We loved it... What I also loved about this cruise was the age range... There were people in thier early 20's who really could swing, all the way up to 80 yrs old, that wore me out!!

 

Our next cruise is on Silverseas. Much smaller ship than we are use to and am looking forward to dancing on this ship.

[GCurry]

terri23, no dance, no golf, or whatever else you need to withhold until he gets the message. I know it's extreme, but getting a man's attention is not a subtle subject. A shared hobby is such a bond to a great relationship.

Platitudes aside, I hope you get to dance.

 

Smoothdancer - The Catskills, the Poconos, the Hamptons in summer; hey, we've read Fitzgerald; even though we may be living Lonesome Dove. BTW, the Comanche aren't half the dancers they've been made out to be.

 

nkpeeps- Of the cruising I've done, HAL was the best for dancing loved their ships and Ports, even though the teenagers were 40 yrs. old.

[texancruzer]

Wow, logged on today and lots to read. This really is a great thread and do enjoy reading all about everyones classes, socials and competitions.

 

Janet: Don't worry - I have no problem dancing anywhere....danced for 17 years when younger (taught ballet, tap, jazz, gymnastics etc at studio locally) but dh VERY uptight about how we look and compare to others. BUT he is getting better and by Nov. I think I will have him up on the floor as much as I want. He is enjoying learning but still has to think about it pretty hard... Hope competition went well... this reply will be post-comp.:)

Curry: Best wishes for wifes speedy recovery. My sister in law just had one and four weeks later dh and her sailed their 60 ft. sailboat from Corpus to Key West-Miami-St. Augustine and are now headed up the east coast to Virginia Beach (husband transferred & they live aboard).

 

Will have to ask instructor to show us rhumba - maybe learn a few steps. Also she teaches cumbia (on her business card) and since we are learning salsa and they are similar will ask her about that one too.

Everybody have a great week.! Cheryl

[tropicalsunset]

Janet: hope your competition went well.. I signed up for the email for that comp... and maybe next time we can plan to attend!!

 

GCurry: Get well wishes to MS Curry!!

 

after missing a couple weeks.... we are back to a private class on monday... we may do a Cha Cha group class on Thurs...--- I'm hoping the dance camp is not sold out --- we can do a class and maybe the show on Sunday afternoon... :D

gotta get back in the "swing" of things..!!

[GCurry]

Smoothdancer, do you do a lot of social dancing as well? We have some competition couples in our clubs, and they usually don't talk to each other.

We have dance instructors, and a lot of folks who haven't moved past the forward promanade in Foxtrot, but don't really care, as they've beeen dancing that way since the 40s.

 

MsGCurry is doing fine, (thank you for asking) as we both work at the University of Texas Medical Branch, she got a NY/London trained Woman who did everything through the V, so her recovery time is much less, and I took her home the next day. Dr. Kahn (named after Gingas) also did a bladder sling, so it was about a 4 hr session. I do Energy Management,so to see the surgical side of the house, and what is good and bad about our institution was a real eye opener. We are huge, but those people have their own world.

 

Our dance clubs are very social, and it's great to get with your dance friends and share an evening. We'll dance at least one "Maggie's Stroll", about three Foxtrots in a row, to mix things up, but the rest of the time you dance with DW or friends.

[tropicalsunset]

we had our private lesson last night... was kinda quiet at the studio... only three other couples on the floor... we were fine tuning our swing.. and then on to the foxtrot... I have to say... we are finally feeling more comfortable with the foxtrot.. We signed up for a class on the foxtrot with an

outside instructor for Sunday morning at the dance camp..

maybe we will sign up for more next year...Have to warm the hubbie up to these things!! ;) :D they have a cookout and show later in the day... so I'm hoping DAve will want to go back for that...!!

 

Janet: We are dying to know how the competition went!!

I have seen the brochures for the dance camps in the Poconos... sounds like it would be great fun!!

[critterchick]

I'm glad the Mrs. is doing well, GCurry! We took a private class last night, too. Decided to learn the Samba. We took one group class a few weeks ago, but didn't learn many steps, so we're extremely challenged. Barry started us over after watching us hop up & down like a couple of crippled rabbits. I also popped my hip out at one point, which was interesting. At least it went straight back in. I guess you could call me uninhibited!:D

 

Bolero's lounge on Monarch has a Latin band. Nobody every dances, though. This will change on our Labor Day cruise!

[mummsie]

Hi, Hope I can join in the group. Have been lurking for a few weeks. My family are ballroom dancers in Australia. My husband and I are dancing in the Masters II (over 50) and both our adult children dance in the Adult levels. I would really like to see an American smooth competition sometime. We have 3 styles in Australia - International Standard and Latin and our very own dance style called New Vogue. This is sequence dancing similar to English Old Time but more more jazzed up. We have a competition coming up in 2 weeks as well so I know how it feels. We dance all 3 styles but our speciality is New Vogue. My husband and I have been having 2 private lessons a week for about 10 years now and my kids have 1 private lesson a week with their partners. We have also done some group classes in swing, salsa, merangue and Argentine Tango when we wanted to do something a bit more casual. Bye for now Gayle :)

[smoothdancer]

Oh Guys...did I lead you astray!... When Tropical asked if I was competiting in Stamford in the fall, I did answer, yes on Sunday.... But I meant we will be competing in the fall(September) comp, and dancing on Sunday of the week-end comp!!... So sorry no results to report, at least not quite yet!!

 

GCurry, I would not say that we social dance a great deal, but sure, we do social dance. Our passion is competitve dancing. We love to develop our skill in technique and partnership dancing... It amazes me always how much you can learn from just one step or technique and how it can take years to develop. We are always looking for that moment when you are truly dancing as one, using your bodies to communicate and just gliding along the floor... They come far and few between but wow what a feeling when it happens.

 

We compete as an amatuar couple, (not pro/am,) and we have always found that all other amatuar couples are very friendly with each other. We constanlty are encouranging and cheering each other on.The majority of amautaur couples we know are married, and as much as we love the sport, and put a lot of time into it's developmentt we still understand that this is a hobby, and you just cant take it to serious!!! We still do it just for the fun of it.

 

Social dancing and competieve dancing really are quite different. Competitevly, you are dancing with a great deal of power, long strides, sways, ect, and really moving down the floor. You cannot do this on a social dance floor without disrespect to the other social dancers... We dance quite differently in a social setting, and enjoy just having fun with all the others at our studio. We dont social dance alot however because it would shorten our strides and movement for comp dancing....

 

Texas, you are lucky to have such a great dance background.

In our stuidio I always can pick out the new student with a ballet background. Ballroom dancing just seems to come so natural to them , I guess because of thier previous training.... I am always so jealous to see just how quickly they progress... In my next life, I will start dancing at the age of three ..

 

Mumsie, good luck!!... I sure would like to see New Vouge dancing. I know nothing about this style of dance. I wonder if it mirrors our American style.

 

Get me talking about dancing, and I can go on and on for days.

[tropicalsunset]

Janet: oh Great!! :) Hopefully we can plan on getting to the Stamford Competition ...to at least watch and cheer on our friends!! :)

 

Gayle: welcome to the group!! We are now "International"!! ;) :D

 

Lorraine