Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Celebrate With Us This Saturday!

Don't miss the fun this Saturday night
I'll be teaching Bolero at 7:30 pm.
DJ Sandia will be playing all of your favorites; Waltz, Tango, Cha Cha, Swing, Hustle, Rumba, Salsa, Foxtrot and more... starting at 8:00 - and we'll DANCE - DANCE - DANCE!

A group of students have gotten together and decided to combine this dance with my birthday party. If I have to get another year older, I'll be very honored to celebrate it with YOU!


Friday, July 25, 2014

August Group Class Schedule

As you may have heard, we have a special one-day-only Cha Cha line dance workshop coming up on Thursday, August 7. Be sure to let us know if you're interested in attending. I've added this special event to the August schedule at the request of several students who have seen us dance it at Georgetown West and Ballroom City. They are really looking forward to it! But I do need to make sure we have enough attendees so that we can move forward with this workshop as scheduled and nobody gets disappointed. It's not yet August, and we're already very close... so it's looking good! In this one-hour session, I'll take you through the Cha Cha line dance I choreographed, step by step. Can’t learn this anywhere else!

Group classes will continue as they are currently scheduled throughout the rest of August. Since the line dance workshop takes place the first week in August, the Level I class that normally takes place during that 8:00 hour will begin the following week; Thursday, August 14. We'll do Waltz this time! That class will run for the next three Thursdays: 8/14, 8/21 and 8/28. Three weeks isn't much of a commitment - why don't you sign up and give it a try? Level I class is suitable for anybody - and I do mean anybody, even if you think you can't dance! The group is friendly and fun. You'll have a good time, I promise. 

Level II is considered intermediate. That class takes place on Thursday nights at 7:00. Advanced class is still on Tuesdays at 8:00. If you're not certain which class is for you, please feel free to contact us and we'll point you in the right direction. Since I always review and never rush through the steps, you might be surprised to learn that you will be fine attending a higher level class than you thought! 


Take your pick! We really do have something for everybody!

See you soon.



Monday, July 21, 2014

Learn Vito's Cha Cha Line Dance!

Just announced! 



Sunday, July 20, 2014

Summer Dance Fun!

Saturday Night Ballroom is Back!

A group of students got together and decided to celebrate Vito's birthday at the regularly scheduled Saturday night dance on August 2! Come out and join us! Vito will be teaching a beautiful Bolero pattern. We'll have all the usual dance fun and activities. In addition, we'll have a larger-than-usual buffet and all sorts of goodies in honor of our dance host and teacher's special day!

Details are here: http://just-dance.us/dances.php


Saturday, July 19, 2014

The Original Stroll

Brush up on your Stroll skills! You never know when you might need them! Fellow dancer, Dance World board member and friend Donna Ishida suggested we do the Stroll at one of our upcoming dances. Rumor has it we have a Swingin' to the Oldies night coming up soon at Ballroom City. Might be the perfect opportunity for us to enjoy some classic STROLL! 

Here's an instructional video I found that will take you through the basics of this retro classic. 



There is also a newer, digitally remastered version of the song by Brook Benton/The Diamonds. You can listen to it and download it here.

A Nice Reminder





If the link above doesn't work, or you don't have a Facebook account, you can read it here.

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Learn Those Line Dances!

Don't just sit there on the sidelines. You know who you are! It's time to get up with the group!

First rule of thumb with line dances.

Don't worry about the steps.

That's right, I'll say it again - DO NOT WORRY ABOUT THE STEPS!!!

Just do the best you can. Line dances are a chance for everyone to get up and have fun. If you choose to be a little goofy, that's fine too. You sure won't be the only one. That's the idea! If you miss a step or three, you'll be in the majority! Yes, that's correct. Just a quick look around will prove that almost nobody (except that one guy in the corner who has nothing better to do all day than to practice the Electric Slide) will get the whole thing right from beginning to end. No worries! Nobody minds, trust me. Just have fun.

Having said that, it can help a great deal to know the basic steps before you hit the dance floor. There are a lot of videos out there, but it can be hard to find just the right one. Some are downright incorrect. Others go way too fast. These are hand-picked after lots of searching. The best we've found so far. More than enough to get you started. If you have questions the night of the dance, myself and DJ Sandia are there to help.

Enjoy!

Love this one! Cupid himself teaches you the Cupid Shuffle.
I've been teaching dance and hosting dance parties for decades.

I find this is the line dance people pick up the fastest.






Although it's considered a classic, the Electric Slide
is the one dance that most people get wrong!

Don't take someone's word for it, just because they put a video up on YouTube.
Try this one. This duo gets the basic Electric Slide right!
Once you have it mastered, you can jazz it up from there.





DJ Casper (real name Willie Perry) is a native Chicagoan, also known as Mr. C.
Fun fact: This is the only song of the three featured here that actually reached #1 on the charts.
Because Mr. C calls out the steps to the beat,
many people think the Cha Cha Slide
is the easiest of line dances.
Just listen to the lyrics.
You'll pick it up in no time!
This video will take you through it step by step.
Pay particular attention to the Charlie Brown.
That's where most people get confused.





Why not spend a few minutes on these? I guarantee you'll be glad you did. Not only will you be hitting the floor with the rest of us at the next dance, but you never know where else you might encounter these - weddings, special events/parties of all kinds, skating rinks, bar mitzvahs, dance clubs, you name it!

See you soon! 



Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Summer Dance Fun!

Join me at Ballroom City in Villa Park for our SUMMER dance on Saturday, July 19 at 7:30. 

Dress is casual (shorts are permitted for this event) and the atmosphere is lighthearted and fun! I’ll be teaching Waltz. You can bring a dish to share, a delicious potluck buffet will be served.







Information is available the Just Dance website.