A NEW VENTURE!!!

As many of you know, I am always keeping busy.. Well here I go again. Elizabeth and I have been asked to so a seminar on hair and makeup for competitions. Our first seminar will be at Vicki’s Ballroom in Seminole, FL.  We will be addressing the entire package before you get on the floor, In addition, we will be discussing what the judges are looking for, hair, nails, makeup, styling. Also to be covered is how do you remove the products from your hair and face! Preparing for beauty is a lot of fun.

This seminar will be available to studios all over the country.

This will be awesome!!

I love to dance. It is a way of life with me. I guess that is why I am compelled to teach dancing. I enjoy the interaction with new students, whether they are professionals or amateurs. Yes, there are new professionals out there learning to dance every day. The joy of learning to dance is awesome to watch. I enjoy being a part of making someone’s day better. Dancing does so much for people. It enhances even the most exciting of lives. I cannot imagine a life without dance of some form. The most exciting form for me is ballroom dancing. Waltz, tango, salsa, swing, foxtrot, Viennese waltz, all beautiful dances. There is nothing that quite satisfies the need to express music. For individuals and for couples it is an ideal way of meeting and socializing in a non-threatening way. it is also an amazing way to develop the body while fulfilling the soul. Yes, dancing is a fixer upper. It soothes what ails us. It gives us wings of expression. It is the ultimate tool to improve ourselves. Am I exaggerating? I don’t think so. I have seen too many people benefit in so many unexpected ways from ballroom dancing. It is an awesome way of being.

Yes, I have opened a dance studio in Bradenton, Florida. A great big open space on Cortez Road West. People are rolling in the door tonight for the first West Coast Swing class and party. Looking forward to a wonderful partnership with Jon and Marianne Hagman. Great couple to be with.  Private lessons began last week. All dancers beginners through advanced are welcome. We will be teaching social as well as competitive dancing. Here are a couple of pictures. I am also looking to train people that are interested in a career change. It is a wonderful profession being a dance instructor. I can prepare you for exams and credentials as well as prepare you to be the best instructor you can be.

It occurred to me that I am so fortunate to be in the dance business. I am a trained professional dancer. With that comes the opportunity to teach, coach, perform, make costumes, do hair/makeup, judge, socialize, network and make friends. Just to name a few of the many benefits. I do consider myself lucky to have fallen into this magical world. As you can see, one can be involved in so many ways from artistic and administrative avenues to technology and event planning.

I started out like many people - as a student of dance. I was completely in love with ballroom dancing. There was no other form of activity that gave me that adrenaline rush. The thrill. The joy. To this day, I still remember all the joyous moments. I remember learning particular things from particular people. I competed as a student and then became an professional instructor. Immediately, I found a pro partner and started to compete professionally. During this time I did my own hair and makeup and made my own costumes. More on that later.

Over the next few blogs, I plan on expanding on the various channels of income making in the ballroom world. It is safe to say that whatever your expertise, we can use in this world. So stay with me  a while, let us explore together my past experiences and good times.

Oh yes, our favorite show is back. Great to have all that wonderful dancing on television. It shows that anyone can learn to dance. Whether you like the Waltz, Salsa, Cha Cha or Foxtrot. It is so much fun to watch all these celebrities and beautiful people learn and perform so well. The judges can be harsh. But, that is okay because they do back it up with helpful comments that the dancers can go back and work on.  It will be interesting to see who stays and who leaves. There are people on there with huge followings and all the talk shows are featuring their favorites. Tom Delay is getting a lot of coverage from all of the news shows. Great for ballroom dancing.

I wish the music was better and more inspiring. I find the tempi to be questionable and the sound is not rich and full enough to push the dancers. I have always had this problem with the show. I love the show and its concept and everyone that is involved. The music not so much.

The costumes are always amazing except for the exceptionally low riding hip lines that make the female dancers look shortlegged and extra long in the torso. Not a very appealing look. Maybe the men like it as a more naked look. But for the balance of proportions and taste values they could be cut a little higher on the hip.

A great show and I look forward to watching. I will be posting my comments as it progresses. Keep on dancing everyone. It is healthy and exciting and very rewarding.

It is that time of year when dancers from all over the world converge on Orlando, Florida. The level of dance is excellent and the energy is high. The United States Dancesport Championships is a week-long event that involves dancers, judges, vendors, spectators and others from all over the world.

The glamour and glitz is not to be rivalled. In one room you find dancer’s practicing in costume, in sweats; with or without their partners; with or without their coaches. The room is abuzz with adrenaline. The DJ plays a variety of music according to the published style of dance being practiced. There is a rehearsal/music schedule that follows the sequence of events during the competition so that dancers can get prepared ahead of time. In another room there is wall to wall rhinestones. Dance dresses, dance shoes, hair gizmos, rhinestone accessories, men’s dance wear, evening wear, makeup, sports drinks, all types of stuff to enhance the dance experience. The main ballroom is huge. Bright lights, colored lights, backdrops and the dance floor. You enter the room even when it is empty and you can feel the excitement of the dancers. The large dance floor is the focal element. At the head of the floor is the dais where the Master of Ceremonies will take his place and conduct the event. Around the floor are tables, chairs, risers and the cordoned off VIP section. There is a judges’s seating area, where we watch and wait for our turn to take the floor and make decisions.

September. A solid week of drama, fun, excitement and entertainment. I will be blogging as often as I can to keep you informed. Who knows maybe you might be on that floor next year. Yes, you can. It is a great place to be.

I have been watching a lot of dancing lately. Judgine and cdoing critiques of peoples dancing is quite a lot of fun. I thoroughly enjoy watching their growth and enjoyment of their dancing. I find it hard to believe that a room full of such diverse people can share such amazing camaderie. It is truly a joy to be part of such a world as ballroom dancing. Of course, I would rather be dancing myself. I do get to do that when I go out to a club, a tango party or a west coast swing party. I always look forward to the dinner/dance at competitions and definitely the after party. The physical benefits go without say, but, there is also the emotional uplift. Partner dancing. Salsa, swing, waltz, foxtrot, hustle, tango, rumba, cha cha. Whatever the dance - there is always extreme fun and enjoyment while exercising. Truly a great way to be.

I developed my slogan to be “Two left feet? I have your right” because I have met so many people that fee that they are too bad at dancing to take lessons. This is so amazing to me that people have forgotten the purpose of school. The reason for learning. Even if we already know something, anything we will always need to learn and study more. The fact that we cannot dance is exactly the reason to take lessons. That is why there are dance lessons and instructors.

So, my point is that it is never too late to learn. I was at a west coast swing class tonight helping out my friend Bobby Caudill. I met someone after the class that always wanted to learn but seemed reluctant to take the class. I didn’t quite understand our conversation as I strongly believe that everyone should be taking dance lessons. The best professionals in the world take lessons to improve their craft. They might be competitors striving to be faster, stronger, more clever than their counterparts. They might be instructors looking for better ways to impart their knowledge. No matter what your level of dance from nonexistent to brilliant there will always be more to learn. Find that class, that studio. Learn to dance, and as this gentleman said to me he dances to have fun and to seduce the ladies. Of course, the better his dancing and his other essential skills the better his chances. Ladies do like men that are gentlemen and good dancers.