Oh my gosh! What an awesome lesson and party. Everyone that attend was so cool. We had great music from Chris Kanozsay and a wonderful buffet spread from yours truly. The class had a wide range of ages mature, middle, and a large representation of high schoolers. The girls made the boys attend somewhat reluctantly. Halfway through the night the boys were dancing and having a great time. They learned Argentine Tango, Bachata, Merengue, and Swing. Needless to say they are planning to return next month September 20th. The advanced tango dancers that attended after the class were wonderful people and terrific tango dancers. I even had a few professional dancers including Hans de Wilde and Judy Davy drop in. They too really enjoyed themselves. The Sarasota Dance Club is such a warm and inviting facility. Every party has been such a great success. Next week they are having a 80’s party. Last night they had an amazing 70’s/hustle party. Wow! Sarasota is really happening. Photos of the tango party will be uploaded soon. Can hardly wait for the next one.

The Marriot Hotel at the airport in Tampa is home for a wonderful showcase of dancing. Dancers from all over Florida will be attending. Dancing starts at 11am. Magic Dance Club is the sponsor for this event. Bogdan and Gosia Wienc are sure to put on a spectacular event.

The show in the evening includes Maksym Lototskyy and Elizabeth Cartier of Wilson’s DanceSport Studios in Sarasota.

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.

Dancing gives one such a glorious feeling of well-being. Okay, after the aches and pains go away if you are out of shape. If one dances at a social level the benefits are just as important as at the more challenging dancesport level.  Stay tuned I will return and finish this thought.

What is this obsession with obscenely loud music. At some ballroom dance competitions, concerts, nightclubs, dance venues, bars, even dance studios the volume is oftimes incredibly loud. I went to a wonderful jazz club last night. The music was terrific but I though the volume was a tad too loud. I would definitely return there. Maybe on a more crowded night it might not be too bad. The Cork on St. Armands Circle - looked and smelled so good.

My friend and I decided to check out the new latin club on Fruitville Road. We paid our admission and entered the club. The din of the band was so outrageously loud that it bounced us right back out the door. Wow! The last time I heard something that loud was at a Dave Matthews concert at the Ampitheatre in Tampa. At Hillary Duff’s concert at the St. Pete Times Forum, her sound engineers wore earplugs and parents were holding their hands over their children’s ears. My daughter said she could not hear the singer and perfered her CD’s. How do you adjust sound when you are wearing ear plugs? But I digress. Back at the club on Fruitville, we got a refund and left. Needless to say I will not be returning. I like my hearing. Really I do.

Another friend of mine is a DJ. He told me that he does not like the loud volume either. I informed him that I usually carry earplugs with me whenenver I go out. He thought that was a great idea and decided to get himself professional earplugs. I asked him why he didn’t just turn the music down. Is that a profound question? What’s wrong to a little less volume? Sometimes it is so loud that the sound actually distorts. I know many people love it loud, but just as many hate it. Majority of people just tolerate it and say nothing. Some say nothing a leave, some say nothing and stay, some (a very few) will say something and leave. That’s me folks.

I love great music and I love to go dancing. Unfortunately, there is so little respect for the artistry of the music or for the health of our eardrums. Many years ago bands used to use sound engineers to balance the sound of the band. Nowadays they just make it LOUD. Am I alone with this? Does anyone agree with me? Are we destined to be a deaf society?

With so many places to go dancing in Sarasota maybe the volume will be a deciding factor in where to go. It will certainly be a criteria on my list.

Margaret and Wilson

Margaret Burns and Wilson Barrera performing their signature number “After Supper” at the United Kingdom Championships in England. Video to be uploaded soon.

My moonlighting job. Only difficult part is waking up soooo early in the morning. It sort of interfers with partying the night before. I do love playing in hair though. I will be posting some of my creations on the hair and make up page soon.

After dance competitions there is always the crush of reality. You go away to a wonderful hotel somewhere and enter a world of fantasy. Your life becomes centered around the activities in the ballroom. What time are you dancing? What time does the session start? When does it end? Can we please make the rooms warmer? Colder? Who is going to the bar afterwards? What shall I wear to dinner? to breakfast? To eat or not to eat?

There is always a sense of drama and excitement. Beautiful people in beautiful gowns dancing around the dance floor. Surreal. Prizes and awards are plentiful. The cheering and support is addictive. You thrill to the yells and cheers of the crowd. The music is pounding and rich with rhythms. The story of the dance becomes all absorbing. What could be better than this? I have to say, not much.

And then…..it is over. You pack your things, always forgetting something - usually the charger. You go home. Why do our homes often looks as if a truck ran through it? Mine does. I usually pack in such a hurry to get to the hotel on time for dinner. The return home is a return to the mess we left behind and conveniently forgot about during our fling with bling. This is the reality of our everyday lives. Back to work. Clean, vacuum, pay a few bills, do the bank deposit, then on to our dance lessons.

All in all, it is a marvellous way to enjoy life. I am so looking forward to the next experience. Maybe you have favorite things you like to experience at these competitions. Maybe your home is not a mess. Either way, I am sure we all enjoy the escape to that incredible world of dance.

After watching a terrific show by Yulia and Riccardo, it was a pleasure to attend their workshop at Dance Fusion the very next day. Although we went to bed early the night before (2:30am), it was still difficult to wake up at 8am on a Sunday morning to arrive at Dance Fusion for my daughter to get her coachings with Yulia and Riccardo. The lessons and the workshops were totally awesome and certainly worth the early rise. I think that is the earliest Natasha has had to have a lesson. She handled it quite well. So proud of her.

Pasha and Anya did a great show tonight at the Florida State Championsips. The competition was great, although the ballroom was kept incredibly cold. Brrrr. More competitions tomorrow, with another terrific show from Yulia and Riccardo. My posts will continue with lots of details later. Have to get some rest for an early start tomorrow. First hair appointment is at 7:30am. Then watching my daughter from 10 till 11:30, lunch, judging from 1:30 till 3:30. Photo shoot for my daughter for Designs to Shine. More hair and make up. Dinner. Then the evening begins with more professional competitions to judge starting at 9pm. The show is ast 10:30pm. THEN the after party. THEN coachings on Sunday morning for my daughter with Yulia and Riccardo at 9:30am. I guess we will sleep Monday. Love this dancing business.