Ballroom Newsletter – Apr 16th 2013
Dear Dancer,
In this cold snap what better way to warm oneself up than with vigorous activity? Both the Quickstep and the Swing will bring out the sweat (excuse me, I mean the “glow”) and save you roughly two pieces of firewood or the equivalent in gas or electric energy. And once you’ve learned the steps, you can keep warming yourself up at home for the rest of your lives, which will be longer, due to the increase in physical health brought on by your more active lifestyle. So join us tonight and/or tomorrow or/and Thursday for this valuable Surviving-The-Next-Ice-Age seminar (aka dance class).
And speaking of longer lives, we would thank Steve Mikinka for sending us this wonderful article on the powers of dance versus aging and dementia. We are including the link to the article he sent us so that you can see that we aren’t just making this up. The link:
http://socialdance.stanford.edu/syllabi/smarter.htm
We had seen the original study in the New England Journal of Medicine, but the person responsible for this article has nicely tied together several studies that support the same evidence of the benefits of Ballroom Dance on the mind and put in an article that clarifies the information.
So for those of you who are concerned about your own golden years and those of you whose parents and other elders are approaching those years we heartily recommend reading this article and then coming to class to maintain and even improve your mental acuity.
And those of you who think you are too young to worry about such things, remember, you can enjoy your parents company throughout the golden years of their lives by encouraging them to go to dance classes, or you can spend those same years chasing after them when they run naked down the streets screaming that the ice cream on their hamburgers doesn’t glow in the dark. Your choice.
See you on the dance floor.
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PRIVATE LESSONS are AVAILABLE to anyone who would rather learn in a more personal environment (i.e. no witnesses) or to anyone who wants to progress faster or to anyone who simply wants private lessons. Also, if you cannot make any of the group class times, private lessons are arranged in accordance with your schedule and at your convenience. Contact us by e-mail or telephone (number can be found below).
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This week’s schedule:
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THE WELLNESS CENTERS:
Tuesday, April 16: Mt. Shasta Wellness Center (633 Lassen Lane, Mt. Shasta): Beginning Ballroom QUICKSTEP 6:45-7:45 pm
Wednesday, April 17: Mt. Shasta Wellness Center (633 Lassen Lane, Mt. Shasta): Basic Ballroom for Parkinson’s Noon-1:00 pm
Wednesday, April 17: School Hill Wellness Center in Weed (778 S. Davis St., Weed): SWING/JIVE 6:45-7:45 pm
Thursday, April 18: Mt. Shasta Wellness Center (633 Lassen Lane, Mt. Shasta): SWING/JIVE 6:45-7:45 pm
APRIL Dance of The Month for the Wednesday and Thursday night classes is SWING/JIVE .
For the Tuesday night Beginning Class, the Dance of The Month will be QUICKSTEP .
Please come join us.
You do not need to be a Wellness Center member to attend these classes.
Single class: $7.00/person.
Class Card (four classes or more): non-members: $20 for four classes ($5.00/class per person).
Wellness Center Members can get special discount: Buy a class card for $20.00 and get 8 classes (a value of $2.50 per class).
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FORT JONES COMMUNITY CENTER
FORT JONES COMMUNITY CENTER in Scott Valley (15 min. from Yreka)
11960 East Street Fort Jones, CA
Fridays, April 5 & 26
We will be holding a Group Class from 6:30-7:30
Cost $10.00 per class
Please come and join us.
If anyone else wishes to schedule a private lesson, please e-mail us or call us at the contact information below.
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SATURDAY MORNING TECHNIQUE CLASS: April 6, 13, 20, 27
At the Mt. Shasta Park and Recreation District
1315 Nixon Rd.
Dudes & Daises Lodge
10:00 – 11:00 -Technique Drills in “International Standard & Smooth Style Dances”. Focusing on Lowering, Rotation and Sway which improves your performance in all of the dances.
11:00 – Noon – Amalgamations. This month’s dance: WALTZ
This class uses basic Bronze (and some Silver) steps to develop and strengthen your ability to dance smoothly and boldly (which, just between you and me, is where the real fun is hidden). The International Technique also applies to American Style dances and will strengthen ones ability to have more power and control when dancing in the American Style. Come learn the techniques that will give you maximum control over your balance, your timing and your power.
Cost: $10 per person for two hour session.
Come to the whole series to get the full benefit or just drop in when you can -there are benefits to be gained from each session.
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OUR NEXT Saturday Evening Dance Lesson and Practice will be: April 27th
At the Mt. Shasta Park and Recreation District
1315 Nixon Rd.
Dudes & Daisies Lodge
Saturday Evening Classes and Practice Party will continue to be held every second and fourth Saturday of each month. We will be back at the McCloud Dance Hall in May for some of our Saturday classes.
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SUMMER TECHNIQUE WORKSHOP: June 24th & 25th
Good news, our summer Technique Workshop is back on in June at the McCloud Dance Hall. It will be held on Monday and Tuesday, June 24th and 25th. The times will be from 10:00 am -12:00 n and 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm each day with a practice dance session from 7:00 – 9:00 pm on Monday night. This workshop will be following Ron Montez’s weekend workshop and will be addressing the technique that will improve your execution of the steps he will have taught.
Anyone wishing to attend who has not taken the Ron Montez workshop will still learn the technique, since the technique applies to all dances. We will use steps from the level at which you are the most comfortable so that you will be able to focus completely on the technique itself, thereby receiving the greatest benefit.
Technique itself is widely viewed as something that is plastered on top of the steps to make them look pretty. This view could not be more wrong. Good technique lies at the very core of each and every step you take. The only difference between doing a step well and doing a step poorly is level of technique. You do have to learn the steps first (one cannot, after all, apply the technique to nothing), but once learned, doing it right has so many more rewards for you, the dancer, than most realize.
Doing a step well does not only mean looking good doing it. It also means getting the most pleasure out of the movement and also sharing that pleasure with your partner (showing him or her a good time, so to speak). In Ballroom Dance, the most efficient, practical and effective way of moving ends up being the most beautiful way of moving (and the most fun). The “rules” of Ballroom Dance are not so much “rules” as they are descriptions of what it looks like when it is being done right. In fact, 80 to 90 per cent of the “rules” of Ballroom Dance are actually the same as the laws of movement dynamics (closely related to the laws of physics). Adhere to them and you will be able to do anything you want on the dance floor.
Come learn them and then you can tell us how much more fun you are having (we will be able to see how much better you look).
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Any questions, please call or e-mail us. We love hearing from you and welcome any suggestions. Information regarding dance gift certificates can be found on our website: www.mtshastadance.com.
Cheers,
Rick and Peggy Nixon
Ballroom Dance Professionals
415/215-2652 (cell)
McCloud Dance Hall, McCloud CA
davisnixon@msn.com
Feel free to pass this on to anyone that you think might be interested in attending our classes.