Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Dance lesson: second group class

Last night we had our second "group" dance lesson. It was 'Intro. to Waltz.' It was a little nicer than the first one, because we knew what to expect, and also because no one worked up quite the sweat that we did at the Foxtrot and Swing lesson. Chad was our instructor again (he's the only one we've had).

The Waltz is a nice, smooth dance designed to move you around the room. And it's probably the easiest one we've learned yet. We went through the simple box step, the progressive, and the left box turn. So, being easier, it was also a bit funner. Of course, the problem with the Waltz is that it is in 3/4 time, and not a lot of the music we'll be hearing at the wedding reception will be 3/4, as most rock'n'roll is in 4/4 time. But it was still a fun dance to learn.

It was a little odd last night because there were 5 women and 7 men. We just paired up the 5, and 2 guys at a time went solo until we switched partners . The women were all fairly good dancers this time too. One couple were there for their first lesson, and they were maybe in their early twenties (he is a seminary student at Concordia); one girl was in college and she was a really good dancer (she's been taking lessons for 3 years); the one couple was in our last group lesson (the lady who stared at me); and the other couple was older - maybe in their seventies - but they were fairly hip.

The box step is just a step straight forward with the left foot, diagonal right with the right foot, and over with the left; then back with the right, diagonal left with the left, and over with the right. 1-2-3, 1-2-3. All the steps are even, and Chad says the bigger-the-better. The progressive just moves straight: you go forward with the left, diagonal right with the right, over with the left; then - instead of going back (as in the box) - you go forward with the right, diagonal left with the left, and over with the right, and so on so you're always going ahead. This is why you need the turn. To turn you basically just turn 1/8 at a time; and always counterclockwise.

Some instructions can be found at these places:

No comments: