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Sunday Dance Information Email 005-29-03

Hello Dancers... From our Weekly Newsletter

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Hello Dancers,

We had a great dance last Sunday night. A holiday on Monday brought in some
dancers that we haven't seen in awhile. It was nice to see them again.
Usually we have a pretty good mix of men to women but last week we had
several extra men. Judy got to dance more and I got to rest.
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The Portsmouth parade on Memorial Day was great. The crowd was very
patriotic and mindful of the reason that we have a Memorial Day.
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We enjoyed the big class for the two lessons last week. I think the review
on WCS was helpful for most. This week the early lesson is on Cha-Cha and
the 7:00 lesson is on WCS. We plan to teach another move that is easy but
different.
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I had several dancers thank me for including a reminder about USABDA. We
attended the dance and had a good time. Roberto was very smooth as usual and
although we were too late for the entire lesson it looked like a nice
intermediate Waltz move. If you haven't been to the Tidewater USABDA
Saturday dance lately you will be surprised to find that the floor has been
refinished.
The poorly maintained wood floor was the only bad thing about the dance and
now that has been cured.
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A few odds and ends going on this week in addition to the usual fine line up
of dance opportunities. These are the ones that I received reminders
about....

Chuck Wills has changed his social dance format and added another dance on
Friday as well as Saturday. He also moved his beginner class from Monday to
Saturday at 7pm. This week Chuck is advertising his six session dance cards
for $29.95, one per person. If you attend his dances regularly it's a pretty
good way to save a little money.

The Tidewater Swing Dance Club is having a dance this Friday at Dancing by
Knight. It starts at 7:30 with a lesson and costs $4.00 for members and
$7.00 for non-members. See our web page for details.

Cindy Parks is hosting a dance this Friday also at her studio, Country
Bootleggers, on Route 17 near Yorktown. It starts at 7pm and cost $5.00. She
offers an included lesson at 7pm to 8pm. We enjoyed it the last time we went
and found everyone very friendly.

Portsmouth is advertising a swing dance at Willett Hall at 6:30pm on next
Wednesday June the 4th. It will be held outside on the plaza. There will
probably not be much dance opportunity outside but the music will be GREAT!
They are featuring Tommy Newsom and the Pat Curtis Quartet. Opening for
Tommy is his nephew's group the Jim Newsom Quartet. Tommy Newsom in the
retired assistant conductor from "The Tonight Show" He worked under Doc
Severinsen for many years before retiring to Portsmouth. Tommy is a real
class act and is sure to treat us to a night of excellent music. Willett
Hall is just behind Maryview Hospital on Willett Drive in Portsmouth. The
event is free, parking is close by and free also. Being outdoors they
suggest blankets or lawn chairs. It will be held rain or shine. Call Howard
Bender at 397-8651 if you need more info.
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(I am re-sending a previous dance tip at the request of a few dancers...)

Connection Between Leader and Follower

It is the connection between leader and follower that makes the "lead and
follow" work. Of course we always think of that first because of the
importance placed on this aspect of dancing. The "lead and follow" is mostly
through a physical connection at points in each other's dance frame. It can
be made at many points for a smooth dances like Foxtrot or can be just at
one or two points in WCS. Less connection points places the importance of
knowing the dance characteristics more heavily on the lady. She has more
freedom of expression but also needs to thoroughly know the mechanics of the
dance.

To enhance the lead and follow in a dance like WCS there is a little more
than the physical connection. The partners also develop a connection through
eye contact. Judy and I attended a recent workshop taught by Robert Royston
and his wife Nicola. www.usaswingnet.com/Swango!.htm One of the methods they
taught to enhance lead and follow is to make a definite eye contact with the
lady prior to leading an unusual move in WCS. This is used to signal her
that something is going to happen.  Eye contact
can be a effective way to add to dancing. Just don't carry it to extremes.
Over use makes it lose effectiveness. There is also a psychic connection but
don't ask me to explain. Women somehow just seem to "know" what we are up
to.

Also remember that connection works both ways. Men, the next time you get on
the floor lighten your lead and try to feel feedback through the connection.
If you can't feel it, lighten the lead until you do. Ladies be sure to
maintain enough connection for the man to feel that feedback. This will
radically change your dancing for the better. There have been many lessons
and workshops on the amount of pressure used in the dance connection but it
all boils down to "just enough to get the job done, maintain connection and
get feedback from your partner".  Both heavy leads and heavy follows have
nothing to do with size or strength; just attitude and skill.
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Positive attitude results in positive results...
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The Song of the Week is what else but a West Coast Swing. "Tramp" by Otis
Redding & Carla Thomas is an unusual song off the duet album King & Queen
produced by Atlantic records. As a dance song "Tramp" has a real good beat
with plenty of musical breaks to allow some playing around. At a little over
three minutes long it's just the right length to not get boring. You can
hear a clip of the song at Amazon.com or come out to our dance this Sunday
to dance to this and many more great popular songs.
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Make your next week start out great. Come out dancing this Sunday night...

Walter & Judy Schultz
Home - 483-9410  Cell - 718-3632
www.twosteptidewater.com

Country-Western, Swing, Latin and Ballroom

Dance every Sunday night unless notified 6:30pm to 10pm
Held at "A Time to Dance"
Executive Cove Center -  5600 Va. Bch Blvd - Va. Bch
1/2 Block East of Newtown Rd.
Look for Executive Cove Center sign

$5.00 per person
Basic Lessons, Three Hours of Smoke Free Dancing
Drink and munchies provided

Home - 483-9410  Studio - 490-8999

www.twosteptidewater.com

Walter & Judy Schultz

Country-Western, Swing, Latin and Ballroom

Dance every Sunday night unless notified 6:30pm to 10pm

Executive Cove Center - 5600 Va. Bch Blvd - Va. Bch

1/2 Block East of Newtown Rd.

Look for Executive Cove Center sign

$5.00 per person

Basic Lesson, Three Hours of Smoke Free Dancing

Drink and munchies provided

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