Ballroom Dance Lessons

[dreamscometrue2]

Wow Abby you put me to shame! You are a dancing fool (no disrepect intended:D ). I wish I could convince my DH to dance that much. I love to dance, but I only seem to get to do it in class or when we practice at home which doesn't happen very often.

I'm so glad there are so many people having fun and dancing as hard as they can.

[texancruzer]

Critterchick: Hula Hoop - good idea.

GCurr: WE GOT RAIN !!!!! Yeah....... Still need more though.

twojays: First cruise we were so tired after long days of fun we did dinner and show then casino for a 1/2 hour and then straight to bed... Ha !! This cruise we will dance !!! Not going to let these lessons go to waste..have our first private lesson Thur nite.

 

Welcome to all the new guys !!!!!!!:D

[mummsie]

Texancruiser, enjoy your private lessons. My hubby and I have been taking private lessons for many years now and they are well worth the money. Although on the cruise we went on we didn't really do that much proper dancing though - we just did some basic stuff and had fun. Gayle

[twojays]

Texancruiser; mummsie; dreamscometrue.

 

We also have been having private lessons for a few years - but they were to learn our routines for medals, and we have now given them up.

 

We decided that we would prefer to have a whole evening of dancing, rather than just half an hour's lesson - although they have been a great help in improving technique.

 

We are now also learning sequence dancing - which at least means we wont be bumping into everyone.

 

We now have two full evenings of dancing a week - such great exercise! I really look forward to Thursday and Sundays!

 

When you said that on your cruise, you only managed to do basics - I half expected that would happen when we go on our cruise - was it because there wasnt enough room - or because there were too many couples dancing?

[texancruzer]

Whew, we got ALOT of rain this morning....think we may have caught up on our shortage.

 

We tried classes but because they are "drop in" classes it seems there are always brand new people and they start from scratch. Even though we have only taken 3 classes we have progressed passed that stage. DH has learned the basic steps and we have even learned some turns etc. So we decided to take private lessons every other week and hopefully will progress faster than a weekly class with new people starting all the time. He has never danced ( I have been dancing since 4 yrs old) and I am sure with enough practice that we will at least not make idiots of ourselves by November...it is fun anyway and that is what I am hoping - that he will enjoy it as much as I do. Also just planning to stick with latin dances for now - mainly salsa and merengue as they are so much fun!!!!

[sirclicksalot]

Do they teach ballroom on the ships?

 

 

sirclicksalot

[GCurry]

They will offer some classes on a cruise but only about an hour of say, Cha Cha or some other dance, so it doesn't do you a whole lot of good. Dance classes were scheduled only twice on a 7 day cruise on the Grand.

 

Anybody watching the dance competition on ABC?

What are your thoughts?

[RanDe]

I watched this last night and enjoyed it. However, it really intimidated me.....we start our first dance class next week. :) I think it's going to be fun to watch and see the different dances they do. I voted for Kelly & Alec, the last place couple, but mainly because Kelly is on my soap opera and I like her.

 

It's good to see so much activity on this thread and hello to the newcomers. I'm probably the only one here that hasn't had a single dance lesson, so bear with me for awhile. I'm getting kind of nervous already.:eek:

 

De

[terri23]

I enjoyed the show! It must have been a bummer for the professionals and amateurs that got bad comments by the judges (I think it was the first and third waltzes that got thumbs down, but I may be mis-remembering)! And Evander did better than I thought he would (despite grimacing a lot). It is kind of funny to watch the professional women dancing all around the amateur men (who don't move around much).

 

RanDe, don't be intimidated! You'll be surprised by how fast you learn steps and put them together for a great looking dance.

[texancruzer]

Just pulled out my file on our cruise on Rhapsoday in Nov. 2003. Seems they did have quite a few dance lessons during the 7 nighter. Country line dancing, waltz and rhumba, another one just listed as ballroom dance class. BUT these were generally offered on "At Sea" days of which there were 3+. I now realize why we did not do so much "clubbing/dancing" while on this cruise. THERE WAS SO MUCH TO DO WE COULDNT BE EVERYWHERE AT ONCE!!!!! But plan on making time to dance on our upcoming one....as well as for the 2 nights in San Juan.... I also remember some "classes" by the pool done by alot of people in wet swimsuits but mostly macarana etc...

 

RanDe: Do not be nervous...just go with the attitude that you will have fun no matter. My dh was surprised how much fun he had and is having even though it is work for him to remember the steps and count etc....

AAGGHH. We have satellite tv and do not get abc...they will not allow us to receive - even if we pay extra each month. NBC and CBS did. Go figure. Everyone please keep me posted.

[terri23]

texancruzer, are you in the houston area? we live in west houston (near katy) and don't know where to go to dance or even to take lessons (we used to go to DanceArts Ballroom on Dairy Ashford, but that has closed).

 

any others with advice??

[GCurry]

Terri23 email me gcurry1@houston.rr.com , we'll send you information of places to dance in the Houston Area. We belong to two Ballroom Dance Clubs, but there are several locations that have open dances. Although our clubs always welcome visitors, they are in the Galveston Bay area; it's a little far to Katy.

 

Ole Lance (our instructor) would have nailed Evander big time, that he wasn't dancing, he was just standing there. I thought that comment about the waltz, "there were too many flowers and not enough lawn "(basics) was funny.

Good thing it's a large space, and that's just for the egos!

[abbydancer2003]

We enjoyed "Dancing with the Stars". My husband, who almost never watches ballroom on TV watched it, and even voted. In part we liked it because the stars weren't a whole lot better than we were.

 

We both voted for Kelly & Alex - I didn't think she was the best, but I thought she was better than Holyfield by a lot. I thought he did no cha-cha, and for that matter, Rachel Hunter's waltz had almost no waltzing in it.

 

I thought the boy-band guy was the best, followed by John O'Hurley.

 

The other thing that was fun is that Jonathan Roberts (Hunter's partner) teaches at one of the studios we dance at so it was fun seeing somebody we've seen teaching on TV.

 

abby

[Kaye from Chicagoland]

Welcome to all the new people on our thread!

 

WOW! Now I really feel like a beginner. I was washing the windows the other day and caught my husband dancing on our patio to the boombox. I had to tell him "please practice the right steps so it becomes natural". I had no clue what steps he was doing - but it was fun to watch.

 

Have a great weekend to all!

Kaye

[texancruzer]

Terri23: No, we are in Corpus Christi. Lived in Houston for 4 yrs (75-79)with first husband. Hated it!!! My best friend still lives there. See GCurry will get some info to you @area places to take classes. Good luck and have fun !!!

 

Went to our first official private class last night. Was really good but alot more work as she grilled us non-stop just on salsa for over an hour. I was lucky to get a break for a drink of water ! Boy, you really do get better faster with someone pointing out every little thing (ie: dh kept letting his hand drop down on my back too far, or he would pull with one hand instead of push during a turn) We are definately going to do the "private lesson every other week thing" and will maybe drop in on a class occasionally on Friday night. They have a "practice party" afterwards.

The drop in class is $20.00 for both of us and a private lesson is $45.00 for both. Does this sound about right? I thought so.

 

Instuctor who owns the studio (competes all over the u.s.) taped the show but didnt really get to see much - just bits and pieces. Oh well. Everyone have a great weekend...Cheryl

[terri23]

Terri23 email me gcurry1@houston.rr.com , we'll send you information of places to dance in the Houston Area. We belong to two Ballroom Dance Clubs, but there are several locations that have open dances. Although our clubs always welcome visitors, they are in the Galveston Bay area; it's a little far to Katy.

 

Ole Lance (our instructor) would have nailed Evander big time, that he wasn't dancing, he was just standing there. I thought that comment about the waltz, "there were too many flowers and not enough lawn "(basics) was funny.

Good thing it's a large space, and that's just for the egos!

 

I did send you an email (will be from "txterps" as I am a transplant from MD). thanks and have a great weekend, everyone! Hopefully I can drag my DH upstairs to the "ballroom" for some much needed practice!

[abbydancer2003]

 

Went to our first official private class last night. Was really good but alot more work as she grilled us non-stop just on salsa for over an hour. I was lucky to get a break for a drink of water ! Boy, you really do get better faster with someone pointing out every little thing (ie: dh kept letting his hand drop down on my back too far, or he would pull with one hand instead of push during a turn) We are definately going to do the "private lesson every other week thing" and will maybe drop in on a class occasionally on Friday night. They have a "practice party" afterwards.

The drop in class is $20.00 for both of us and a private lesson is $45.00 for both. Does this sound about right? I thought so.

 

Instuctor who owns the studio (competes all over the u.s.) taped the show but didnt really get to see much - just bits and pieces. Oh well. Everyone have a great weekend...Cheryl

 

$20.00 sounds good for a drop in class (for 2) and 45.00 is excelllent. We pay (SF area) a lot more than that. In general, I've found that private instruction tends to run about 60.00 an hour, regardless of the activity (I've heard roughly this fee from skaters, musicians, dancers and horseback riders).

 

Private lessons can make all the difference in the world, so I'm glad it went well for you. Our studio has drop in classes, series classes (same dance with same students for 4 weeks) and private lessons. Almost without exception, the best dancers are the private students, and the people that do the series classes do better than those that only attend drop ins.

 

Enjoy your dancing!

 

abby

[texancruzer]

As posted previously, I used to teach dancing LONG LONG AGO, and I did have some semi private and private students. However, things have changed and I guess I just didnt know what was the going rate. I know things in California are alot higher than here !! my sister used to live in San Diego and whew the cost of living there is atrocious :( There is no doubt that personalized attention will definately get us better faster !!

[twojays]

Here in the UK, we pay £4 each for a group lesson, lasting 45 minutes.

 

A private lesson is £11 for half an hour, whether there is one or two of you attending the lesson.

[GCurry]

You have heard me talk about Lance, National Dance Champion from Hell. He teaches for College of the Mainland. We have six week sessions Basic, 7 Oclock Intermidiate/advanced 8 Oclock for $72 a couple. You get a lot of instruction every time you dance by Lance. "Sir, Sir" what the hell do you think you are doing". There are only a few couples, so you do get a lot of one on one. "Honey, are you trying to lead?" Had the Mainland Dance Club dance last night, a good time had by all, and a good mix of music from 7 to 11:30.

Mscurry put her 18 year old on the Carnival Ecstasy yesterday for her first cruise, a 5 day down to Cozumel.

[RanDe]

Hello dancers and welcome all newcomers. Thanks Terri and Texan for your words of encouragement on me being nervous. I’ve re-read this entire thread and feel better about beginning our lessons this Wednesday evening. I have to admit, I was having doubts on whether it was going to be our “cup of tea”, but feel more positive about it and am ready to give it a good try.

 

 

 

Kaye, how did your Orlando Days go? Did you get some practice and/or dancing in? That’s so cute about catching your husband dancing on the patio. Was he practicing steps that he’s learned or just “lettin’ loose”?

 

 

 

Lorraine, you should be back from your cruise now and I hope you’ll stop by and let us know how it went. I’m anxious to get a first hand report on how the dancing was too.

 

 

 

GCurry, you’ll have to let us know how Mscurry’s daughter liked her first cruise. Did she go with a bunch of friends? I can’t even imagine doing that when I was that age. I’m glad she has the opportunity to experience it at a young age.

 

 

 

De

[tropicalsunset]

Greetings to all on this wonderful thread!!!! great to see everyone participating..!! and so many levels of expertise...!!

 

I think our studio is similar to the Arthur Murray/Fred Astaire studios... we can purchase blocks of private or group classes and sign a contract... discounts are given for quantity of classes... but they run about $68 for private and $22. for group ... the group classes are small so they are very worthwhile.. we have to go two towns over to get any dance classes in the area.. I would not do very well with Lance... I get frustrated with myself very easily... tho' I do like to perfect what I am learning before moving on to many different things in one lesson.... You do learn alot about yourself and your partner in taking these classes..!! :rolleyes: :D

 

Ok... just returned from the Grandeur...!! I have to say one of the best parts of this cruise was the variety of evening entertainment... We had 3 comedians, a magician and a male vocalist during the nine days... all very good!!

there was a DJ mostly for the younger crowd in the Viking Lounge although he did play some disco prior to the 11pm hour and we got to do some hustle. (the dance floor is tiny compared to the size of the lounge!) even got to get some dancing in with my 22 year old son!!

In the South Pacific Lounge the band "Quattro" was awesome ....they had a large repertoire and would play anything you wanted... often the place was packed.

In the Centrum a three piece band was playing everynight for ballroom dancing.. there is a three tiered dance floor...it is marble and beautiful but would be better if it were just one big dance floor. there was a wonderful couple on board who were great dancers to watch..much beyond our expertise.. I was very intimidated dancing there as few dancers are there and you are open to all 7 decks above in the middle of the ship... I truly felt I was on display and it was hard for me to just enjoy and dance like no one was watching.... but that is just me... gotta work on that!! :rolleyes: (You can always trek up a couple decks and dance to the music solo...) and you can go up to this band and just ask for a rhumba or Cha cha cha or whatever...

 

There was a nice swing dance class...they taught the basic single step and triple step and mens and ladies turns..

this class was very full and the dance floor was very crowded. I believe there was a country line dance class and

maybe some other class ...like salsa which we were unable to attend...

 

GCurry: I had to laugh...we were in the Schooner Bar which is more a social bar... no dance floor and they played a slow tune... and my husband didnt' want to dance so in frustration I asked another gentlemen to dance with me... RIGHT AWAY... he asked me to please, let him lead.... !!

It was fun...something else I gotta work on!! good thing we have a private lesson tonight !!!!!!! ;)

 

I just love the swaying one feels the next day after you've left the ship!!!!!!

 

Lorraine

[RanDe]

Welcome back, Lorraine! It sounds like you had a wonderful time and thanks so much for the reviews on the different lounges and dance floors. I'm glad to hear that the entertainment was good also. I sure hope you had great weather and may you enjoy the sways for a long time. :)

 

 

De

[Kaye from Chicagoland]

Ditto - RanDe (Welcome back Lorraine - so glad you had a terrific time!)

 

Update on Lesson #9 - let's just say my husband is not a natural - he needs to start practicing the right steps on the patio - cute - he does his own thing if he likes the music.

 

Definately going to have to retake the same class. Tony lectured the DH on taking me out dancing or practicing at home (he told me to restrict sex if he didn't take me out, ha! Ha! - I think he thinks he's funny). Tonight was the Rhumba - I loved it and actually thought Larry was getting pretty good at it right before the class ended - but I felt his frustration setting in toward the end - (he kept checking the clock). Next week is our last lesson of this session.

 

At least he's will to keep trying - Gotta respect him for that!

...and how was your week?

 

Hot - Hot - Hot in Chicago!

Kaye

[GCurry]

This is one of our favorites, there are a huge number of steps to it for you to learn, and fairly slow, so you can dance it often. I can only handle so much swing or salsa or other upbeat stuff, before it becomes Aerobic Exercise!

We start our next session with Ole Lance tonight, hope he's in a good mood.