Waltz lessons on Queen Mary 2 Transatlantic?

[Smokeyham]

Can anyone advise if waltz lessons are offered on the Queen Mary 2 on Transatlantic crossings?  If so, when are they typically offered and is a sign up available/recommended?

Thanks.

 

P.S. We know it would be better to take these on land in advance, but our circumstances don't allow for this.

[Bell Boy]

Basic dance lessons ( across the Cunard Fleet) take place on Sea days at approx 12.15pm shortly after the Captains noon announcement . 

There is NO sign up, you just turn up, ideally with a partner ( otherwise the instructors will endeavour to partner people together)

 

Ladies ! make sure you are wearing sensible shoes that that will hold your heel in - we've all seen some sights of ladies trying to dance Cha Cha in flip flops . 🤦‍♂️

Information of the 'particular dance lesson of the day' can be found in the daily onboard program delivered to your stateroom.   

[Solent Richard]

Generally there will be 'Dance Classes' on a daily basis which will be advertised on the daily programme. (Venue, time and which dance will feature that particular day).

 

This should get you some basic steps and timings however, one session is dedicated to one dance routine 

 

Depending on how keen you are I have known the 'Dance hosts' to offer private tuition and when the Queens Room has not been available then they have used the G32.

 

Should private lessons not be conducive my advice would be to download one or two waltzes onto your iPhone and, when you have picked up the basic steps with the instructors,  head into G32 on a quiet part of the day and have a practice.

 

 

[Pushpit]

4 hours ago, Smokeyham said:

Can anyone advise if waltz lessons are offered on the Queen Mary 2 on Transatlantic crossings?  If so, when are they typically offered and is a sign up available/recommended?

The thread below was from a crossing starting 15 December 2023 and I put every daily programme in there, and the waltz was on day 2 (16 December). As already mentioned there's no sign up or availability issue, the teachers just work around whoever turns up - usually a pretty sizeable contingent - and within 5 minutes everyone is arranged up. It is just an introduction, it would work better if you did get some lessons in before. The onboard sessions are good for giving you self confidence if you already know the basics.  If you find local dance classes not at the right time for you, just ring up or Facebook the teacher, they are often happy to do private lessons for a suitable fee.

 

 

[D&N]

In June 2022 this was the schedule of dance lessons offered in the Queens Room on our QM2 crossings. Where two times were shown the morning was beginners and afternoons improvers/intermediate. Not sure who decides what is offered. I got the impression that the pro dancers probably specialised in Latin rather than Ballroom.

 

Westbound
Day 2 Sequence 10am
Day 3 Cha Cha 12:15pm & 5pm
Day 4 Tango 11:15am & 5pm
Day 5 Rumba 11am & 5pm
Day 6 Sequence 11am
Day 7 Salsa 12:15pm
Eastbound
Day 2 Sequence 11am
Day 3 Waltz 11am
Day 4 Cha Cha 11am & 5pm
Day 5 Tango 11am & 5pm
Day 6 Sequence 11am
Day 7 Jive 10am

[D&N]

9 hours ago, Smokeyham said:

Can anyone advise if waltz lessons are offered on the Queen Mary 2 on Transatlantic crossings?  If so, when are they typically offered and is a sign up available/recommended?

Thanks.

 

P.S. We know it would be better to take these on land in advance, but our circumstances don't allow for this.

Quoting from your recent post in the old "Dancing" thread; I assume that distance is one reason that having lessons on land is difficult:  "We will try to learn from YouTube dance lessons, though we live a long distance apart and so cannot practice together."

 

I don't think YouTube will be very effective in teaching a beginner to dance. It has it's uses; experienced dancers will probably pick up the steps of a sequence dance from it, or be reminded of a variation they have been taught in the past. For a beginner there is no review function to make sure that you are actually doing what is shown in the video and not your own interpretation of that.

 

If it is possible, could you look into taking lessons in different locations? Most classes will accept singles and they pair them up with another single or sometimes the teacher has a few assistants who can dance both the leader or followers part. The key would be to make sure that both teachers were affiliated to the same association and following the same syllabus. Even if they are hundreds of miles apart they may know or be aware of each other and be prepared to liaise to ensure you both were taught the same things.

 

There will be many dance associations in the US. Here's two resources I've found in a quick search that you could make enquiries to: 

https://usadance.org/page/DanceSportCouncil

https://aidadance.org/pages/members/Default.asp

The DanceSport one is aimed at competitions but someone there should be able to direct you to suitable organisations.

 

Relying on learning on board is unlikely to be very successful. You'll probably struggle to learn enough in the time available to actually dance in the evening. But failing all else, just get yourselves in a ballroom hold (you should manage to learn that from YouTube); heads up and slightly to the left, that's so you can see over each others shoulders what is happening around you; on no account look down at your feet as it puts you off balance, and simply walk round the floor in an anti-clockwise direction in time to the music. It is the responsibility of the "serious" dancers not to bang into you. Although if you come to another couple obstructing your way it is your responsibility to take some avoiding action and not crash into them.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 12 by D&N

[jumpjump]

Do they still have dance hosts in the evening?

[Dancer Bob]

I was told by a travel agent a few months ago that Cunard said they were going to put two of something like dance hosts or a professional couple on board QM2. The details were a little bit questionable, I'm not sure what the reality will be.

Unfortunately, I must agree with D&N. I've never seen anyone use the dance lessons in the evening unless they already knew the figures. But if you ask experienced dancers a simple question like "Can you help me find the right beat to start on?" you will find many of us quite helpful.

Good point from Bell Boy about shoes.

[Smokeyham]

Thanks for all of these great suggestions and information!

 

[Dancer Bob]

To explain the problem a bit further, assuming slow waltz, complete beginner, just enough to get around a Cunard dance floor:

Box step and Progressive Closed Changes, (variation on the box step), are all you really need. I can show you how to move your feet in 1/2 hour. Add an amalgamation called “Basic 18” (variations on Closed Changes), and you have all a beginner can really use. The Basic 18 is also Type C Left and Right turns from American style, so it's valid for both International and American. Maybe a couple of hours, just to move your feet.

BUT- you're dancing with a partner, to music. That makes it between one and two orders of magnitude more complex. I searched for basic waltz videos, everything I found had serious deficiencies at some point. Distance learning doesn't work until you know what to look for in the video.

The two teacher organisations I'm familiar with are AIDA and Dance Vision, DVIDA. USA Dance chapters have social dances, but I'm only familiar with Florida, Tampa Bay area.

 

[mia mom]

Are dance hosts back on all Cunard ships now, or only for certain voyages? 

[Bell Boy]

13 hours ago, mia mom said:

Are dance hosts back on all Cunard ships now, or only for certain voyages? 

A Dance 'Couple' ( male & female) are in the ballroom every evening as hosts ,  not to be confused with a professional dance couple who are responsible for the midday lessons or the occasional dance performance in the Queens Room. 

[sonoma03]

On 4/5/2024 at 12:24 PM, mia mom said:

Are dance hosts back on all Cunard ships now, or only for certain voyages? 

Only for certain voyages.  I asked Cunard specifically about the Queen Elizabeth since I'm considering an Alaska cruise on QE.  They said there are no dance hosts on Alaska or Australia voyages.  They do have them on repositioning cruises and Japan itineraries.