Hooray! After a lovely rest from teaching, I am happy to be offering my favorite class again – this time in Berkeley, CA.  So many people think that they can’t dance but this three session series will change your mind.  I will offer a different series each month starting January 12.  Class one is about how to ‘hold’ your partner so you can actually move together – comfortably. You will do some ‘slow dancing’  or the one step, incorporate some turns and close the hour with the merengue – a two count dance. Merengue music and dance is some of the happiest music I know.

Class two advances to a simple four count hustle step that works to so much music. It introduces the connection you need for swing and salsa and faster dances.  The turns are easy once you understand how to connect with your partner.

Class three includes a bit of waltz, actually country waltz,  a three count walking dance that is challenging because it ‘travels’ but oh so useful at those weddings and bar mitzvah’s.  The class chooses one more dance – often swing or rumba – to close out the sessions.

It is great fun and in a small class, you learn so much.  Email shirley@comeoutdancing.com for registration or with questions.

Monthly dances offer you a chance to learn some contra dances during the early part of the evening and to do some more complicated patterns later in the evening. Live music.

Next Dance is Saturday, April 4 in the UUCA social hall off of Briarcliff Road.

Their website has some photos of basic contra dance moves like the Star left shown here.

And you can carry a picnic and even dance a little on the sidewalk.

Terry  Harper and her Quartet are featured on  Thursday April 14.

Terry Harper has been performing as both a pianist and vocalist for over 25 years and has a smooth skilled group of musicians to entertain you.

The lesson is at 7pm. The band plays from 8pm until 11pm and there is some really good Louisiana food catered at the Knights of Columbus for these monthly dances.

Rosie Ledet and the Zydeco Playboys will keep you moving, there is a cash bar and lots of friendly people. Email shirley@comeoutdancing.com if you want to go. We save a little off the entry price if we can get a group of 5 dancers to go. More details on their website www.aczadance.org or mine on the calendar at www.comeoutdancing.com.

The rumba rhythm is a four count rhythm – and most songs are written in four or eight count phrases, so this dance ‘works’ or fits a huge amount of music.

Ballads especially make great rumbas. So do love songs. Often half of the Grammy nominees are a rhythm that fits either American rumba or its European cousin, the bossanova. (Adele, Duffy, Maroon 5, Sara Barielles, Leona Lewis, even Ne-Yo are some of the Grammy 2009 artists whose songs include some rumbas.)

If you are still on the fence, remember that rumba is essentially slow salsa and is also related to Country Western Nightclub two step. Since rumba is a slow dance, it is useful to learn some moves in rumba and then transfer them to salsa.

We dance at the studio on the square in Decatur – next door to the Raging Burrito restaurant.

This Friday, we will have supper at Raging Burrito before the lesson.  We usually gather about 6:30pm.

The lesson fee on Fridays is a sliding scale of $7 to $15.

The second hour of dance in the studio at 9pm varies a bit each week and those present usually request music and dances.

We review the dances we have learned recently: Two step, waltz and tango are the last 3 dances we learned.

Contra dancers take over the social hall at UUCA on Saturday March 7.

Waltz lovers dance Sunday, March 8 at Knights of Columbus.

Cajun Dancers enjoy live music on Saturday March 14 at Knights of Columbus.

Dance to the the Atlanta Blue Notes at Trilogy on Saturday, March 21.

Salsa makes Mondays spicy

You will find yourself looking forward to Mondays – once you start coming out for classes in beginning salsa. On Mondays, at 7pm, in the Several Dancers Core Studios in Decatur, you will learn to move to Latin music and enjoy dancing to the rhythms. Improvers in the class learn to link moves together and to create their own style on the floor. You will get some social dance time when you join us at Pura Vida Tapas on the third Friday each month:  March 20 and April 17. Shirley is teaching Mondays at 7pm at the Studio in Decatur. You can ‘drop in’ for $12 a class or $40 gets you the whole month of classes – and in March that is 5 classes.

The March series is full but it is the perfect time to register for April’s beginning dance class.

The next class series starts April 5 and will run for 3 Sunday afternoons.

(We will meet on Easter Sunday.)

We meet in Decatur at 2pm. Cost is $50 per person.

Our focus is learning how to lead and follow a partner to various tempos..

Email shirley@comeoutdancing.com to register. Class is limited to 7 students.

Peach State Dance Weekend is March 20, 21, 22

Each year, this weekend draws hundreds of dancers.

And they are at all levels and so are the classes.

It features terrific classes, big dances, competitions and performances by national champions. Treat yourself.

(It is officially country dance but that includes waltz, swing, hustle, and more.)

Photos from Friday Nights

If you have been dancing this month on Fridays, check out the photos in the Gallery for “Friday Night Dancers”,

You may see yourself – or a friend! And note that “Pink” is on the floor for this photo.