Year: 2010

Gumbo Countdown

We set off for the Gumbo Dancesport Championships in 12 days. It must be time to start obsessing about getting ready. This will be our first time flying to a comp. It’s gonna be a major troop movement. We are dancing in some events where costumes are allowed, and some events where they aren’t, so I have to decide about taking my gowns and whether to check them or try to carry them onto what’s likely to be a wee little aircraft. Last year I bought this practice dress for Smooth and I just got an outfit (this top and this skirt) for Rhythm, so I will be pretty well fixed without gowns too. As a fan of packing light, I’m tempted not to take the gowns, but I don’t know yet.

At this point it’s much more fun to obsess about packing and preparations than to really focus on any possible shortcomings in our dancing. As always, we haven’t practiced as much as we’d like or taken as many lessons as we’d hoped for, but we have our new routines and we are pretty good at selling a performance. Plus, we are both really up for a vacation, so we want to make sure we enjoy this trip regardless of our placements. Dressing up, pinning on the number, and putting on the show is half the fun. Being in a new place will be the other half.

Not that a ribbon or two wouldn’t be nice.

dance events

Tangoing into the hearts of millions.

Post author By lauraet
Post date June 6, 2010
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Well, hundreds. Okay, several dozen.

Yesterday was the Madison Studio recital at Zuver Center and we had a great time. Huge thanks are due to Kelly & Steve for coming out to cheer us on and to video our performance for us. We got lots of positive feedback on our performance, which is always wonderful to hear. After doing a lot of competitions and less formal exhibitions, it felt a little strange to be up on the stage all by ourselves with the audience watching us. In a perfect world I think we’d have routines choreographed just for this purpose–something with lots of flashy open work and very few steps in closed hold.

This video clip also shows the group that danced right after us, which was the Czardas number from Swan Lake. Most if not all of the Czardas are in the ballet class I take on Thursday nights. When the class danced its number later in the program, Daniel asked me why I wasn’t out there with them. I just gave him a look. But I am planning to go back on pointe again later this year, so maybe next year?

Here’s the video–let us know what you think of our performance!

competitions lessons

Mid-Summer Bummer

We just got word yesterday that this year’s SouthernStar Mid-Summer Classic has been canceled due to “multiple factors beyond [the organizers’] control.” It’s hard not to wonder what happened, given that the date had been scheduled long ago and the organizers were already promoting the competition. We’re sad to be missing the comp this year. It is lots of fun and very friendly, and I for one was looking forward to riding Sheikra again.

But! We do have other treats coming up this summer. I just finished booking our flight to Baton Rouge for the Gumbo Dancesport Championship–we leave a month from today. We’ve heard this is a great, well-run comp and we are excited to participate after missing it last year. Also, with Tampa off the agenda, we have a little more money in the dance budget, just in time to sign up for a coaching session in early July with Andre & Natalie Paramonov. I never thought that after only a few years dancing together & competing we’d be exposed to such high-level instruction. It gives me that “Wow, we are really doing this!” feeling.

Bummers happen, but the great thing about ballroom dancing is that there’s always something else to look forward to: another comp, another lesson, or maybe just a new pair of shoes… *wiggles eyebrows*

behind the curtain dance events

We have chosen!

(insert dramatic orchestral flourish here)

At our lesson today with Eddie we told him about the recital performance. He thought we should do a tango because it is more dynamic & dramatic than waltz or foxtrot. We got to work on song suggestions and he came up with a good one: “Pa’ Bailar–Siempre Quiero Mas” by Bajofondo. (link goes to Amazon.com MP3 page with a sample you can play)

Kelly suggested “Bust Your Windows”–that was a close runner-up but did not fit the theme of “Times of our Lives.” On reflection, though, I suppose wanting to bust the windows out of someone’s car is an important time in one’s life…

THANKS to everyone who weighed in yesterday. We are excited about this performance! Come see us and a whole lot of other talented dancers on June 4 at 2 p.m. at Zuver Center.

behind the curtain dance events

Breaking news!

This afternoon, Daniel and I went over to the Madison Studio to practice for an hour or so before the studio’s recital rehearsal. As we were getting ready to leave and I was paying for a new dance card, one of the moms asked if we would be performing in the recital. I said (maybe with a little touch of mischief) “We haven’t been invited.” Ms. Madison immediately got big excited eyes and said “Oh! Oh! Do you want to? Because that would be great! The programs haven’t even been typed up yet, so we could totally put you in! I know right where you could go, too!”

We looked at each other for about .05 seconds before agreeing. Now we have to choose one of our three Smooth routines (waltz, tango, or foxtrot) and pick out a song that fits the recital’s theme, “Times of our Lives.” I want to do a tango because I think it’s our flashiest number, but the best song I can think of is a waltz: “Time in a Bottle.” Please leave suggestions in the comments! The recital is in just a couple of weeks, so we have to decide quickly.

We hope you’ll come to see us perform, and to watch some great dancing from our friends at Madison Studio: June 4 at 2:00 p.m. at Zuver Center on the Mount de Sales campus.

dance events social dancing

CGTC Foundation Spring Soirée

Post author By lauraet
Post date April 26, 2010
No Comments on CGTC Foundation Spring Soirée

What is a “Soirée,” exactly? This past Friday, the new president of Central Georgia Technical College posed that question at the CGTC Foundation’s Spring Soirée. He then explained that a soirée is just like a shindig, except you have to dress up. That’s a good enough answer for me!

This particular soirée was a fundraising event for Central Georgia Technical College’s Foundation, benefiting their scholarships and programs, and it was a lovely evening. Since our USA Dance chapter hasn’t been doing formal dances at the Idle Hour Country Club for the last couple of years, I’d kind of forgotten how nice the Idle Hour is. It’s just the kind of place one can walk into while wearing a ballgown and not feel massively overdressed. I did, however, cause a momentary crisis of confidence in a woman who arrived at the same time we did–she looked at my gown and at her linen pants and blouse and said “I hope we’re not going to the same event!”

Daniel and I sat down with Paula East and several other dancers from our group and enjoyed an elegant meal and a glass of wine, then got up to dance to the band Reflections–they were excellent and a lot of fun. During the band breaks we helped Paula teach some salsa steps to the rest of the guests, and we led some line dances. At the end of the night, Daniel sang with the band while their singer came out from behind the microphone for a rumba lesson from Jim Riley. She is nearly as good a dancer as she is a singer.

It was a great evening. Seeing everyone dressed up, having a nice meal, and enjoying good dancing to live music is always so much fun. These kinds of events make me glad to be a dancer because I know I’ll always be able to participate when a band and a dancefloor are available.

Here are a couple of videos from Friday night–all of us dancing a swing to “In the Mood,” and Jim leading his line dance to “New York, New York.”

dance events Uncategorized

Red Hat Cha-Cha

On Friday, April 16, Daniel and I, along with Paula East, visited Carlyle Place to perform an exhibition at their Red Hat Society luncheon. Paula had arranged to do a short demonstration with Will Norris, the activities director (and favorite beau of all the Red Hats, I’m fairly sure). Then Daniel and I got to dance 3 dances: waltz, cha-cha, and foxtrot. It was so much fun, and it all came together so quickly that I didn’t have time to get nervous. Paula called me on Tuesday to see if we could do it, and I went to see her last night to pick up some music and get a rundown of the planned program. As she pointed out, it’s a good thing we have worked together before and can do this sort of thing with no rehearsal!

We danced on the stage in the “Grande Ballroom,” where someone (probably Will) had even put down a wooden floor for us. The Society ladies were a great audience and very welcoming, and Carlyle Place itself is absolutely gorgeous–perfect landscaping, elegant public areas, and delicious food: we got to eat lunch after we danced, and packed away an embarrassing quantity of chicken salad and croissants. I even ate 2 strawberry tartlets (don’t tell)!

Our friend Agnes Bikus, who is also on the board of USA Dance Greater Macon #6059, was kind enough to capture our performance on video: