| By
Heidi Cruwys
Blame it on Michael Stylianos – it was
his doing! Just after coffee, he completely
transformed the Paso Doble of an amateur couple
he had never taught before in just 30 minutes.
How
did he do it? Simply by changing the visual
contrast in height and width between the dancers
and maximising shapes through their body and
arms. By tweaking the areas that made such a
difference to the way the couple looked together,
he stressed, yet again, how achieving more floor
presence could help you achieve more recognition
in competitive dance.
The
day had begun with Raymond Miles’s talk
on a class variation in Tango and Waltz. With
a strong performance from Richard Miles and
Bianca Grover, the latter looking at ease in
her debut lecture for Raymond, it was well-presented,
and the audience left the floor comfortable
with the routine.
Moving
on to Waltz, Richard and Bianca showed excellent
use of timing. The variation was not too syncopated,
which allowed the dancers to move softly from
one figure to the next.
Nicola
Nordin, assisted by Alejandro Hernandez, opened
the Latin session. They began with a fabulous
performance of the Samba and Jive. The couple
concentrated on some tricky areas, which, at
times, left the audience in fits of laughter.
But finally everyone seemed to grasp the variations.
As always, Nicola’s bubbly personality
made it fun to learn.
Vernon
Kemp, assisted by Diana Wykes, gave the lecture
on Classical Sequence. The focus was on structure
and timing. The Boston Two Step was used as
an example. The 6/8 time signature and how to
express it correctly – expected of candidates
at bronze level and above – was demonstrated
to music.
Vernon
looked in detail at the basic actions of Boston
Two Step, walks, and the Pas de Basque. He pointed
out how on the walks, many dancers anticipated
the turn, which led to incorrect footwork on
step 3, and how the walks, in contrast to the
Pas de Basque, have no preparatory action. Using
link steps, he also explained the preparatory
action commencing at the end of the previous
bar of music required in Pas de Basque.
And
so, on to Anne Lingard’s lecture on Foxtrot
and Quickstep. Anne was assisted by Jonathan
Reed and Margaret Preedy, who preformed a lovely,
flowing amalgamation of figures in Foxtrot,
and a lively and bright Quickstep variation.
I found the figures very suitable for pupils
moving from gold syllabus to non-syllabus work,
or juvenile to junior. Suffice to say we left
the floor with quite a few innovative ideas.
By
Simon Cruwys
Club
Dance ‘Club Salsa’
The first lecture of the afternoon was by Richard
Marcel, ably assisted by Suzanne Hammond. Richard
demonstrated in the usual stylish and charismatic
way we have come to expect of this top Salsa
exponent, and everyone who took part seemed
delighted with what they had achieved.
Richard
stressed the importance of dancing with “a
freedom of expression and individual interpretation”.
He ended the lecture with an enjoyable mini
freestyle showcase with Suzanne.
Modern
Ballroom ‘Masterclass’
This was a fantastic lecture by Monica Needham,
superbly assisted by World Amateur Ballroom
Champions Arunas Bizokas and Edita Daniute.
Monica
covered certain important points, which not
only related to the Tango, the dance chosen
for the lecture, but to all ballroom dances.
One was on allowing the lady to be on her own
balance, over her own feet.
Monica
pointed out the man often disturbs this balance
through the overuse of his upper body and frame.
She stressed on power from foot to floor while
maintaining a long, light and upright poise,
and the need for compression through the knees
to instigate body movement – all of which
gives the lady the necessary time to respond.
Monica
said today’s Tango has, through choreography,
become much quicker. So much so that it leads
to ‘body flight’. The very talented
Arunas and Edita demonstrated this with an amalgamation
of figures. Overall, an informative and inspirational
lecture.
Latin
American ‘Above Gold Star Variations’
Next came two super variations presented by
Alison Fulham, ably assisted by Graham Oswick.
The chosen dances were Cha Cha Cha and Rumba,
and the audience received both with great appreciation.
The
Cha Cha Cha included combinations of flicks,
ronde and spirals, with very good use of varying
syncopations, while the Rumba developed figures
such as the Aida, New York, and Cucaracha.
Alison’s
light-hearted but clear delivery made the learning
easier. I am sure the variations will be widely
used.
DFR
Trilogy ‘Country & Western’
The first of a hat-trick for the DFR Committee
was a line dance with a Latin American feel.
Steps easily relating to the Cha Cha Cha made
it easy for everyone to pick up. Some very clever
turns and checking figures kept everyone on
their toes, though – to lose concentration
when the music came on was fatal, as I found
out on more than one occasion.
‘Rock
‘n’ Roll’
Next up, a very ‘useable’ amalgamation
suitable for classes of mixed abilities, interesting
turns and changes of positions with flicks,
Basic Square and so much more, all linked together
smoothly to avoid unnecessary stress to your
class.
‘Disco
Freestyle Routine’
The last chance to dance at this year’s
Congress was not wasted. The floor was abuzz
with this super routine, and the music from
Donna Summer seemed to lift everyone at the
end of this intense day of learning –
among them DFR Chairman Yvonne Taylor Hill,
who couldn’t help but mime into the microphone
whilst boogying away.
Well
done everybody who took part. If you didn’t
make it this year, make sure you don’t
miss this valuable experience next time around. |
