Cha Cha Technique Lesson...Largo Steps It Up.

Hi gang! Well, I had a lesson with Largo this week... and it has been decided somewhere that because RT and I will be working on my routine, Largo will start working with me on technique. I've been waiting for this.... Up to this point Largo has been introducing me to new steps and helping me a bit with timing, but pretty much leaving the Technique up to RT. I had a preview of it in my last lesson with the Cuban walks he had me do... Well tonight he decided to work on my Cha Cha locks.

We warmed up with a musicless Hustle... after a while it was kinda boring.

"Dude, we need tunes." I tell him.

"Tunes? Music? Ok." and we walk over to put on a Hustle

We finished my warm up and I said "Ok boss what are we working on today?"

"Tango." He says seriously.

"Really?" I said, as I furrowed my brow... I was almost excited about it only because I NEVER work on Tango and of all the smooth dances I'd like to be better at that one.. but Largo and I have NEVER done a tango ever in life, so I knew he was kidding.

"Yes, Tango." He starts to smile.

"Seriously? Well I mean if you want to...but you and I have never Tangoed... are you sure?"

"No, no Tango..." he says as he drops his arm around my shoulders and chuckles, "Cha Cha Lock Steps." he says.

"Ok..." I say...it's a better choice anyway given my routine and all.

"Ok, Cha Cha locks show me." and he took a couple of steps away from me.

Oh no! Dancing on my own again! I'm gonna have to grow up and learn to do this stuff on my own outside of my own apartment I guess. But see...when I'm asked to do something on my own...without the benefit of being connected to a dance partner, even if they're just holding my hand so I can feed off of their energy...my mind goes blank. I couldn't remember what a Cha Cha lock was!

I just kind of stood there for a minute... "Ok, you want me to do locks..."

"Yes, you know lock steps." Largo replies and does an example for me.

"Oh right... ok..." I think I'm remembering.

So I try it... and two steps into it Largo stops me.

"No! Sharper! Like this!" and he does the lock steps again putting accent on what I call the lock part when the dancer is on their toes and the ankles are together.

"Ok...give me a minute I've gotta figure this out." I reply and try again.

"No! Do it again!" Largo snaps!

Where did drill Sargent Largo come from? I've seen him do this with other students but it's my first time dealing with it... and conversely his first time dealing with me for technique. :-)

"Fine!" I retort. Giving myself one more time to improve, and him one more time to snap at me before serious sarcasm strikes. I go back to the start of the floor and begin working my way across in lock steps. About half way through I was making them sharper and not falling over...

"Yes better! Now backwards." Largo says.

"You're kidding... I don't even have forward down yet!" I snap.

"Backwards." Largo states and I start, and after each time my ankles are together I hear "PUSH!" from Largo... meaning I'm supposed to push back on my front foot instead of just plainly taking a step back. Well I do it... but... it seems I'm doing a small Rounde to get my one foot behind the other.

"NO! Not this... (he mimics me) this... close together (he does it correctly) yours is like Samba."

"Oh cool that Samba step... cool.. I want to learn that one... it looks awesome!" I tell him.

"Not today... today is locks."

Why do I now feel like I have to salute Largo?

"*Sigh* Fine, today is locks, ok so I have to pass instead of go around." I try it again.

After the first couple I feel myself pushing a lot more from the front foot... this has got to be better, I'm also much closer to passing my feet instead of sweeping around.

"Stop going up... here," Largo says as he plants his hand firmly on my shoulder "take it up in here," he says as he crunches his stomach muscles.

"Ok... so absorb any height change in my core so I don't pop up... yeah that's almost going to work."

"Just do it."

I let out an overly sarcastic "Fantastic."

To which I get a very chipper "Absolutely!" into my ear from Largo. ("Absolutely" is his favorite word of late).

Which sent me from being irritated, into hysterically laughing.

So there I was going backwards and forwards with my cha cha locks with Largo's hand pushing me down so I didn't pop up. I was showing improvement, but I was growing frustrated at the drilling too... I don't like a full lesson of drilling. The dance studio is my happy place, and I don't like to leave my happy place frustrated after drills... that's how I get to the point of thinking I need to stop dancing. After we went up and down the floor again I stopped....

"I don't know if you've heard... but I don't do all technique lessons... we're going to have to put this into the dance or something and actually dance." I tell him.

"Ok we will, but one more time first." he says... and I feel that Drill Sargent Largo has left the building....and I get my regular Largo back. Whew!

So one more time, and I feel that it's better, my hips were working, probably not exactly right, but better than before. I was actually quite pleased with my progression.

Then we moved on to doing actual Cha Cha... and it took me a second, it always does, to apply it into the actual dance... but the locks did feel better. YAY!

Then on to Rumba, just a review of the steps and a few pointers about which direction to face on some pivots. During my Cuban walks Largo pulled down on my ponytail so that I couldn't look down if I wanted to... that was interesting... good thing it doesn't hurt when my hair gets yanked. :-)

Then we finished up with some "dance to the beat in Largo's head" East Coast Swing. We had to do that because everyone else on the floor was doing everything but a rhythm dance, so I just followed Largo to whatever pace he was setting. That ended up being good, but I wasn't following very well. I was a tad distracted because my right ankle started rolling my shoes... it's not strong enough for me to be dancing in heels yet, but it's getting better. None of which I told Largo... and he had me review a couple of steps to make sure I was balancing right... I just tried to hold my feet so that I wouldn't twist my ankle... I've been given strict instructions by RT, now that I have my new shoes, that it's ok if I fall... as long as I don't break anything like an arm or a leg or something.

We ended the lesson playing up one of our running jokes, which I get a kick out of, Largo absolutely cracks me up!

Heads up gang... I'm out of town on business again... I'll try and keep up with the blog and e-mails... but if you don't hear from me you know why.
Happy Dancing!

My Routine.... Practice #1 Down...A Million More to Go!

Well last Thursday was my first practice for my routine. I had walked in the studio coming off, not one of the easiest days, and I knew this time for learning wasn't going to be full of dancing...more stepping it out. I had watched the routine a good 10 or 15 times... but I couldn't really retain it, I need to go through it to retain it. RT picks me up for my lesson, I have my DVD in hand and we walk over to the studio TV for review.

"Did you watch this?" RT asks...

"Yeah but I can't remember any of it... I have to walk through it first or it's not going to stick." I respond, I already must have sounded anxious about it.

"It's ok.. you'll get it." He tells me.

Then it dawns on me, and I basically start pleading..."Yeah ok but can we dance for like 5 minutes before we do this? If we don't actually dance for a few minutes before we do this I'm going to absolutely spazz out."

"You want to dance for a few minutes? Ok, not Hustle (that was the song playing) um... how about a Salsa?" He says as he walks to the music machine (very close to the TV) to put on a Salsa.

"I'd never turn you down for one of those!" I smile back and off we went in my ballroom shoes that I was still getting used to.

It wasn't a bad Salsa, it was far from my best...because of the shoes! At this point they were still a little achy and I hadn't put my heel grippers in them yet so the fit wasn't perfect, but I was trying to keep up. Then RT starts asking me about the shoes..

"How are they?"

(spin)

"I hate them."

(basic, then another spin)

I add "It's a crime to make people dance in shoes like this I'm telling you." Kind of forgetting that the guys that dance Rhythm and Latin in Ballroom often wear 2 inch heels themselves. I still think it's a crime.

(basic, under-arm turn)

"Stay grounded... you're up, stop popping up." RT tells me... of course popping up is a problem I've always had... currently made worse by... you guessed it... my new shoes!

(spin)

"I'm 'up' because my feet want out of these shoes! Staying grounded would mean I have them figured out, and I don't yet." I retort... and then lead into a spin that I completely bobbled on.

(Coca-cola spin)

We also worked on the "Miami Special" which I said was pretty bad... RT said was ok... I think he's lowering his standards for me on that one.

Salsa over and I was happy to have danced for a minute or two...actually given that it was an actual Salsa song we probably danced for 4-6 minutes...either way I felt de-stressed... so we moved on to look at my choreography.

Before we get into how I'm doing on this.... I would like to say that one of my BIGGEST fears about this was having RT forget my routine, or constantly have to review the DVD mid lesson, or *gasp!* forget it mid performance when we get to that point. I fear this because of ALL the routines all the pros have to remember... each instructor has multiple students that have multiple routines RT is no exception to that. He must have a TON of routines running through his head at any given time and here I was asking him to remember yet another one.

Well as soon as I saw my Choreography DVD which normally contains the Choreographer and a female pro to be the student follow part.... My DVD actually has RT and TNT doing my routine with the Choreographer off screen saying the counts! When I saw that I was impressed! I don't have to be so afraid of RT forgetting it because he's already been through it! Now I just have to be afraid of not being able to bring up my performance to it's proper level... but I'll freak out about that in due time.

So we take a look at the first few measures of the DVD and before I'm even really analyzing what we're looking at he's stopped it and we start working. First few measures, not so bad...although I'm starting with my left foot back... I haven't started counting yet either... but I'm sure that will happen as I practice at home. Next few measures I'm thinking this isn't going to be so bad... Until I end up getting stuck on one part. Those that have worked with me know... if I don't catch on to something to my own satisfaction pretty much right away... I become frustrated.

"UGH!" I yell, followed by one of my classic foot stamps that lets out my frustration.

"Don't worry, you'll get it." RT calmly states.

"Not fast enough!" I retort through gritted teeth.

We must have gone through that mini conversation about 6 or 7 times throughout the lesson. We got to the little bit of actual open work.... and I can do it... of course I'm staring at his feet the whole time, which is a habit I'm going to have to break NOW. We reviewed the leg on his hip bit...which is a bit rough around the edges...and I think for that part I'm going to have to count to get it right. Also the attitude behind that whole sequence is going to depend on the song I decide we're going to dance this Cha to.

I REALLY REALLY wanted to make it through the whole thing once... even just blocking it... just so I had some level of physical memory when I go to watch the DVD. In the end I think we made it just about half way. Also in speaking to some other students I guess it's not usual to go through the whole thing in the first practice. Which I didn't know... but I still wanted to make it to the end.

So now I study... and I review... and I try to start counting... and I try not to spend every dime I have on practice lessons because this routine is not going to be my swan song.

Wish me luck!

Lesson with Largo and my New Shoes...

Well they’re here. I officially have ballroom shoes. 1.6” Cuban heeled ballroom shoes… which officially makes me just a tad under 6 feet tall on the dance floor… grrr… I don’t want to be taller on the dance floor, but my desire to have everything look right for the rest of what will be my dancing hobby outweighs that. I had received the best fitting shoes while I was away, so the very first time I had to wear them straight out of the box was for a party. I hated every minute of it. I was out of control, I didn’t feel like I could feel the floor like before, RT told me to brush the shoes, (actually he pulled me over to where the studio shoe brush lives, and almost brushed my shoes for me….nobody touches my feet.) Brushing only helped marginally. The only good thing I’ll say about my first trial run is that I did keep these shoes on for the entire party, which means, like it or not, these are keepers.

Largo was lucky enough to be the first one to really help me test out my new shoes a few days later. He was very excited, I was pessimistically cautious to say the least. We started with Hustle, and I once again was sliding everywhere, but while I seem to have trouble stopping my spins, I can in fact execute them just about the same…which is promising.

We then moved on to Cuban Walks… well let me tell you… I HATE dancing by myself in the ballroom! Largo would take a few steps away from me…then ask me to Cuban Walk towards him… UGH! In my former shoes, my Cuban walks actually had received some level of compliment… in my new ballroom shoes my balance was all thrown off and I couldn’t execute them the same, which made me exceptionally frustrated. After a minute I told him that I hate dancing by myself… so he then took my hands and watched my walks that way… they did improve, but they’re not at the level they were at before. I knew this was going to happen.

Shortly after that we worked on some new to me Rumba steps as well as refreshing my memory on some others… I think I’m reaching the point where note taking may be necessary to help with the remembering. I’m either getting old, or my brain is getting full.

We then worked on a little Cha Cha, and some East Coast, both of which felt completely foreign in my new shoes. What I will say about them is that they don’t hurt like I thought they would… the only possible blister location is on the inside of my left foot where the straps will be digging for a while until they stretch out. So these shoes are keepers for sure… I just wonder how long it will take me to get used to them! Another good lesson with Largo though… even though he did threaten to throw out my jazz shoes with me still in them if he saw me wearing them during a lesson again.

My Routine... Let the Practice Begin!

Last week I didn't have any lessons because I was out of town for business. However I did have my choreography done for my routine!

Let me tell you, the fact that I couldn't be there killed me! I had scheduled it thinking I would be in town, and forgot to tell my employer that I would prefer not to travel at least on the day of the choreography. Being that it's very difficult to get a choreography/coaching scheduled I decided to let it go on without me. A student doesn't need to be present for a choreography because the final is recorded on DVD to take home and practice. I did call several times during my appointment to try and get an idea of what was going on. All I heard from multiple sources was "You're going to like it, but especially the second half." That was all I had to keep me going the whole week until I could get home and be in the studio on Friday to see the recording. Knowing I would need to record the event for this blog, I left my camera with KIT all week, and she was nice enough to get a few pictures and some video for all of you to see!

My choreographer is Stephen Knight he is well known for his choreography so I was lucky to get my appointment with him (yet another reason why I didn't cancel). I was advised from several fellow students (including Bonnie and Michael of Bonnie's Belle Gowns) that they have all been pleased with their routines.

The dance, as we all know... is a Cha Cha. I had had a few discussions with RT and TNT (TNT was there to dance the "follow" part in my recording) about what I was looking for. I wanted the Cha Cha to be classic fun and flirty, not a modern Hip Hop stylized version. I wanted to have a fair amount of spins, and if possible showcase my flexibility.

I haven't watched the DVD much yet, but I think it's going to be a good dance! I have my first practice set up with RT this week... I don't know how much of the routine I'm going to be able to retain before I've been through it a couple of times...but I sure will try!



















Well the pictures look like they were having a good time! I can't wait to start practicing!

My Routine... The Votes are In!

I love my readers we all know this... and with a little pushing I actually got some of you to vote! The red dress was up for a long time.... then at the last minute.... a DEAD TIE!



So you know what that means? I get to choose! Now normally I'd say my mind is subject to change... but no... I know which dress is going to be right for this debut... it's the GREEN ONE!

For all the fans of the red dress... you won't be disappointed I'll wear that one too at some point in the future... but especially now that I know some elements we're including (which I'll keep to myself for a bit longer) the green one is the way to go.

Thank you very much for all of your enthusiastic participation! Updates on the progress will be coming shortly!

Lesson with RT... it's ALL about the Cha!

This week's lesson was of a singular nature.... RT picked me up for my lesson and we walked to the middle of the floor.

"What's going on? Something's up with you." He states.

Well I'm shocked... I hadn't said more than two or three words to him since I had walked in... and I didn't think I looked all that bad...sure I was all casual..but I didn't think I looked THAT bad...

"I'm getting over a cold, this is the best I've felt in 4 days." I reply.

RT puts the music on for Salsa and tells me "I could tell just by looking at you something's going on." and he starts his lead.

Mid lead he said one word, "Shoes?"

"I've been in an e-mailing war with the company... I have a pair coming on Saturday...we'll see if they work." (My mission for Cuban heeled Ballroom shoes is nearly complete!)

"Good." and we pick up as if he never asked.

I was following pretty well... I followed a variation on a combination we've done before... really very well, but the end wasn't quite right... RT then focused on it...and I screwed it up the moment he wanted me to think about it. Figures.



Next up was Cha Cha... My choreography for my routine is happening on Monday (well today I guess) I won't be there for it... but I still have to work on my Cha.

The focus for the rest of the lesson was my being able to stop myself and hold my balance, paired with making sure I don't back break like a Salsa with a bent leg, but straighten and lock it instead. This was extremely frustrating.

It was 1-2-(hold for as long as RT wanted) Cha Cha (hold again without moving) 3-4. Over and over and over in all directions. Then we worked on it without the Cha in the middle. THEN we focused on my keeping my knees locked. I would start my traditional stamping and shouting...

"I've been doing my Cha Cha this way for over two years...it's going to take me longer than a minute to FIX IT!!!"

RT would just look at me.

"I know...you want to slap me about now." He'd say with a smile.

"Yeah that's about the sum of it." I'd snap back.

Over and over, and sometimes he'd put his hand on my thigh to make sure I was locking my knee... and sometimes he would just lead...and then he would make me hold a position FOREVER.

As frustrating as it was... I probably improved the most during this lesson then I felt like I have in a while.

Frustrating, and not THAT much to write about because it was the same thing for the entire lesson....BUT... I'm very pleased with the progression.

My Routine.... Your Opinion on my Costume!

Well plans for my routine just keep rolling right along... The coaching is scheduled, even though I'll be out on business... (don't even get me started on that one). I'll write about that later. I'm still on a hard core mission for shoes. I'm searching for 1.5" Cuban heels in a US size 10.5 or 11 Wide... (the wide seems to be the tricky part).

BUT... lets get down to the most exciting news yet! I stopped by the home of Bonnie's Belle Gowns this weekend to see the progress on the dress I intend to wear.... well I don't have just one.. I have TWO to choose from!!! I tried them both on... they both work! How AMAZING is that! They're not just finished yet... they need to be stoned. Bonnie and I decided on a few alterations to one as well. I'm exceptionally pleased!

See for yourself! The nearly completed dresses.... let me know which one you think I should debut my Cha Cha in!

Keep in mind.. I had run over to Bonnie and Michael's home just after work out class, so hair was just yanked back, and I was not wearing a drop of makeup... so please focus on the dress, and not the gal that's in them!















Shoot me an e-mail or leave a comment to let me know what you think! (I can't wait to see them all done up in their sparkly stones!! But I still want to know your thoughts!)




Of course I had to get a shot with Bonnie herself! Keep an eye out for her and Michael at your Local Chicagoland Fred Astaire where they have trunk shows all during the month of February! Check out their website for details.

Lesson with RT and the Beginning of Comp Pressure

This was a good lesson with RT.... we worked on East Coast Swing, man my ECS feels rough. It seems (at least this is what I'm blaming it on) that I'm spending so much time getting all grounded in my Rumba, Cha Cha, etc that it seems I can't get any lift in my swing... it's weird. I don't know when it will come back...but ECS isn't really what I want to focus on right now.

We also worked on Bolero again... ok.. ok.. I'll stop saying that I hate it already! I still don't know what the basic is... I know it's the same pattern as Int'l Rumba...but I really just follow. Which is kind of cool. It does give me the opportunity to work on some big sweeping arm movements. If you've ever seen me dance you can plainly see that I don't do arm styling very well. It was a pretty quiet night, which around this studio is pretty rare... I was enjoying all the open space on the floor. I saw Largo out of the corner of my eye watching me, I tried to block it out... the more people that watch me...the more I try and pour all of my focus into my dance partner and block the onlookers out... I'm not there to put on a show... I'm there to learn and practice. Largo shouts out my full name... I shout back... "Stop watching [Largo]!" He laughed and RT smiled.

Of course Bolero lead to actual Rumba... we still must work on this in every lesson. Do you remember how I wrote about looking for more technique? RT somehow got the memo... we spent a lot of time working on technique. It took me a minute to remember that I had asked for it and stop complaining. I got a lot of good pointers. It's very odd because I can execute the steps with Largo, but with RT I can get much more cuban motion... I'm not sure what that's all about, perhaps it's that I'm just more connected with RT... or that he's more connected... I don't know... Largo and I are still pretty new at working together.

Then it was Cha Cha... what on earth happened to my Cha? I was messy and tripping, and it was just awful! More Cha Cha practice for sure! I need it to come back to where it was a few months ago.

Then it was Salsa... This lesson was very late in the evening, last one of the night and for the first time in a long time we were the only ones on the floor. I didn't notice at first but most of the staff had finished their day and were actually watching my lesson. Lately everyone has been bugging me about competing.... this was the night it had started.

RT and I were dancing and TSD shouts out... "How about DanceSport Challenge Kat, Something else for you to write about on your blog."

My response without breaking stride... "Only if you pay for my entries! And I have plenty to write about on my blog!"

We continued with Salsa... I heard a couple of shouts from FAF... but I was blocking them out.. I just wanted to finish this Salsa strong.... I think I did... if not a little winded... then DWH said one of the best things....

"Nice job... it really looks like you guys have been dancing together for a while."

"Oh well thank you." I responded with a big smile.

Thus ended our lesson... Very good! I just HAVE to work on my Cha Cha! My ECS will come along...but my Cha is of the utmost importance right now.