Hello blogosphere! When I logged on to type this post and saw that I hadn't written anything since JANUARY 9th, the fact that I have been a total slacker really hit me. (In truth, this hit me several weeks ago but the point really sank in today!). I'm not really sure why I've been a total blog slacker lately, especially since I have been making SUCH nice progress on #17: Lear How to Ballroom Dance! Alas, I think my main issue is that I was having some serious trouble thinking of a witty way to talk about my ballroom escapades and thus I put writing the post off, and despite still not really having a witty way to discuss the topic, I am in the mood to write tonight and am striking while the iron is HOT!
I actually began my foray into ballroom dancing back in January after seeing a billboard on I-4 for the Arthur Murray dance studio. They offered a free 30-minute "consultation" type dance lesson before you had to make any commitments and knowing that this ballroom "thing" was on my "I'm-itching-to-do-it-sooner-than-later" list, I decided to give them a call. Indeed I did go for my 30-minute lesson after returning from my trip to Hawaii and while I had a good time, I was thoroughly disappointed with the studio and their practices. Now, in truth I was warned by my good friend Dana (who also has a super cute blog here: www.effortlessclassychich.com, Hi Dana!) that this place had a reputation for being more like a used car dealership than a dance studio, but the lesson was free so who says no? Although it wasn't quite as bad as being hounded by a cheesy salesman, they definitely used those "scare" and "urgency" tactics that are oh-too-familiar (i.e. We'll give you a lower price, but ONLY if you sign up for $600 worth of dance lessons in the next 24 hours!). I'm not into pressure or shady tactics, so although I felt a momentary pang of weakness knowing just how badly I wanted to learn to dance, I stayed strong and didn't give in.
Of course, I wasn't going to let this be the beginning and end of my dance journey, so I took to the good old World Wide Web, typed in ballroom dancing Orlando and began my research. After finding just a few places in Orlando that actually offered lessons, I stumbled upon the Avalon Dance Studio page and discovered Mr. Mark Arnott (so as to help other Orlandonians [totally just made that badass word up] who want to ballroom dance, check out his page here: http://avalondance.net/ballroom_classes). After a quick phone call whereby he gave me the down-low on his services, I was all signed up for a trial lesson.
Here are some great things about Mark:
- He offers private lessons, group lessons and workshops, so you have plenty of choices
- He is upfront with his fees and doesn't employ any shady sales tactics to get you to commit immediately
- He is perhaps the most passionate ballroom dancer that I've met (okay, I haven't really met a ton of them, but I still give him props) and hosts numerous ballroom events every single month so once you actually know how to dance, you've got a ton of options to get out there and show off your stuff
- He works on Saturdays, which is a big yay for those of us with traditional 9-5's!
- He will customize lessons for you, teaching you dances you're interested in and taking a pace that is right for you based on your skill level, strengths and weaknesses
- There's no intimidation or even being told you aren't any good! The worst I've gotten is that I have done some "interesting" things -- it's code for not doing it right, but it doesn't feel like a slap in the face!
So far, I have had three lessons with Mark in addition to my free 30-minute trial lesson and I'm signed up for two more private lessons at the moment. I won't try to hide the fact that it 'aint cheap, but I have so much fun and feel so pleased at my progress that I feel it's worth it.
Right now our lessons are focused on learning the basic tidbits of each of the "big 10" social dances (don't ask me to name all ten). Each week I learn a little more technique (keep your shoulders down, stop trying to lead, get off the balls of your feet you-former-ballet-dancer, etc.) and get to practice my moves to fun, top 40 style hits. In total I've learned teensy bits of Cha Cha, Hustle, Swing, Rumba, Salsa, Meringue, Samba, Waltz, Foxtrot and Tango. I can't say that I'm particularly good at any of them yet, but all in due time.
The plan is to stick with the lessons until I'm good enough to perform what Mark calls a "spotlight" dance at a ballroom dancing party (he says this is the closest I'll get to having a Dancing With the Stars moment, which is totally my dream. Don't you think the show would be way more interesting if they did Dancing With the Non-Stars? I need to audition for that!). I will continue to blog as I hit "milestones" in my lessons, but will wait to do one big post when I have this aforementioned spotlight on camera and feel confident enough to show it to the world.
Until then, au revoir! (P-S: Since I am going on my Europe trip in just a few short weeks, there hopefully shouldn't be as much slacker-age in the near future. Hello Mona Lisa, Trevi Fountain and Buckingham Palace!)
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