Rice Social Dance Society

Swing Sampler class, February 5th

Starting this Thursday, the Swing Sampler class will sample a four-week Balboa course taught by Terry and Van. Balboa (or just “bal”) is great for fast songs and is quite different than the other types of swing dance we offer, so check it out.

IMPORTANT: For these four weeks, the Sampler class will start at 7:00. This means the open dance time will begin before either class starts. However, if you can’t come that early but wanted to go over something before the Jitterbug class, you can still come 30 minutes before Jitterbug starts — Hank and I will both be at Bal and can easily step to the side with you to work on something. We’ll revert to schedule-as-usual after Spring Break.

6:30-7:00 Open Dance time (bring music or requests if you got ‘em!)
7:00-8:00 Swing Sampler: Balboa with Terry and Van
8:00-9:15 Beginners Swing: Jitterbug

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Bio:

Terry and Van are alums with three Rice degrees and many years of social dance experience between them. They are active contributors to the local swing dance community. They organize dance events, teach classes for non-profit dance studios, and have performed in shows as part of the Houston Swing Dance Society’s Hep Cats dance team. They are looking foward to their fourth year of teaching Balboa at their alma mater.

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What is Balboa?

From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balboa_(dance)

“Balboa is a form of swing dance that started as early as 1915 and gained in popularity in the 1930s and 1940s. It is danced primarily in close embrace, and is led with a full body connection. The art of Balboa is the subtle communication between the lead and follow, like weight shifts, that most viewers cannot see. As a result, Balboa is considered more of a ‘dancer’s dance’ than a ‘spectator’s dance’.

Balboa is danced to a wide variety of tempos. Because the basic step takes up such a small space, Balboa can be danced to fast music (over 300 beats per minute). Balboa is also danced to slow music (under 100 beats per minute), which allows more time for intricate footwork and variations.”

Examples of Couples Dancing Balboa:

All Balboa Weekend 2008 – Jack & Jill Competition

All Balboa Weekend 2004 – Randy and Kara

Seattle Balboa Swing Championships 2008 – Group Dance

What We’ll Teach at Rice:

We can’t promise that you’ll look just like those dancers in the videos but we can promise that you’ll have fun. During our four one-hour sessions we will focus on the core Balboa steps that emphasize clear weight shifts, groundedness, and body leads. You can think of this class as teaching you the basics of a popular jazz-era dance while at the same time you are practicing fundamental dance principles that you can take back to your jitterbug, Lindy Hop, west coast swing, blues, Charleston, etc.

Argentine Tango starts Jan. 14

Welcome back everyone!

Ballroom, Argentine Tango, and Swing lessons all start next week (see the Class Schedule for more info). Tango is doing things a bit differently this semester… here’s the details:

• Tango will be held off campus this semester. Don’t worry; it’s not far. The Rice Graduate Apartments (1515 Bissonnet) are ten minutes walking north of campus, or the shuttlebus that says “Graduate Apts” will take you straight there. There is limited parking in front of the building, or you can park on some of the surrounding residential streets. This means:
  • We have more space!
  • We get to use the new surround system audio there.
  • No parking fees!
• We have an intermediate class. This is especially for all those who took Indre’s class last semester. We’ll continue where we left off (with some review, of course!)
• Classes will run in cycles of five weeks each.
  • Whew, less weeks to commit to!
  • We’ll learn new things in each cycle, so feel free to take both.
  • Hey, if you like the first cycle, bring all your friends to the second. =)

See you next week!