Dance Marathon.

Thursday was an amazing day: I had Tango + Cha-cha + Zouk practice! I don't know if you can get high from dancing but at least I felt like flying in the air after dancing five and half hours in a row. Today my feet were sore but it was so worth it.

What comes to Tango, I feel like I'm finally learning how to follow. This time I was able to keep the body contact better. I was even able to follow the instructor that was really hard for me last week. We practiced dancing without hands again, which is really hard, and even though it's not my favorite thing to do it is really good practice. It s funny that I said I'd try to keep my mouth shout this time, because we also had to give some peer feedback after dancing with different partners. So I finally got some advice about my dancing and it seems like I'm doing pretty good job. Many said that I'm following really well and that it's easy to dance with me. I should try to keep my contact better with my legs and try to avoid leaning my upper body too far away though. So the competition dance stance is not working in Finnish Tango. "Have you been doing competition dance before?" seems to be a comment I get quite often especially if I dance with someone more experienced dancer. What can I say, Nic taught me well!

In the advanced class this week was the last time we had Cha-cha and I already know I'm going to miss these classes. Cha-cha is definitely my favorite ballroom dance at least for now! This time I learned quite important thing about my  dance position: I seem to lean back too much with my upper body which leads to some balance problems in spins. Good thing that I'm a fast learner because I almost got rid of this bad habit already. Couple of more classes and I'd be able to do balanced spins. After the class the Cha-cha instructor (who is, by the way, really funny guy!) asked me dance with him. I felt kind of flattered, and it was so much fun to dance with someone who does crazy and unexpected figures. Great dancing!

As a finale, my new dancing friend gave me a Zouk lesson and I think I'm getting so addicted to this dance. I could have danced all night long with him but at 10:30pm I had to call it a day to be able to wake up early next morning for a court sitting. It is so peasant and easy to dance with him, and I felt like I was absorbing the dance technique pretty well. It is so amazing that someone is willing to teach me even without me asking for it. I might post some pictures of us later if I get the pics one girl who was photographing us during the session. The Finnish Zouk dancers are going to have a big Zouk party in 8th of October and there are going to be some free beginners classes. Definitely a must-go for me!

Tomorrow we're going to have second Spex dance practice with our dancing group. I'm also hoping to find someone to go to one Salsa party with me later the evening. I might be repeating myself but I love love love dancing (still can't stop smiling when I think about yesterday)!

Note To Self: Shut Up And Dance.

Yeah, me and my big mouth that seems to be impossible to keep shut. Like in today's ballroom dance class. I think my goal for tomorrow is just to shut up and dance.

Last week's Tango class.

Why do I even have this obsession to analyze everything in dancing? Oh, now I did this wrong and, geez, I should have done that different. Why can't I just forget everything like that and go with the music? I guess it would be somehow okay if I wouldn't extend my analysis to others. "If you did that different, it would be easier for me." Hello miss princess, the world doesn't spin around you! In the end of the dance course there won't be anyone left who is brave enough to dance with you!

This doesn't mean I wouldn't have enjoyed today's dance class, quite the opposite. I cannot believe how fast the time goes. Two hours doesn't seem to be enough for me, and once again I lingered in the edge of the ballroom after the class, hoping that someone would feel like dancing a little bit more. I'm sure my greediness will backfire on me somehow, like with turning the pressure I can already feel in my lower back into a nasty pain. If I only had someone to massage my back good again...

So today we went through the things we did in Bugg last week, and I noticed I already forgot so many things it was even hard to get started! Well, after a while I was able to catch up and I think I'm already doing a lots better with my following. I did not do my homework and practice the bounce, so it wasn't a success this time either. Next time then!

Other dance we did today was Foxtrot. We were told to concentrate on a pushing step, to a upper body movement and taking longer steps. I don't know why it is sometimes quite hard to follow Foxtrot even though the steps are so simple. But I must say, if the guy is doing the body rotation right, the following becomes so much easier. Next week we'll have more Foxtrot and I'm hoping to learn some figures because, to be honest, the dance is a bit boring if you just go with the basic step. Maybe tomorrow I'll even get a short Zouk lesson after the classes!

Zouk.

After being told many times that Zouk would be just my style of dancing, I just had to give it a try. If it was you who told me that, I must admit now, you were right.

I found out about this free Zouk lesson through my new friend from HOT-dancing, and since I didn't have anything planned for Friday evening, I couldn't resist on going there. It was funny, I seriously had butterflies in my stomach when I was on my way to Alppila high school! I hadn't had that feeling for a long time, how weird! The place was the kind of place you wouldn't expect finding dancing lessons, and I would have never ended up there on my own, but the space was really good for dancing (only this missing was mirrors but it didn't really matter this time). I came there a bit early since I always rather be early than late, and felt myself little awkward sitting there alone, not knowing anyone. Fortunately some familiar faces from HOT-dance appeared and eased my anxiety.

The lesson started at 7 pm with a short warm-up after which we practiced the basic step. Same may say that basic step training is boring but it is the basis of every dance. If you can't do the basic steps right, you can't do anything else right either. And since it was really my first time doing Zouk, the approach was just perfect. In the end we moved on to some simple figures but one hour was just not enough for many of those. After the lesson I had a pleasure of dancing with one nice guy who taught me more about the basic idea behind the dance and some new moves. I hope to dance with him again some day soon.

Somehow the dance felt really natural way of moving to me. Everybody were so surprised when I told it was my first time zouking! I really like the idea of having strong connection between the dance partners. Its like dancing in a separate world away from everything else, and that's what dancing is for me in the end. I also loved the music and the dance is a lot to do with that. It is true what they say about Zouk: if you try it once, you cannot stop. I wonder if that is the reason the first lesson was free?

I could definitely imagine me being a Zouk dancer, and I think I would learn quite fast if I had a good teacher. The thing is the if. Do you happen to know anyone?

This Buggs Me!

One thing I really miss, is the feedback I used to get after every dance lesson. When I go the the HOT-dance ballroom classes I get almost no feedback, neither good or bad. There are so many people in the classes the instructors won't have time for everyone and all the participants concentrate on the technique we are trying to learn. The times I asked if I was doing some figures right or if I should do something different, the answer was vague and I got a feeling I made my partner awkward. I don't know if the others feel ashamed of giving or getting feedback, but at least I could learn more if my partners would give me tips or correct me if I was doing something completely wrong. I hope I haven't been too straight with my comments since I don't hold back too much. Yesterday one guy said "oh, I remember your criticism from last round!" when it was our turn to dance. I don't mean it in a bad way, I'm just trying to be helpful!

So this week in HOT-dance we had Bugg, Tango and Cha-cha. Yesterday was the first time I danced Bugg and the result was in accordance with that. Maybe it would have been easier if I danced some rock'n'roll dances before, but Jive is the only dance where I could get some support, and we didn't dance that much Jive with Nic. One could say I'm repeating the same pattern with all new dances, if I say I didn't quite get the feeling that this dance was for me, so I'm just blaming my lack of experience.

The first thing I found hard was the bounce you have to do all the time when dancing Bugg. Even though the basic step is really simple the bounce makes it hard. If I tried to concentrate on the bounce, I failed with following. Second challenging thing for me is the right tension of hands. I either keep my hands too tense or too relaxed, argh so annoying! So basically I couldn't do neither my legs or hands right, and thinking both at the same time was just too much. I chose concentrating more on the hands because in that way I was able to follow my partner's lead at least in some level. The bounce I can practice on my own before next week.

After the Bugg class I stayed little later and got some good advice about following. It helps if you dance with someone a bit longer than only one minute or one song. In the end I think I got the basic idea behind Bugg and I can continue from this next time.

Today's first lesson was all about Finnish Tango. I haven't really danced Tango this way because the competition style is so different, so again I was in an unknown territory. What was similar to competition Tango was the strong upper body control. The hardest thing for me was to keep the body contact tight all the time: I tended to separate from my partner especially when he was going backwards. I also have to practice more moving my lower body in sync with my upper body and my partner's body.

I finally returned to my comfort zone with Cha-cha after the Tango class, and immediately I felt more relaxed and confident. It feels great when you don't have to think about the steps, your feet just somehow know what to do. I even got "you are an excellent dancer" comment from one quite experienced dancer which made me really happy. After reviewing the figures we learned last week we were taught some ways you can break the basic cha-cha-cha rhythm. I didn't even know you could change to fast Salsa when dancing Cha-cha, interesting! I also liked the small tricks you can do by "skipping" some steps. I just have to try to get those into my basic movement in Cha-cha.

After today's class I got a great reminder concerning dancing. It is not that serious if I fail to follow someone's lead or make some mistakes. Dancing is all about having fun. Yes, he was absolutey right on that. I shouldn't forget that even for a second.

BTW, the pictures are from last Friday's dancing party and are taken by Jukka Laurila.

Dancing With Dancers.

On Saturday night I went to this amazing Finnish National Ballet's dance event called Dance With Dancers. It was the third time they organized this kind of party that includes ballet performances and partying in the Finnish National Opera's Alumni hall. I wasn't really sure what to expect from it but, wow, the event was beyond all my expectations!

DWD included different kind of dance shows from National Ballet's dancers and visiting stars. The night offered something for everybody but I simply enjoyed every single dance so much they gave me goose bumps countless of times. Between the performances the audience was invited to the dance floor while the DJ played groovy dance music in the background. The moment the dance floor was free the crowd ran there and started to jam. How bizarre for Finnish people!

I was surprised how big talents they had in the show. The dancers gave us amazing performances not only in classic and modern ballet but also contemporary dance, acrobatic shows and beyond. I especially liked the visiting stars Hanna&Vicktor (www.vhdance.com) and their breath taking lifts. After the performances the dancers joined the rest of us to the dance floor. Wow, I could spend my Saturday evenings in this kind of company all the time! If I'm in Finland next year during the DWD, I'm most definitely going there. This party is not to be missed!

My dance-filled weekend continued on Sunday evening when we had our first Spex practice with the newly-chosen dancers. The atmosphere was cheery and encouraging, and it felt kind of surreal to actually be there, having fun dancing in my first dance group. Since the songs for Spex are not set yet and the choreography hasn't been done, we did some technique training and group spirit lifting. I really like the mentality that no one (read: me) is looked down because she has less dancing experience than the others. Everybody has their own strengths and everybody can learn something new from the others. We also danced one interesting dance-mixture choreography to a Latin music, and it felt nice to get some positive comments on my Latin style dancing. Yeah, it was definitely more my area than ballet! The two hour practice went in a glimpse and I was all smile when I got home. I was planning to take a picture from the practice, but of course I forgot to take my camera out of my bag. Well, next time maybe!

HOT Dance Party.

I am not usually the kind of person who goes alone to a party. It is not that I wouldn't like to meet new people (or wouldn't be able to do that) but I just hate sitting alone when people looks at me like "what is she doing here?" Last time that happened in Sarajevo when I went to a Salsa club during my InterRail trip. I was sitting in a table and checking out who I would like to dance with when some locals came to talk to me: "I guess you are not from here. No Bosnian girl would come to a party alone."

Luckily yesterday I made an exception and went to HOT Dance's ballroom dancing party. I knew that some of my dance class mates were going there but I can't really say I would know them since I've seen them just couple of times in the classes. My fears of sitting alone in a corner all night were, however, fallen through the moment music started to play when a nice gentleman came to ask me for a dance. Even though most of the people there seemed to know each other, even many good dancers were kindly dancing with the new comers and beginners. Even I was brave enough to go and ask some of them for a dance! The party had a set playlist where everyone could see the coming dance genres, which I think was pretty good idea. If there was a dance I didn't know I could stand back and just watch and learn; if they played a dance I really wanted to dance I could ask someone already in advance. The dances ranged from Foxtrot, Bugg and Waltz to Cha-cha and even Salsa and Bachata.

I got many interesting comments during the night form my dancing partners. Many of them asked what I had been dancing before because my style was so different from others. My style, I didn't know I had one (I was just trying to follow the lead as well as I could)? When I asked if I should change it somehow the answer was definitely not. Well I guess I never wanted to be like everyone else anyway.

After the party I think I can now proudly say that during the last two weeks I have learned to follow the lead pretty well. I still have to concentrate quite a lot just to the following but compared to my first dance class I've improved dreadfully. I even got disbelieving looks when I mentioned this problem to some of the dancers. Of course I still have lots to learn but I'm happy to see some concrete results this fast. Finnish ballroom dancing has also already changed my attitude towards ballroom dancing. It is not about trying to do the figures perfectly but just going with the music. There are no rules in the dance floor: everything that feels good is acceptable.

After the party was finished one guy I danced with came to ask me when I'll start dancing Zouk. I answered I have never even heard of that, which resulted me getting an interesting Zouk performance. It looked like a fun dance so maybe I'll give it a try some day soon! I love trying new things so I'm open for everything dancing-related.

Oh, I came across with my old friend last night. Yes, my back pain came to say hello. I guess I was looking for it by dancing almost five hours in a row. It wasn't a nice reunion. At least it was gone this morning and I hope it stays like this.

I Am In!

Oh. My. God. I'm going to be one of the eleven girls who dances in this year's Spex! I am so exited and super happy about this I can't stop smiling. I had a good feeling about this but I still can't believe I made it to the dance group from so many great dancers. It is going to be awesome, I tell you! I'm going to keep updating my feelings about our practices here, but as the content and storyline of the musical is secret, I won't be able to reveal much more than that. Wow, I guess this proves that if you want something really bad, you can reach your dreams. I'm already looking forward our first Spex practice on Sunday.

In addition to Spex I am planning to continue with the ballroom dancing courses in my uni students' association on Wednesdays and Thursdays. This week we had Cha-cha in the beginners and advanced classes and Fusku in the intermediate class. It was definitely worth going to the beginners' Cha-cha to be able to concentrate on the basic step and movement. My first impression of the beginners' class participants was that they were somehow more relaxed and exited about dancing. I didn't feel bad if I didn't do everything right or didn't know some of the figures. Actually after the class I was asked to stay and dance a bit longer and of course I couldn't refuse. Today I was already able to follow in the Cha-cha class better than last week and I finally got some of the figures I didn't get last time. What was nice was that the instructor asked me if I had been doing competition ballroom dancing. Nic, you taught me well!

Fusku is a dance that was totally new for me. It is kind of a more simple version of Jive. I was a bit worried if I was able to follow the intermediate class but I think I did pretty well after two hours of dancing. In the beginning I warned all of my dancing partners that it was my first time, and many of them were really nice giving  me some good advice about the dance. Some of them were even surprised how well I was able to catch the steps! So it was a good decision to give it a try, Fusku is a fun and quite easy dance.

What I learned about my dancing technique in this week's ballroom classes was that I have to keep eye on my left foot in Cha-cha: I tend to lift it up when stepping back with my right. Also, what was really challenging for me was to keep my hands tense enough in Fusku. If I don't give counterpressure with my hands I won't be able to follow the signals my partner gives me. But at least I'm getting the hang out of the following.

Tomorrow I'm going to the HOT dance dancing party. I hope some of the dancing class participants actually come and ask me for a dance there (I think I might have caused some serious trauma to some of them, haha).

The Audition.

Today was the audition for the law students' musical, Spex. I didn't get nervous before the room started to fill up with dancer looking girls; in the end there were at least 20 of them. I don't know how many dancers get in but it is obvious that it is not all of us, and I was definitely the one who had the least dancing experience. All I could do in the situation was to try to ignore the crowd and concentrate to myself.

We started with filling out some forms asking some background information about dancing. After a short name round and a warm up we started the actual audition which was, not surprisingly, quite ballet orientated. Good thing that I went to the pre-audition practices so this wasn't my first touch to this dance genre. Still, the technique was really hard for me and what made things even more difficult was the lack of any mirrors. Well, I just hope they don't look that much on the technique.

I must say it was quite horrible to dance new ballet choreography when you are supposed to stand out from twenty talented girls, and when three I-have-danced-ballet-my-whole-life-girls are judging your every move and tumble. I placed myself to the first row so I couldn't see the other dances and tried to reach the feeling of the music. In the end, I think, I did pretty well considering I started dancing only recently, even though I did many mistakes and was far away from being perfect. At least I didn't hold back and was open for new things.


So I will hear the results in couple of days. I already know that if I don't get in, I'll be really disapponted.

HOT Dancing.

Yesterday I took my dance shoes out for a dance after a long break. I found out about these ballroom dancing classes they have in the university's students' association through my uni email just the day before and I decided to check it out. Since the courses are organized by students I can actually afford taking the classes without taking extra shifts in my part-time job, yay! Check out their website here.

Bravely I walked in to the intermediate class wondering if the level was right for me. The place was pretty full of people I've never met, little bit more girls than boys. They were playing Foxtrot in the background and people were changing dancing partners every now and then. Before I knew someone was already asking me for a dance and there I went.

The two hour Foxtrot class was the ultimate learn-how-to-follow-the-lead-challenge for me. When I danced with Nic I knew what figures he would use and what kind of signals he would make before these figures. Now I was on my own. Firstly, there were figures I never used and even the basic steps could vary. Second, I had no idea what kind of signals everybody were using. Third, we were changing partners many times during one song so as soon I was almost getting the other person's rhythm, he was gone. Yes, after getting trod on my feet dozens of times (ouch!), I was already missing the good old times where I could concentrate on the technique or just enjoy the music while dancing effortless. My whole energy went to attempts of trying to read my partners' next moves and I forgot my stance and footwork totally. I felt sorry for my partners trying to control me with bad results, not because of them but mostly because of me. I think I had to apologize hundreds of times.

Other thing I was surprised was the huge difference between Finnish ballroom dancing and competition ballroom dancing. You place yourself a lot closer to your partner in Finnish ballroom style. Also the pose is more relaxed and you don't have to keep your shoulders as stabile as in competition stance. Many times I felt like I needed more space for myself. Don't hug me, hold me firmly in the stance, please! Also the basic step caused me difficulties because I wasn't able to bounce enough.

In the end, I think, I was somehow able to follow different leads and I'm sure next time I'll do even better. The last song was a slow and beautiful Foxtrot where I was finally truly able to enjoy the feeling of ballroom dancing. I liked my partner's style of leading, soft and gliding, and we danced the whole dance until the end, even though the other girls were waiting for their turn.

After two hours of Foxtrot my feet were killing me. I was already going to leave home until I heard my favorite ballroom music playing: the advanced class was about to start with Cha-cha. I couldn't resist the temptation and sneaked back to the room after observing a while. And wow, I felt awesome. All the Salsa dancing during the summer has given me so much confidence for Latin dances and I felt lots more comfortable dancing with strangers than in the previous class. I learned couple of new figures for Cha-cha that still needs more practice though.
Half way of the advanced class I had to give up because my feet simply couldn't take it anymore. I was hardly able to drag myself to the bus stop with my sore feet. 

Maybe this is not the end after all but a new beginning.

From Ballroom to Ballet.

When Nic told me that he doesn't want to dance with me anymore I was devastated. With just couple of words he was able to crush my dreams and break my heart. He made me addicted to dancing and it felt so unfair that he took my addiction away from me. I was looking forward coming back home from my trip only because of dancing, and now that I am back my life feels so empty and meaningless. This was what I had been afraid of since we started dancing. I guess somehow I knew this was going to happen sooner or later. I just wished it would have been later.

Before my trip we were already planning on taking the F test in the beginning of next year, joining a dancing club and aiming for competitions. It was only a dream after all, just as I feared.

Well, it doesn't really help to stay home crying so last Sunday I took a leap to unknown and went to a ballet dance practice. Actually I didn't know it was going to be ballet. See, I am going to apply to be a dancer in law students' yearly musical and we had pre-audition practices on Sunday and Tuesday. I am really hoping to get in even though its going to be hard because all the other girls have so much more dancing experience than I have. On Sunday I felt so lost in the practice since I have never ever done ballet (okay, I did kids' ballet when I was like three but it doesn't really count) but in the end I was able to enjoy the music and dancing. Tuesday went already better but I'm sure I'm going to be super nervous in the audition next Monday. I don't know what I'm going to do if I don't get in. That would mean no dancing and I know now that I won't be able to survive without that. Yes, I could go into dancing school and try to find a new dancing partner, but at the moment I'll concentrate on the audition and later think what else to do. Wish me luck.