New! Lisa's Tuesday Beginner Lessons In New Hartford!

Recently, I've been thinking of branching out from Hartford Ballroom and teaching classes throughout Connecticut.  Mind you, this is not because I'm thinking of quitting the studio or anything (no siree!), I just would like to make a little extra cash and maybe develop a dance reputation of my own outside of my mother's influence (she was actually the one who suggested I do this, in case you were wondering).  It doesn't help that we only have the one floor, so available time for new classes at the studio is severely limited.  So I shopped around for available floors to rent and found one in New Hartford that's really affordable!

So now starting January 6th  I'm going to start teaching beginner classes every Tuesday evening, from 7-9 p.m.  They'll run exactly the same as my Monday classes; they'll just be in a different town!

So far, I just have the schedule and the location.  The hall is a little isolated (it's 7 minutes up a hill from the New Hartford town center), but the floor is really nice.

New Hartford's Tuesday Beginner Ballroom Dance Classes

Where: Berkshire Hall in Brodie Park, 580 West Hill Road, New Hartford, CT 06057

How Much: $10 per person per class

Class #1: Absolute Beginners

7-8 p.m.

The perfect class for those who have never danced before.  Every month, we cover the basic steps of two dance styles, and we also do a little Merengue as a warm-up.  We keep things very easy and very friendly, so that the learning experience remains fun and relaxing.  The class is 45 minutes long with an additional 15-minute practice.

The Class Schedule:

December- Tango/Hustle

January- Foxtrot/Swing

February- Salsa/Cha Cha

March- Waltz/Rumba

April- Tango/Hustle

May- Foxtrot/Swing

June- Salsa/Cha Cha

Class #2: Ballroom Basics

8-9 p.m.

This is a great class for anyone who feels like the basic step is easy enough, and want to learn a little more but still consider themselves to be a beginner.  In this class we do one dance style a month; I'll quickly review the basic step, and then I'll teach up to 5 other steps within that dance.  These steps are repeated throughout the month, so you'll get plenty of time to practice the moves. 

The Class Schedule:

December- Waltz

January- West Coast Swing

February- Cha Cha

March- Rumba

April- Foxtrot

May- Hustle

June- East Coast Swing

Basics Step List For December: Waltz

Happy Holidays, everyone!  This month, we're focusing on slow waltz.  Keep in mind that this is a guide only, and cannot replace the lessons themselves, so come to class as often as you can!

Basic Waltz Step List

1. Basic Traveling Step

2. Box Step

3. Box Step With Underarm Turn

4. Balance Step

5. Hesitation

6. Zigzag

7. Twinkle
8. Parallel Twinkle

Lisa's Monday Class Information

Here's your basic information for the Monday beginner classes.  These classes occur every week at the Hartford Ballroom Dance Studio, and the cost is $10 per person per class.  You also have the option of signing up for a package of lessons: 10 lessons for $80.

There's one additional special we offer: if you take the first class 12 times, you can take both classes for the price of one!

Class #1: Absolute Beginners

7:15-8:15 p.m.

The perfect class for those who have never danced before.  Every month, we cover the basic steps of two dance styles, and we also do a little Merengue as a warm-up.  We keep things very easy and very friendly, so that the learning experience remains fun and relaxing.  The class is 45 minutes long with an additional 15-minute practice.

The Class Schedule:

December- Tango/Hustle

January- Foxtrot/Swing

February- Salsa/Cha Cha

March- Waltz/Rumba

April- Tango/Hustle

May- Foxtrot/Swing

June- Salsa/Cha Cha

Class #2: Ballroom Basics

8:15-9 p.m.

This is a great class for anyone who feels like the basic step is easy enough, and want to learn a little more but still consider themselves to be a beginner.  In this class we do one dance style a month; I'll quickly review the basic step, and then I'll teach up to 5 other steps within that dance.  These steps are repeated throughout the month, so you'll get plenty of time to practice the moves. 

The Class Schedule:

December- Waltz

January- West Coast Swing

February- Cha Cha

March- Rumba

April- Foxtrot

May- Hustle

June- East Coast Swing

Basics Step List For November 2014: Salsa

Hey folks!  It's now November!  And this month we're covering Salsa!

Here's the step list for this month.  Keep in mind that it's only a guide; it can't replace actually attending the lessons themselves, so come to class as often as you can!

Salsa Step List

1. basic step

2. full solo turn

3. ladies underarm turn

4. alternating underarm turn (half version), ending with a loop 
5. Cross body lead
6. Alternating Underarm Turn (full version), ending with loop and cross body lead
7. side breaks

October Basics Step List: Foxtrot

It's time to Foxtrot into fall!  This post will be updated weekly, so keep checking back for the latest dance steps.

Remember, this list is a guide only.  It's hard to remember what was covered in class once you've gone back home, so I posted the steps here to help trigger your memory.  But this list cannot replace the benefits of going to the lessons themselves, so come to class as often as you can to improve your skill and practice what you learned.

Foxtrot:

1. Basic step

2. Hesitation (a.k.a. corner or trouble step)

3. Promenade

4. Promenade with underarm turn

5. Side Rocks

6. Routine #1: 3 basics (steer to the wall), 3 promenade with an underarm turn on the second one, hesitation to finish

7. Routine #2: 3 basics (steer to the wall), 3 side rocks, hesitation to finish 
8. Box Step 

Basics September Step List: East Coast Swing

September's here and it's time to swing!

This post is for the whole month, so check back each week for updates.

Keep in mind that this a guide only.  It cannot replace the actual lessons, so take as many classes as you can in order to improve your skill!

East Coast Swing List:

We covered all this both in single step and in triple step
1. Basic

2. Underarm turn

3. Hand change behind the back

4. open break to pickpocket
5. Open Break to cuddle

Hartford Ballroom Basics Steps Of The Month For August 2014: Bolero

Ah, August!  Where have you gone?
In case you aren't familiar with our curriculum, our Basics level class follows our Absolute Beginner level class (if you were to look at it numerically, Basics is level 2).  Each month we teach one dance style that will then move on to the next level (level 3) the following month.  In this class we cover the moves that we consider to be the basic movements for that dance style.

For this month, I taught Bolero.  Below you'll find a list of the steps I covered.

Basics Level August 2014: Bolero
Basic step
Crossover With Ladies' Underarm Turn
Crossover With Apart Turn
Crossover Into Back Breaks
Shadow Crossover
Shadow Crossover Into Shadow Back Breaks

Have a great day everyone!
-Lisa Spiro