NCTS in LA

To mirror the YSA summer dance series, I was asked to teach a night of dancing for the mid-singles. Originally the idea was for a swing or salsa class. However, I had a much better idea. It's so hard to get first time, older dancers (younger meaning teenager and 20-somethings) to look good doing beginning east coast swing. Generally they end up looking a bit ridiculous and dated. And it's not much better for salsa, for which one needs to have that certain latin hop action to make it look good. It's much easier (and useful) for people to learn nightclub two step, which is symmetrical, has easier footwork, and can be danced to much of the contemporary or popular music that people listen to everyday. Plus, change the direction from side to side, to forward and back, add some hippy action, and it's basically the salsa!

So, I asked White Boy if he would be interested in learning NCTS from me, and helping me teach at the mid-singles FHE. Happily, he jumped at the chance. Yes, I could have asked someone from the swing scene, but I felt awkward about it. Most everyone is either married or involved, or live far away, or I'm just not close enough to to feel comfortable with to ask. And White Boy is a good friend, I've already taught him the basics of lindy, he's been taking classes on his own and with his girlfriend, and we can incorporate K into the later lead-up lessons to see how a beginner would understand what I'm teaching.

Tonight I met with White Boy for our first rehearsal. Reviewed frame. Taught the basic. Underarm outside turn. Miranda Roll. Travelling step with all the variations we could think of, and the blues mini-dip. Gave him some personal notes on things to help improve his dancing in general, and notes for NCTS in particular.

I asked WB about the YSA summer series, since he and K have been attending. Unfortunately, it seems that the teachers have fallen in to the major problems of beginning teachers. First, they don't have a set rotation pattern that takes into account the inherent imbalances of leaders to followers. When inexperienced teachers have everyone moshed together, and people randomly switch partners, the shy or non-Barbie/Kens often don't get partners. The best teachers structure their (not too large) classes in a circle, with partnerless danccers spaced evenly throughout the circle. After a couple minutes with each partner, the smaller circle rotates one space. In this way, no one's left without a partner for too long, and everyone gets to dance. Plus, it's just good social dancing practice to dance with a wide range of partners.

The second pitfall is to focus on tons of lifts or dips, instead of good lead and follow techniques. At most camps, they don't even teach aerials and serious dips until the advanced level, and even then, most people have to sign up in couples to make sure that people are comfortable doing potentially dangerous lifts and aerials, and that there are enough spotters. Especially in east cost swing, novice teachers show lifts, aerials and dips because they don't know good L&F technique, and partly because they either don't know their audience, or the class are people who don't really dance (in which case it's even more important to learn L&F).

After all the NCTS, WB wanted to review a little of lindyhop. Taught him sugar-pushes again. He does them a little more circularly than a regular slot would accomodate, but it's not that important at this stage. Also went over inside turns at the start of the whip, combining this with turns at the end of the whip. And showed a really crude reverse whip with a follower's free spin. Fun!

So, WB and I are meeting every Monday until the night of 7/30, which is when the dancing FHE is scheduled. I'm hoping that B will be advanced enough, and K will be recovered enough, that we can start teaching K on the 26th, but we'll see.