| Yes,
yes, yes – it's here!!!! I've planted out my pots,
started eating salads again, and have stopped wearing
tights to work.
My
Gran may well have said, on many occasions, “Christine,
don't cast your clout till May is out…..”
But
it's too late, because it's cast. All of it, all of
my winter clout. Because as far as I'm concerned,
it's flip flop time for me.
But
I can't wear flip flops when I'm dancing salsa, I'd
slide all over the place (see that neat segue, there,
see. This is not just thrown together you know – I
just make it look that way). It's dance shoes all
the way for me – and I ordered a new pair at the Salsa
Chillout Special Alldayer with Doni and Liz – more
of that later.
But
first, we have to say, “au revior” to one of our Salsa
Chillout stalwarts who is moving on to pastures new.
Now, all our Chillouters are part of one big family,
and we're always sad when one of them leaves.
But
our Gallic buddy J.C will be sorely missed – mainly
because of his wonderful French charm and fantastic
dancing, but also partly because of the comic value
of his very occasional clothes debacles (as they say
in France…) Say no more, I cannot divulge, but there
was that time…….
So,
we did something special – a surprise French theme
for his last class at Marconi in Chelmsford : stripy
tops, berets, cravats, and leetle French moustaches.
We all enjoyed ourselves, and it gave as carte blanche
(as they say in France ) to indulge ourselves with
cries, of “Ohhhh, Renee,” and “Listen very carefully,
I shall say this only once…” all of which, of course,
meant very little to JC himself. As he is actually
French. But then he was treated to the special birthday
song as a leaving present, resulting in a queue of
women stretching from one end of a very long room
to the other….so I don't think he cared really…..
Honestly,
us salsa folk – any excuse to dress up as something….
So,
as we bid farewell to JC, we say “Ola, Hello, Bienvenue,
Welcome” to any beginners who may be about to dip
their toes into the warm and fragrant waters of salsa.
Don't forget there's the special 6-week salsa beginner's
course starting on 2 nd June. Just contact Terry or
Yolande for more information. But for anyone who can't
commit in advance, you can still drop in and pay at
the door.
Come
on, give it a try….you know it makes sense. Well,
it doesn't, actually, as the first paragraphs prove,
but who cares, its fun!
And
don't forget the Tango classes at Marconi in Chelmsford
on the last Friday of the month – I have been practicing.
But whether that will make me any better, I can't
say. Although I have bought some very red lipstick
to help me get into character before I go…..so fingers
crossed I don't step on anyone this time.
Now,
I have decided to introduce a little bit of gravitas
to this page from now on. A little bit of knowledge;
a little bit of background information, if you will,
about some of the dances that are proving popular
on the salsa dance floors these days.
Personally,
I love cha cha – I can't do it very well, or elegantly,
but that does not stop me luvin it. And as Cha Cha
was one of the workshops taught by Doni and Liz at
the Chillout Alldayer, it seemed an obvious choice.
So,
then, here we go. Da da……….
The
Salsa Chillout Pocket History of The Cha Cha!
The
Mambo developed out of a fusion of American Jazz and
the Cuban rumba rhythm. Among the figures of the mambo
dance was something called the chatch, which involved
three quick changes of weight preceded by two slow
steps.
By
the 1950's this had developed into a dance in itself
and eventually acquired the name cha cha.
An
English dance teacher, Pierre Lavelle, visited Cuba
in 1952 and noticed that the rumba was sometimes danced
with extra beats, and on his return to the UK he started
teaching these steps as a separate dance.
As
for the name, there are many possibilities to explain
how it cam about – it could have been from the Spanish
– Chacha – which means nursemaid, or charchar, which
means to chew coco leaves. Or it could have derived
from the fast Cuban dance the Guaracha.
So, there you have it. A brief brief brief look back
at the origins of cha cha. I have a tendency to share
my knowledge with people in a sometimes quite boring
way, so if I come up to you and say, “Did you know……cha
cha….”, then just say you do know, thank you very
much, and I will sidle off to someone else.
And
now, looking back to the big event of May – The Special
Super-Duper Salsa Chillout Alldayer Featuring Doni
and Liz and the regular Salsa Chillout Teacher Team.
|
Before
the celeb interview, just a couple of comments from
attendees on the day itself.
“I
thought all the classes were good, but I particularly
enjoyed the Ladies Styling Workshop. It wasn't too
difficult and I hope I can remember lots of the moves
to enhance my dancing. Everyone I spoke to really
enjoyed the whole day.”
Natalie
“My
first all-dayer which I very much enjoyed. There was
a good selection of styles with just enough tutoring
on each to be able to get me round the floor! Doni
and Liz seemed really friendly and approachable and
they were excellent instructors.”
Corinna
Other
comments gathered by Natalie (thank you)
“It
was a fantastic day.
“Really
enjoyable.”
“I
learnt a lot.
“Fun.”
“Doni
and Liz are very approachable.”
“Friendly.”
“Good
range of classes.”
So,
there you are - good day all round.
I
caught up with Doni and Liz after the workshops, before
the evening do, and obviously, I wanted to know how
the got into salsa.
Liz
started dancing at three years old – mainly classical
ballet, modern dance and jazz, and didn't discover
salsa till she was eighteen years old.
“Salsa
was the first time I had ever gone partner dancing,
and I loved it!”
“I
learned with Julian the Duke, and later I helped him
to teach. Then I got a contract as a dancer on a cruise
ship, left London and met Doni on the ship.”
And
it was salsa that bought them together.
“Doni
was one of two latin guys on the ship, and I wanted
to meet him because he was a dancer and he was latin!
And we were introduced, and we danced, and that was
it.”
Venezuelan-born
Doni has salsa in his blood.
“Nobody
taught me how to dance salsa,” he said, “I have been
dancing it forever.
“Everytime
we have a pary in Venezuela , we dance meringue and
salsa. There is no count and no rules, just rhythm.”
“I
joined a salsa group when I was sixteen, and also
trained in ballet and jazz, and I did TV in Venezuela
with artists like Ricky Martin and Shakira. And then
I got an offer to work on a cruise ship. Which is
when I met Liz”
So,
what's the difference between Venezuelan salsa and
the kinds we dance in the UK ?
“When
we dance in clubs, we dance on 3, Venezuelan style
– slow, quick, quick,” explained Liz. It's more in
circles, similar to Cuban style.”
Anyway,
back to Doni and Liz themselves. After the cruise
contract had finished they lived in Paris for a year,
where they danced in the Moulin Rouge. But they were
dancing in separate lines, and they wanted to work
as a couple.
“So,”
said Liz, “We trained in Adage – it's like a pas de
deux in ballet with lots of big lifts We submitted
a tape of us doing this to a company that booked acts;
also on this was some footage of us doing salsa.
“The
company asked us if we did ballroom. We said yes,
and quickly trained in ballroom too, and ended up
as principles in a cast of 20 on a six star cruise
ship.
“We
did a big Las Vegas-style show and choreographed all
our own dances; we travelled the world and visited
fifty countries, and we also got off and performed
in some of them.”
Prior
to their three year contract on the ship, they were
beginning to make a name for themselves in salsa;
but they quit the scene and worked solidly for three
years.
Said
Liz, “We decided to live on land and came back to
the UK at Christmas.
And
as for their commitment to dancing, as Doni said,
“We are doing this because we love it.”
And,
so, what of the day itself. How did it go.
Said
Liz, “We anticipated doing four classes would be hard
work, and it was! But it was really, really good.
We pushed the students and they did everything we
asked, it was fun!”
And
a round of applause from Doni for Salsa Chillout:
“Salsa Chillout are very professional. We respect
Terry and Yolande, and the people here are lovely.”
Copyright
Chris Penhall 2008
|
