Very Cool Tango Video

Dancing With The Stars

Last night I attended “Dancing with the Stars the Tour” which was playing at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC. A friend works for a large company which has a corporate box which was not being used. He got the tickets for free and invited me and Steve and another couple to join him and his wife. Unfortunately, Steve was out of town on business and could not attend. We all met at the Gallery Place Metro Station and had a nice Mongolian Barbeque dinner at a local Chinese restaurant before the show. The show was great. It featured some of the celebrities and professional dancers from the television show. The celebrities were Harry Hamlin, Drew Lachey, Joey Lawrence, Joey McIntyre, and Lisa Rinna. The professionals were Cheryl Burke, Alec Mazo, Karina Smirnoff, Louis Von Amstel and Edyta Sliwinska.

Immediately before the show began - local dancers from Arthur Murray Dance studios competed in groups to the same song. Alec Mazo, the winner from the first season and official judge, reviewed their performances and executed the first round of the elimination. The remaining semi-finalists returned to perform again in groups during the second song, and again were eliminated down to four finalists. The two couples performed later in the live show, dancing the Tango or the Cha Cha. After each couple danced, they received scores via Audience Applause Meters, which determined the ultimate Dancing With The Stars Slim-Fast Challenge Champion. The winner received a trophy.

The show itself was full of wonderful dancing by the professional dancers as well as the celebrities. Lisa Rinna and her husband Harry Hamlin danced a beautiful Waltz together. A couple of the many other memorable dance numbers were the Paso Doble danced to the song “Thriller” by Drew Lachey and Cheryl Burke and a free-style dance by the same couple to “Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy”

This is the "Thriller" Paso Doble video.

Both of these numbers were performed on the television show and were even more spectacular in person.

New Group at the O Club

We had an excellent time at the O Club tonight. Our good friends Sharon and Paul invited a group to join them at the Club. This group consisted of neighbors, co-workers, and us. We met some nice new folks and had a good time dancing.

The Arrow Band was playing tonight along with Daria from Angels and Aces playing keyboard.

Below is a group photo. Sorry about cutting the gentleman on the right in half, but it is a new camera. (I know; blame it on the equipment.)

Winter Dance Schedule

We are really getting booked for dances the next couple of months. Ain't it great! In February and March we have a dance or something every weekend.

• Feb 4, First Sunday Dance at the Candy Factory in Manassas


• Feb 10, the ACTS Charity Ball at the VFW Hall on Minnieville Road


• Feb 17, the Regal Dinner and Dance at the Fairfax Country Club


• Feb 24, a play a the Lazy Susan Dinner Theater


• Mar 3, Doc Scantlin at the Heritage Hunt Club


• Mar 4, First Sunday Dance at the Candy Factory in Manassas


• Mar 10, The Center for the Arts Gala in Manassas


• Mar 17, St. Patricks Day Dance at the Heritage Hunt Club


• Mar 24, another Regal Dinner and Dance at the Fairfax Country Club


• Mar 31, American Red Cross Dance at the Heritage Hunt Club

We also plan to go to the O Club at Fort Belvior most Wednesdays for dinner and dancing and there is our Friday night dances at Studio One.

There's nothing like keeping busy and nothing better than keeping busy dancing.

Wednesday Night at the O Club

We went to the dinner and dance at the Fort Belvoir Officer Club last night. It got a little crowded. It seemed like a lot of people had the same idea. It really gave me a chance to work on my floorcraft. My partner says that I am getting better. When we first started she said I got a "deer in the headlights" look when I ran us into an corner or a crowd. It's easy to get intimidated when you're a beginner. That's why it is important to get out and dance in different venues. I like going to the O Club because most dancers that go there know the basics about line of dance and how to move around other dancers.

Pictured below is the band that was playing, Angels and Aces.

Dancing in the New Year

We celebrated the New Year with friends at the Heritage Hunt club. We joined Randy and Kathy, Jody and Charlie, along with Jerry and Candy for an evening of dining and dancing. We can't think of a better way to ring in the New Year than being with good people having a good time. There was a DJ and we got our exercise working off dinner doing the hustle and the swing. We even got a Tango in.

Pictured are Jody, Doris, Randy and Kathy out on the floor doing the Twist.

Here's to good friends and good times. We hope that next year is happier and more properous than last.

Yuletide Ball Championships

We went down to the Marriott in DC to cheer on Studio One in the Yuletide competition. From left to right are our competitors; Richard, Rommie, Laurie, Agnes, and Bill. This was only the second time that we have attended a competition. Our hats are off to any and all that have nerve enough to strut their stuff in front of judges.

We also saw a contingent from the Strictly Ballroom studio. We took lessons from there for a couple of years. They have excellent instructors and a full range of group and private lessons. Melissa and Mike, the owners of Stricly Ballroom, are pictured below.

A Gathering at the O Club

We had so much fun on Xmas with Janet and Jeff at the Dance Factory that we made a date to go to the Wednesday night dance at the Ft. Belvoir Officer's Club. They have a buffet dinner and dancing from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM every Wednesday night.

We sat down at a table for 4 but kept seeing other couples that we know coming through the door. Soon we had filled a table for 8. We had with us Janet and Jeff, Ron and Marlene, along with Paul and Sharon. We had a great time dancing, eating, dancing, conversing, and of course dancing.

XMas at the Dance Factory

We were sitting on the couch Christmas evening watching a movie when our good friends, Janet and Jeff, called to invite us to the Dance Factory. We didn't think that there would be much going on with it being a holiday, but we are always up for a dance.

Dance Factory is in our old stomping grounds, Arlington, VA. We lived near Ballston in the mid-80's after being stationed in Hawaii for 4 years. That was just when Metro finished the Orange Line. That part of Arlington has sure changed since we lived there. The developers would take down a block of 6 bungalows and put up 18 townhouses.

Dance Factory has a full schedule of classes during the week and dances Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. We had a great time. They have a good floor and sound system. The people were very friendly and we saw a wide spectrum of dancing expertise.

Then there was an older gentleman that wore a velvet coat and bow tie. He didn't dance much, but he did like to crack wise.

"Did you hear the one about the insomniac, agnostic, dyslexic?"

"He would stay up all night contemplating the existence of Dog."

Holiday Party at Studio One

Studio One had its Holiday Party Friday night. They pulled in a pretty good crowd. Everyone was in a festive mood and a good time was had by all. It was Pot Luck and people brought in their favorite dishes. It is a fairly close knit group without being "clique-ish". Newcomers are always warmly welcomed. This isn't the type of studio where a first-timer sits and watches others dance. Our instructor, Richard Benjamin, is a big believer in dancing with people other than your regular dance partner. For the gentleman dancing with other people helps identify areas where a lead needs to be developed. A lady learns to be receptive to different kinds of leading styles. My partner and I dance so much together that most of the time she reads my mind and compensates when my lead falters.

Lioudmila's Dance Studio

Studio One was closed for the Thanksgiving holiday so we couldn't follow our normal Friday night routine and go there for the social dance. We used to think that going out on Friday night after working all week was a hassle. Now, we really miss it when we can't go. It's just a great way to finish off the week and change gears for the weekend. It gives us a chance to practice our dance steps and visit with friends.

So, this week we decided to go to Lioudmila's. We have some friends that go there for lessons and they highly recommended their social dances. It was easy to find as it is just off the Beltway and down Telegraph road to Roth Street. They have good parking and are located on the 2nd floor of an office building. The floor has a good setup for taking lessons. Imagine an "H" with the bottom closed. There is the top of the stairwell in the middle of the floor and across from it is the desk. It looks like they can have several lessons going at one time without getting in each other's way. They have a beautiful wood floor that is well maintained. There is plenty of room for the dance parties also. The gentleman we spoke to told us that they get between 50-80 dancers for their social dances. There appeared to be more than enough room. This being the Friday after Thanksgiving, we had the floor to ourselves for the better part of an hour. The Friday night dance starts at 8:00 PM and ends at 11:00. Other dancers started filtering in around 9:00.

We will definately be going back to their Saturday dance parties.

Cruisin'

W took a cruise last week; actually a 9 night cruise, from October 27th to November 5th. We left out of Baltimore on the Granduer of the Seas on a tour of the western Carribean. One of the first things we did was scope out the places to dance on board.

We did most of our dancing in the Centrum. This is an atrium in the middle of the ship that extends from the 4th deck all the way through the 10th deck to a skylight. There is a white marble staircase between the 4th and 5th decks. Built into the staircase are circular marble stages. These stages are large enough (barely) for a cha-cha or rhumba. The Metroline Quartet played lots of rhumbas with an occasional swing or cha-cha thrown in. Moving dances like a waltz were a challenge especially if more than one couple occupied a stage. We did get them to play a couple of tangos during the cruise.

Near the stern was the South Pacific Lounge which had a dance floor. A rock band called Riptide played there. They played classic rock and we did some swings and cha-chas. This lounge was also where they had their dance lessons. The first dance lesson we went to was country line dancing. The instructor was pretty good. It seems like a lot of people like country line dancing, because it got real crowded on the dance floor. The second lesson that we went to was an introduction to Swing. They had a couple of young ladies from the evening show trying to teach Swing. It showed that just because you know how to do a dance, it doesn't mean you know how to teach it.

We also went up to the Viking Crown Lounge which had a DJ in the evenings. He played modern music and disco tunes. This dance floor got real crowded in the evenings, but was pretty much deserted during the daytime. We took our IPOD and had a couple of good practice sessions up there.

At the poolside the Hot Spices played Carribean music. They had a beat that didn't fit with any of the dance styles we know and all of their songs had the same beat. It was like listening to the same song all week long. It got old pretty quickly and since they played directly over our stateroom, we couldn't get away from it.

The weather was very nice except for the second day out. That day we had 40 knot winds and 20 foot seas. Dancing was out of the question since it was the ship itself doing the rock and roll. It also showed a problem with having a skylight on a ship. They tend to leak. At least it was leaking at the top of the ship and not the bottom.

A New Place to Dance

We heard around that there was a new place to go dancing in Northern Virginia. We are always on the lookout for another dance floor. This one is Sweetheart's Virginia Fresh Food and Music. They have dancing every night of the week from 9:00 PM to 2:00 AM.

Last night they had a county band. We made reservations for 8:00 so we could eat dinner before the dancing started. The band sounded really good and the dance floor quickly filled with couples doing the country two-step. They played a lot of line dances. We only know how to do the El Paso, so we mostly enjoyed watching.

Even though we aren't much into line dancing, this place will be worth another look at a different night with different music. The crabcakes and steak were worth the trip by themselves.

Regal Dinner and Dance Club

We recently joined the Regal Dinner and Dance Club. Some people we regularily see at the Fort Belvior Officer's Club on Wednesday's dance night invited us to join.
The objective of the club is to provide a pleasant evening of dining and dancing in a social setting that our members can enjoy.

The Club holds 7 dances during the year at the Fairfax Country Club. Five of the dances are formals held on Saturdays and begin with dinner. Two are tea dances on Sundays that start earlier and end with dinner.

We went to our first dance on September 30th. The band was Angels and Aces. We've seen them several times at the O Club and really enjoy their music. They did a great job for the Regal Dance. We are really looking forward to the other dances in this series.

Boot Scootin' Boogey

We found a place to dance in Boise. We went to the Eagles Lodge #115 off Overland Drive. They were having their singles mixer on Sunday night, but we went anyway. There was a pretty good crowd even though the Western Idaho Fair is going on this week. There is an excellent hardwood floor and lots of space for dancing. It was pretty inexpensive too. On Sunday night there was a five piece band called "Deep Water". They did a great job. They played country and western music with waltzes, foxtrots, rhumbas, some cha-cha, and of course the "Boot Scootin' Boogey".

We liked it so much that we went back on Wednesday night taking Doris' niece and her Dad. This was billed as their "Over 40" night. This was pretty generous. They could have advertised an "Over 70" night and still been honest. The band for Wednesday was "The Rebels". They were even more country than "Deep Water". Along with the "Boot Scootin' Boogey", they played mostly country two step and country waltzes and swing.

We had a great time. Especially with the mixer. They would have all the gentlemen get in the center of the dance floor and all the ladies in a ring around them. When the music started the ladies would choose a partner. After a couple of minutes the music would stop and everyone would circle the room two-by-two. When the music started again the gentleman would partner with the lady two spots ahead in line. When the music stopped again everyone lined up four-by-four. Then the gentlemen would switch partners within their foursome. We really met some nice folks. But then, you always meet the nicest folks when dancing. They also have a dance on Saturday nights but we won't be in town for that one.

I Tango, You Tango, We Tango

We made our first foray into Argentine Tango last weekend. I saw an ad in the Weekend Section of the Washington Post for a performance of I Tango at the Lisner Auditorium down at George Washington University. We had been hearing about Argentine Tango, and this seemed like a perfect opportunity to see what it is all about.

For the performance The Argentine Tango Society flew in 12 of Argentina's most accomplished Tango dancers in a premiere event. After the performance, the Argentine Embassy hosted an authentic Milonga, a Tango party. Also appearing were the young dancers from the American Ballroom Theater Youth Performance Company, who starred in the documentary movie, Mad Hot Ballroom. It was two hours of some excellent music and dance. These couples can really move. Both the dancing and music were world class.

We had planned on going to the milonga, but the traffic and parking around Dupont Circle defeated us. We should have taken a cab from the auditorium to the Embassy.

We continued our foray last night by going to the Dance With Me studio in Herndon for a group lesson in Argentine Tango. We were instructed by Susan Cox. She is a great instructor, especially for beginners. She taught us enough in a hour and a half to do the basic step and even added a fan and a turn.

Here is an interesting article about Tango from the Society of Neuroscience.

Pay Attention

My regular dance partner and I were talking about the Tennessee Waltz. It is a great waltz that you here around especially in venues that play country waltzes. It also serves as a cautionary tale that shows why gentlemen should stick to those lessons. This gentleman should have practiced more and paid attention to his dance lessons. Obviously, he lost his sweetheart to a better dancer. My dance partner sees nothing wrong in throwing me over for another gentleman who is more proficient at dancing.

Here are the lyrics;

Tennessee Waltz
I was waltzing with my darlin’ to the Tennessee Waltz
When an old friend I happened to see
Introduced him to my loved one and while they were waltzing
My friend stole my sweetheart from me

I remember the night and the Tennessee Waltz
Now I know just how much I have lost
Yes I lost my little darlin’ the night they were playing
The beautiful Tennessee Waltz

Just Like Old Times

An unusual thing happened last night. We didn't have a dance scheduled. What's a Saturday night without going out to dance? We decided we would head down to Fredericksburg to our old stomping grounds (pun intented). We went to the 4th of July celebration at the Strictly Ballroom studio in Fredericksburg. We took lessons there from Melissa and Mike for a couple of years. We had a great time dancing with old friends. You find a wide range of dancers with a variety of expertise.

They have a great selection of group and private lessons. They also have a dance practice on Saturday nights. There is a lesson that starts at 7:30 and the dancing goes on until 10:30.

Melissa and Mike are great instructors and can really break down the steps for either beginners or more experienced dancers. If you have an inclination to get into competitions, Melissa and Mike can really help.

Dancing until the Rain Stopped

We went up to the Harris Pavilion last weekend where the T-Birds were scheduled to play. Unfortunately, we got rained out. Just as we pulled into the parking lot it started raining. Then it started coming down in buckets. We had met some friends there and got some take-out to stake out a table. Even sitting under the pavilion it started to get damp. The band was just starting to get their sound system up when we had a couple of near misses with lightning. The kind where the "flash" and the "bang" arrive at the same time. That's when they started packing.

We danced to the T-Birds last summer a were really looking forward to them playing.

We ended up going to a new studio in Centerville, called "The Ballroom". A nice place tucked into a shopping center. They have a pretty good floor and sound system. We picked up a brochure just to check them out. They have a nice lineup of classes throughout the week, both individual and group. We ended up having a great time dancing until the rain stopped.

The Fabulous Bel Airs

Tonight we are going to see the Bel Airs at the Harris Pavilion for their Motown and Blues Brothers Review. Sounds like some good music. I hope we can dance to it.

The Harris Pavilion has some great bands for their Saturday night dances. We usually join some friends to get together and dance. The dance goes from 8:00 PM to 11:00 PM. We like to get there early so we can get a good seat and grab a bite of dinner at Fosters.