at studio 878
@adaminchatham
Ballroom Lessons
Whether ballroom dance is a past love to rekindle or something new to discover, each lesson will be a joy with your devoted instructor, Adam!
Classes are offered to both individuals and couples, per session or in a series:
Private lessons are designed to go at your own pace, focusing on the ballroom dance style(s) you want to explore. We work with students of all ages and abilities, whether they are getting ready for competition, learning a specific dance for a special occasion, or simply just wanting to have fun!
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Group classes are designed to support students taking private lessons in respect to repetition of steps and learning following and leading technique with different partners – plus it is fun to meet other people just like you learning to dance. Group classes are offered at no charge to students taking private lessons.
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Have a young dancer? Check out our Chance to Dance youth scholarship program or contact Adam for more information.
Private Lessons
Tuesday – Saturday, by appointment
Group Lessons
Wednesdays at 5:15 p.m. (smooth)
Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. (rhythm)
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Group lessons are complimentary for private lesson students, or a $15 drop in fee.
Ballroom Dance Styles
The Slow Foxtrot is a favorite among many ballroom dancers...think about the smooth dancing of Fred and Ginger. Once you learn the Foxtrot, you really feel like a dancer. Composed of fairly simple walking steps and side steps, the footwork timing is usually "slow, slow, quick, quick.
Full of sensual movements, the Rumba is considered by many to be the sexiest of the ballroom dances. The basic rhythm of the Rumba is quick-quick-slow with distinctive side-to-side hip movements. These hip movements and characteristic sways of the Rumba are generated by the bending and straightening of the knees.
This dance (and all contemporary Swing) has its roots with the Lindy Hop dances done at the great Savoy Ballroom in Harlem in the 1920’s and 1930’s. East Coast Swing is an energetic, fast dance, done usually with triple steps and rock steps to Big Band or contemporary music that ‘swings’.
West Coast Swing is a form of swing dancing that is danced in a slot to moderate tempo blues, R&B and, in recent times, contemporary music. It is the smother, sexier version of the swing dance family. Its basic patterns are both 6 and 8 beats, but those patterns can be varied by +/- 2 beat increments. It is characteristically highly musical and can adopt many nuances from other forms of dance. This makes West Coast Swing a highly versatile dance form.
Lively and flirtatious, the Cha Cha is full of passion and energy. The Cha Cha requires small steps and lots of hip motion (Cuban motion), as it is danced in 4/4 time.
The waltz is characterized by rise and fall, and sway actions. The feet stay in contact with the floor, creating a smooth, gliding look.. A truly romantic dance, the Waltz is comprised of soft, round, flowing movements.
Salsa is a popular form of social dance that originated in New York with strong influences from Latin America. In many styles of salsa dancing, as a dancer shifts their weight by stepping, the upper body remains level and nearly unaffected by the weight changes.
One of the most fascinating of all dances, the tango is a sensual ballroom dance that originated in South America in the early twentieth century. Tango is usually performed by a man and a woman, expressing an element of romance in their synchronized movements. Many people are familiar with "ballroom tango," characterized by strong, dramatic head snaps.
Argentine Tango is much more intimate than Modern Tango, and is well-suited to dancing in small settings. Argentine Tango retains the intimacy of the original dance.