Tap Dance

Keep Going

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Thursday 12th September would have been my first week back at Rhythm Tap, this time in the intermediate class, but I had to go home from work the day before as I was unwell, and I didn’t return until this past Tuesday. I had also been intending to get back in the gym after having most of the summer off, but besides being unwell, the university gym that I use is now closed because…they are demolishing the building to build a shiny new one!

To be fair, the gym will be temporarily rehoused in another part of the campus from some time in October, and full memberships will be heavily discounted to only £10, but I wonder if there will be a reduction in the number of machines. Until I get to try it out, I plan to concentrate on doing some stretching.

But yeah, I was really annoyed that after a lovely two week break to recharge for the autumn, I had to then be run down by illness. I had my weekly timetable all mapped out: Gym on Tuesday lunchtime. Ukulele class Wednesday evening (starting this week). Tap class Thursday lunchtime. Just shows how our plans are not always under our control!

I managed to get along to my tap class on Thursday, and it was EXTREMELY CHALLENGING! I knew it would be, from the last time I had a go at that class in the evening, but not being 100% better, I felt ever so slightly vacant. The warm up was all call-and-response, which is one of my favourite things, but being a bit out of it, I felt slightly like a rabbit in headlights…especially with only 5 of us in the class – nowhere to hide! In the exercises and routine I felt like I couldn’t keep up with instructions and the speed of the steps.

Then I had that creeping feeling again. You know the one. It’s too difficult, I can’t do it, I don’t want to do this anymore, etc, BUT I’ve been through this before at previous levels – it’s challenging and you want to give up, but actually, if you want to improve, you have to push through it, and in time it will get easier. Besides, those of us who have just moved up from advanced beginners are all in the same boat and we can support each other!

We are learning a routine to a song by Gentleman’s Dub Club, which is just my thing. I just need to watch the video I took of the routine and practice a lot, because I retained NONE of the information given – doh!

11 Reasons Why Gregory Hines Was Awesome

~ Lifelongdancestudent ~ 3 Comments
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Gregory Hines (1946-2003)
  1. He revived Rhythm Tap in mainstream culture in the 1980s and 1990s after it had seriously gone out of fashion
  2. He was an amazing improviser (just watch some of his stuff on YouTube for inspiration!)
  3. He started dancing semi-professionally aged 5, with his brother Maurice, and took lessons with Broadway choreographer Henry Le Tang, who taught people such as Bunny Briggs, Eleanor Powell, Sandman Sims and Debbie Allen
  4. He was inspired by some of the tap dance heavyweights, including Sammy Davis Jr and the Nicholas Brothers
  5. He has influenced many, many artists such as Savion Glover, Dianne Walker, Jane Goldberg, Ayodele Casel, Michelle Dorrance
  6. In 1988 he successfully petitioned ‘National Tap Dance Day’ in the US (25th of May, which happens to be Bill ‘Bojangles’ Robinson’s birthday), which has now morphed into International Tap Dance Day!
  7. He starred on Broadway, and in many films, including ‘White Nights’ (1985), ‘The Cotton Club’ (1984) and ‘Tap’ (1989), receiving a Tony Award in 1992 for the musical ‘Jelly’s Last Jam’ plus several other nominations.
  8. He created a fantastic documentary for PBS in 1989 on the history and culture of tap dance, called ‘Tap Dance America‘
  9. He was a great singer, fronting a rock band in the 70s and later performing with artists such as Luther Vandross
  10. In the late 90s he had his own sitcom ‘The Gregory Hines Show’, plus he had a recurring role on the popular sitcom ‘Will and Grace’
  11. In 2019, 16 years after his untimely death at the age of 57,  the US Postal Service created a Gregory Hines Black Heritage postage stamp

Awesome.

Workshop Week

~ Lifelongdancestudent ~ 3 Comments

I felt a bit disappointed in myself on Tuesday. For the second year in a row, I enrolled on a 3-day tap dance intensive (2 hours per day) and once again I ended up bailing out after 1 day.

This time I intended to attend days 1-2 and then rest on day 3, but this wasn’t to be. My problem left knee started giving me grief afterwards, and then my right achilles tendon and plantar fascia (arch of foot) followed suit, so I ended up hobbling around at home for the remainder of the course…

…Apart from yesterday when I hobbled into West London to run an important errand and then attend a 3 hour ukulele workshop in Southwark the afternoon! I’ll tell you all about it, but first the tap intensive.

The intermediate tap dance workshop was a lot of fun! The teacher, I’d forgotten, is a little scattier in his teaching style to what I’m used to, but I picked up so much in those 2 hours. My usual teacher is fab, but I also enjoy learning with a different teacher every now and then as they will have their own style, choreography and way of teaching. Quite often, you have to absorb a lot very quickly.

We covered shuffles, slurps, the Shim Sham, rhythm turns, riffs, paddles, and a particular favourite for me was when we travelled backwards across the studio doing fast side shuffles:

R-L-R-R, L-R-L-L, R-L-R-L-R-L-R-R, L-R-L-R-L-R-L-L

I’ve never done this travelling backwards before, but I like it! Luckily we got to film the routine we’d put together so far, so I can have a go at this again in my garage once my knee and foot have had adequate rest.

I really enjoyed having the time to go over things in detail when you don’t have to squeeze everything into 45 minutes. I think my next task will be to make an appointment with a podiatrist because I’m pretty sure my knee and foot issue is to do with pronation when I walk and dance, and also having lower arches.

Now onto the ukulele…

I was thinking for a while that I’d like to be able to play a musical instrument at church as we’re short on musicians, and because I like singing, I was thinking about a non-wind instrument. So, rather than the guitar, I decided to go for the Ukulele! It’s apparently one of the easiest instruments to learn, it’s compact and portable, and it’s cute!

It’s compact…portable, and it’s cute!

To see if it was definitely for me, I enrolled the day before on the Wednesday afternoon 3-hour workshop near my work, and then I’d know whether I wanted to enrol on the regular class in the autumn. Well it was so much fun! Taught by an enthusiastic jazz singing, uke playing cabaret artist (who incidentally has a swing group that includes a tap dancer), the 9-strong all-female group introduced ourselves to each other, learnt how to tune our instruments and then learnt to play 4 chords (C, Am, F, G7), plus a couple of strum patterns. For each song that we did, we sang along and it was lovely!

It’s true what they say, learning an instrument really feeds into your understanding of tap dance rhythm, musicality and multitasking.

I think I’m hooked!

Strength

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This week I made it back to the gym – yay! I did the crosstrainer to warm up, and then the low bike for about 5 minutes. I followed these up with some lower body strength work (30kg seated leg curl, 40kg seat leg press), and then some stretching of the calves, hamstrings, quads, achilles and feet. Because almost all of the lifts at work are out of order at the moment, I took my shower stuff over to the gym with me, rather than trying to climb 9 floors’ worth of stairs back at work! However, I won’t be repeating this. In the shower cubicle itself there was NOWHERE to put ANYTHING. No shelf or hooks or anything, so although I could throw my towel over the door, I had to put everything else on the wet floor. Not impressed!

Since Wednesday evening I’ve been feeling really rough with hayfever or a cold – not sure which at the moment, but I suspect it is hayfever (pollen & pollution) as I have maintained my sense of smell… I wasn’t sure if I was going to even make it to my tap class today, but I decided to dose up and soldier on! (Not something I usually advocate if rest is in order, but I really don’t want to miss any classes this time when we only have 4 in the block and today we would be filming the routine for practice purposes).

Rhythm Tap Class

We were a larger group than usual because a few people from Wednesday evening’s class joined us, plus another few who were trying out before enrolling. We worked on our around-the-world roll again and our swing-beat paddle exercise where we did:

  • 4 x 4 beat paddle (heel dig – pickup – toe – heel drop)
  • 4 x paddle minus the first heel dig
  • 4 x paddle minus the first heel dig and last heel drop – requires balance!
  • Repeat

It’s another great exercise to try and get your head around. And then you have to try and not use your head.

Quite quickly we moved straight onto our Bollywood routine as there are only 2 weeks left after today (rhythm tap to Bollywood music, rather than dancing Bollywood style). I really like this routine…but then I say that about all of them! It’s quicker than we are used to, but that’s good as it challenges us to go for it.

Thankfully the shower situation worked out when I returned to the office as I managed to get a lift very quickly. In the afternoon I had a chair based massage which was organised by the HR department, and despite everyone saying that the massage was too firm, I really enjoyed it and found it greatly beneficial to my post-tap muscles! Sadly it was only for the upper body, but I’ll take that 🙂

Around The World

~ Lifelongdancestudent ~ 1 Comment

After a relaxing break from work over Easter, this week I returned to the day job, my soap side gig and rhythm tap class!

I didn’t make the gym because with the Bank Holiday on Monday, there were only 2 possible days that I could go and I just couldn’t fit it in. I suppose I could have gone Wednesday, but I don’t like to work out the day before a dance class. I will get back to it next week when the schedule is back to normal.

I did do a lot of walking last week, with a weekend in Birmingham and Hughenden Manor National Trust, plus I did a New York City Ballet Workout, so I’m not too concerned about loss of fitness or anything.

Rhythm tap class was amazing as usual! I think everyone was hyped to be back, including our teacher who had been at a tap retreat in Italy over the break. Mountain views, food, wine, day trips and tap classes…So jealous!

There were some new people joining us this term; some who have moved up from beginners and some who want to refresh their steps after years away from it. This week we worked on a travelling shuffle-step exercise, which we did each way sets of eight, four, two and one. Our teacher got me to do it with her double time – that was fun!

The other main exercise was an ‘around the world roll’. This is like a cramp roll, but in a different order:

E.g. Starting on the right

R-Toe L-Toe L-Heel R-Toe

And you end with the left foot off the ground ready to start the left side:

Our routine is to a high energy Bollywood track and I’m loving it!

Speedy

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For the last month I’ve been obsessing over a clip of Greg Burge and Hinton Battle on stage in Sophisticated Ladies. I swear, I have never seen such quick, accurate and flamboyant hoofing in my life, plus they do ridiculously high kicks and the splits, which reminds me instantly of The Nicholas Brothers. And the music is fab. Love it! I have a lot of training to do LOL.

Today was the final rhythm tap class before a 3 week break for the Easter Hols. A few of us were asking what we’re going to do?! Well, I’m going to continue with the gym hopefully.

I really love the routine we’ve been doing to Aaron Taylor’s Easy. There are slides, 4 beat riffs, pick-ups, turns, lots of shuffles in different directions including across the body, and more. I felt I kind of had a bit of the ‘lazy leg’ today where I wasn’t always hitting the floor, but I just need to do some general practice and, inspired by Battle and Burge, perhaps a bit of work on leg speed…

Exciting news – our teacher is hopefully going to start a level 3 (intermediate) class on Thursday lunchtimes from September so that some of us can move up and progress! That solves my issue of trying to do those late Wednesday nights and starting work late the next day. I can’t wait!

A Weekend in Edinburgh

~ Lifelongdancestudent ~ 1 Comment

Edinburghview.jpgHope you’ve had a good weekend? I’ve just returned from a fun weekend in Edinburgh! My SO and I had some loyalty points to use on travel, so we used them to book a hotel and then bought our train tickets on top. Neither of us had ever been to Scotland before (apart from my coach trip to Stranraer to catch the ferry to Northern Ireland back in 1997 but that doesn’t really count), and a few of my colleagues had been for conferences recently and were raving about it, so we jumped at the chance to visit the compact Scottish capital…on Burns Night! It was just over a 4 hour train journey there, where we stayed in a spa hotel near the Usher Hall. We went for a morning swim in the spa, ate haggis with our breakfast and visited the amazing Edinburgh Castle, which looms over the city. We also saw the Scottish crown jewels and tasted whisky liqueur. LOVE IT! We will definitely go back.

Having attended the first two weeks of the Pilates Mat Work to Music course, I actually skipped last Monday’s class. Monday is usually my day of buying my salad items etc for lunch for the rest of the week, and since starting Pilates, I’m finding my weekly routine a bit off, and I’m chasing my tail to fit everything into a couple of days, plus trying to make up the time at work when taking two longer lunchtimes in four days. TB is an amazing, if not slightly intimidating teacher (!) and the postural work is really helping my achy left knee, but I feel over-committed. So…I’m withdrawing from that course and instead I’m going to try either going to the gym, pay as you go, for 20 mins to half an hour on a Tuesday, or just doing some strengthening stuff at home.

By Thursday last week I felt extremely tired, like I’d been punched in the eyes, but I knew I’d wake up once I got dancing. It’s so tempting to just not go to a class when you feel like that. We worked on the Shirley Temple exercise again, but in pairs where we keep turning 90 degrees. Very confusing, but it was fun to try and actually work out together when we should be facing each other, when we should be passing each other and when our backs should be facing! We also worked again on a heel toe step exercise which travelled across the studio, and we were given the option to try it swung (yes), slower or even faster (er no). Our teacher was showing me the faster version when we were going across the room to music, but I really need to work out the faster rhythm before trying to fit it into the music – I’ve since done this at home!

Our Naughty Little Flea routine practice was good and I’d made an effort to learn and remember all the steps that we’d learned so far, but the next part is quite difficult in that it goes off the beat and changes timing a LOT. I am going to try and go over the steps to first of all learn and remember them. THEN I will try altering the timing by listening to the track and trying it out. Rhythm tap is very taxing!

 

Happy Christmas!

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_20181222_152121.JPGI can’t believe the year is almost over! As Christmas day is almost upon us, I thought I’d share my highlights of 2018:

  • Tap Dance Festival UK Winter Intensive in Salford with amazing workshops
  • MOVE IT 2018 Tap workshop with Chloe and Maud Arnold of the Syncopated Ladies and percussive workshop with cast member from hit show STOMP
  • Cats the Musical Jellicle Ball and Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats workshops at Pineapple Studios with cast member Cameron Ball
  • Tap Dance Intensive at City Lit in Covent Garden (although only managed day 1 of 3!)
  • Moving up to Intermediates at Rhythm Tap class
  • Seeing The Tap Pack, 42nd Street (again) and The Play that Goes Wrong at the theatre
  • Trips to the Sky Garden and the Museum of London
  • Finally sorting out my home practice studio with suitable floor
  • Spa day at Sopwell House
  • Completing and passing another module on my course (Cert in HR Practice)DSC_0151.JPG

 

I look forward to continuing with Rhythm tap classes as well as starting Pilates in the new year. I also have a theatre trip (Agatha Christie’s Witness for the Prosecution), a couple of dance festivals and trip to Edinburgh lined up! I want to FINALLY complete my HR Practice Certificate, develop my writing further, learn some techniques for reading aloud and public speaking, plus I am really interested in learning bookbinding…

Anyway, before I get back to watching terrible movies on the ‘True Christmas’ channel:

I’d like to say a BIG THANK YOU for following and reading my blog and I hope you have a fabulous Christmas and a Happy New Year 2019!

 

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Winter Plans

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Best foot forward

After wondering all weekend whether to do a half day or full day, I have gone and booked a one-day pass to the Tap Dance Festival UK Winter Intensive 2019! The festival takes place in February in Salford, Greater Manchester, and you may remember that I went along for the first time last Winter for the Saturday morning only, which included 3 classes. They haven’t released half day passes yet, and seeing as there were very few adult spaces left, I bit the bullet to make sure I don’t miss out… Apparently the teaching faculty will include American Tap Dance Foundation! Can’t wait!

At the last festival I learnt so much in just a few hours of tapping and got to learn different things from different people who teach in their own unique style. It was a bit scary going on my own, but really, I’m used to it. I thought about not bothering and just doing the summer ones (London Tap Dance Intensive and Brighton Tap Festival) but considering the heatwave this Summer just gone and the fact I overheat massively at these things, I decided the WINTER would be best!

Beautiful Tango

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_20181107_123555.JPGLast week I went back to Thursday lunchtime rhythm tap! I’ve gone back to dancing Level 2 (advanced beginners) just so I can ditch the late evenings of Level 3 (intermediates) in the busy run up to Christmas. I discussed with K how we can make level 3 work when we currently finish work at around 5pm and the class doesn’t start until 7.45pm. Doing levels 2 & 3 back to back to fill the time are great, but quite taxing, so I suggested the beginners gentle yoga class which runs 6-7.30pm on the same night, so that might work for January… Honestly, as I was walking to the college I was thinking about taking a break in January -yeah RIGHT!

Thursday’s class was really good fun. We worked on our 6-beat riff, a crawl exercise and the good ol’ paddle and roll which we worked on in pairs. Then we moved onto our routine, which involves travelling in a box shape and the track Beautiful Tango by Wakakura, which I’ve been listening to to get into the groove. I actually felt like I was taking the steps in, despite being too hot (as usual) and probably a little dehydrated beforehand.  It’s so much easier only having to remember one routine!

To enhance my learning, I acquired a new book at the weekend, which I’ve been dipping into every evening – Beginning Tap Dance by Lisa Lewis. When I’ve finished going through it, I’ll sit down with a latte and write a review for you!

Have a good week 🙂