DanceChatter.Com Newsletter 

August 19, 2010

Summer Dance Camp: SO MUCH FUN

     I got back from Summer Dance Camp on Sunday and boy, was that a good time! We kicked off the weekend with the traditional DanceChatter.Com Cocktail Party and at one point we had about 50 people crammed into our room. Thank goodness we had a suite courtesy of event director Jay Byam! Special thanks to David Walkup who played the most gracious and charming bartender ever. Why is it when I leave him alone for a few minutes he immediately becomes surrounded by women, LOL??? I took some pictures at the party when I looked at them later I realized that almost all the pictures turned into a version of Where’s Waldo – Teacher Michele Adams, tried, as a joke, to make her way into every picture I took – so in the majority of these pictures she’s showing up in these odd angles, from the side, from the bottom, from the top, anywhere she could get in there, LOL! Speaking of Michele, our Double Diva Hustle Team rocked the house during our performance on Friday night. Little did we know the performance (as well as the entire event) was being streamed live over the internet until we started getting congratulatory texts after the event, otherwise we might have been more nervous, LOL. Saturday day and night was about teaching and judging for me, but after the work part was over it was time to get out there on the dance floor and work it all out. My friends Stacey and Francisco Martinez of Dance Family Studio in Pasadena brought their newly formed kids ballroom performance group to the event to, they did a great routine, a montage of dance styles, VERY well done, VERY cute. Congrats to Jay B for a well-done event, I will see you at the next one!!

Dance Tip For The Week:

Posture, Posture, Posture

     Anyone who has taken my classes on a regular basis has heard me say this: Posture, Posture, Posture. But I mean it! Think of your body as an electrical cord that transmits an electrical current. When we don’t stand up straight we are not an optimal conduit for that current. It’s like an electrical cord that’s been bent in the same place for too long - the current is interrupted, it can no longer travel freely. But stand up straight, pull your spine up and shoulders back and you become a better conduit for transmission. That current can then travel freely through you to your partner and back, especially when BOTH partners have good posture. Better posture leads to a better conduit which leads to better connection which leads to better communication when leading and following which leads to better dancing. And, it just looks better!

Sizzlin’ Salsa Drawing To A Close: Final 2 Weeks 

     Only two more weeks to go in the Sizzlin’ Salsa Summer Nights at the Autry Center! I’m so sad it’s drawing to a close as this year has been an AMAZING two months of music and dancing. Tonight’s band is Perrico Hernandez, a well-known percussionist so lots of energy will be out there on the dance floor. The last and final week will feature one of my personal favorites, Johnny Polanco, which traditionally is the biggest night of the entire season (Johnny knows how to pack them in!). If you haven’t attended one of these nights yet you’d better get your Salsa booty to the Autry, STAT! Dancing under the stars! Beginning Salsa lesson at 7:30 pm with Trish! Taco & Margarita Bar!  What’s not to like?? Autry Museum at Griffith Park (across from LA Zoo), theautry.org, $7 per person (Autry members get in free).

Moose on the Loose Country Dance:

Friday, August 20^th @ BML

     The monthly DanceChatter Moose On The Loose Country Dance is coming up this Friday, August 20^th at the Burbank Moose Lodge. I’ll be teaching the Line Dance “She’s Country” at 6:30 pm, and since UCWDC Champion David Walkup will be in town that weekend, he’ll be helping me teach the 7:00 pm Country 2-Step Lesson, so look out, guys, you know what that means!! We’ll be putting some craaazzzeee stuff down on the dance floor! DJ James Woo will be taking over the DJ duties from me at 8:00 pm for open dancing, playing a mix of Country 2-Step, Swing (ECS & WCS), Line Dances, Nightclubs, Waltz, Cowboy Cha Cha, etc., so I’ll actually get to play hostess and dance for a change. Seriously, I’m lucky to have James on board for the dance, if you’ve heard him play at my 7^th Tuesday Dance Party (the next of which is Tuesday, August 31^st), you know he excels at playing a wide variety of music for EVERYONE! Come on down, we’ll be honky-tonkin’ all night long!! Check out the website for more info.

Sunday Dance Technique Workshops 

Sunday, August 22nd

    I’m switching up the usual Sunday line up this coming Sunday, August 22^nd to offer FOUR workshops instead of the usual three: Beginning Hustle at 12:30 pm, Int/Adv Hustle at 1:30 pm, Int/Adv Cha Cha at 2:30 pm and Int/Adv WCS at 3:30 pm. Something different to change things up, right? Double H Club/Hacienda Hotel, 525 N. Sepulveda, El Segundo.

Trish Teaches for OCWCSDC @ Top Cats Sunday, August 22nd 

     Well, if you don’t get your fill of me during the Sunday day workshops at Hacienda you can journey to Top Cats in Placentia where I’ll be teaching the 6:00 pm Intermediate WCS class for Jack Smith and his Orange County West Coast Swing Dance Club. Check it out, I always have fun teaching for Jack, especially since I get to stick around afterwards and dance my a** off to Jack’s music!!! 733 Dunn Way, Placentia, ocwcsdc.com

7^th Tuesday Dance Party:

Tuesday, August 31st

    As you know, my 7^th Tuesday Dance Party is the dance party break between each and every 6-week class series at the Burbank Moose Lodge. It’s a way to get out there and practice what you’ve learned, bring your non-dancing friends in to be inducted (we have some GREAT specials for dance newbies), and enjoy the DJ talents of DJ James Woo. He played our last 7^th Tuesday party in July and did such an excellent job playing a mix of dance music, I am SO lucky to have him on board! And you don’t have to be a Moose member or even a DanceChatter student to attend! Any and all are welcome! Beginning WCS lesson at 6:15 pm (this is the $1 specially priced class for newbies, see the flyer for more info) and to change things up a bit, a Beg/Int level HUSTLE class at 7:00 pm, after which of course we will turn the dance floor over to you. Don’t forget that first time new students get a $5 discount of their first series price IF they sign up for the series while at the dance.

New 6-Week Series: WCS & Salsa

Tuesday, September 7th

     The next Tuesday Night 6-Week Series at the Burbank Moose Lodge starts Tuesday, September 7^th. We are having so much fun with the Salsa class that I decided to continue it into the next series. Two levels of WCS: Beginning at 7:00 pm and Beyond Basics/Intermediate at 8:00 pm, and Beginning/Beyond Basics Salsa at 9:00 pm. WCS Newbies: Attend the 7^th Tuesday Dance on August 31st and get a discount on the Beginning WCS Series (Ask Trish for details).

SlideShow for CruiseFest Swing Dance Cruise

     I’m thinking about putting together a picture slideshow of pictures from last year’s CruiseFest Swing Dance Cruise (yes, ‘cause I have so much spare time, LOL), put it to music, all that good stuff. I thought that would be fun to do to remember what an awesome time we had last year, and to get ready for this year's cruise.  I’ll post it on YouTube or somewhere so everyone can look at it. And the good news is it’s not too late to book your trip for this year's cruise! Dance classes every day while at sea with top instructors, special dance parties for our group, special shore excursions & parties for our group while in Montego Bay, Jamaica; Grand Cayman & Cozumel. Need a roommate? We can help! Here’s the CruiseFest website: http://tinyurl.com/237wmxa. Make sure you tell them TRISH CONNERY referred you!!

Top Cats Anniversary Party

Friday, August 27th

     Happy 6^th Anniversary to Top Cats Dance Studio and to owners Tom & Sossy Hyatt. Tom & Sossy are hosting a special celebratory dance party on Friday, August 27^th starting at 7:00 pm with DJ Jack Smith, featuring food, dancing, and lots and lots of fun. 733 Dunn Way, Placentia 92870, TopCatsDance.com

Dancing This Week

*RED indicates a Trish Connery/DanceChatter.Com associated event

MONDAYS

Mondays – WCS Dancing @ Borderline in Thousand Oaks Every Monday w/ Cliff Housego (cliff@wedding-music-djs.com)
Mondays – Ongoing Hustle & WCS Performance Team Practice with Michele Adams & Trish Connery, BeaHive Studio, Garden Grove

TUESDAYS

Tuesdays – WCS & Salsa Classes Every Tuesday at Burbank  Moose Lodge with Trish Connery (www.dancechatter.com)
Tuesdays – WCS Dancing at Hacienda, rotating DJ list, in El Segundo (south of LAX), www.haciendahotel.com

WEDNESDAYS

Wednesdays – Sonny Watson & Jack Smith Weekly WCS Dance in Reseda (www.streetswing.com)
Wednesdays – Hustle with Debra Hampton at Hacienda (DJ rotates), www.haciendahotel.com

THURSDAYS

Thursdays – Sizzlin’ Salsa at Autry Center in July & August, Griffith Park, theautry.org
Thursdays – Swingin’ The Blues with Ben Morris, Atomic Ballroom in Irvine, www.socalswingdance.com
Thursdays – WCS with DJ Anne at Hacienda in El Segundo (south of LAX), www.haciendahotel.com

FRIDAYS

Fridays – Weekly WSC Dance with Bob Brewer @ Press Box, Westminster, thepressboxdance.com
Fridays – Salsa with Raul Santiago at at Hacienda in El Segundo (south of LAX), www.haciendahotel.com

Friday, August 20^th: Moose on the Loose Country Dance with Trish Connery, Burbank Moose Lodge, dancechatter.com

SATURDAYS

Saturdays – 1st Saturday of the Month Dance w/Phil Adams & DJ Jack Smith @ Hacienda in El Segundo (south of LAX), www.haciendahotel.com

Saturdays – 2^nd Saturday of the Month: Dance with Lisa Narita @ Avant Garde in Newport Beach, dance-today.com

Saturday – 3^rd Saturday of the Month: Dance with Martin Parker @ DanceScene in Costa Mesa, dancescene.com

Saturday-4^th Saturday of the month: 4^th Saturday Dance w/Rhonda Diamond & DJDK David Koppelman, Regency Ballroom, Lomita, diamondswing.com

Saturday-4^th Saturday Dance w/Carrie Lucas at Avant Garde in Newport Beach, carrielucas.com

SUNDAYS

Sundays - Salsa with Raul Santiago at at Hacienda in El Segundo (south of LAX), www.haciendahotel.com
Sunday – August 22^nd, Hustle, Cha Cha & WCS Workshops  w/Trish Connery @ Hacienda, El Segundo, www.dancechatter.com 

Sundays - Jack Smith’s OCWCSDC Sunday Dance @ Top Cats, Placentia, ocwcsdc.com, Trish teaches on 8/22

Thanks for reading! See you on the dance floor!

Trish Connery & DanceChatter.Com

323-228-3532; trish@dancechatter.com; www.dancechatter.com