|
Saturday, March 20, 1999
One year ago: Bald Faced Lie
I went down to the Century Ballroom this morning, for a dance workshop taught by Eric and Sylvia, national champion lindyhoppers! They are based in Los Angeles and dance what's called Hollywood-style lindy.
The class size was just about right; the room was filled, but not packed. I was familiar with most of the students, but there were a few new faces. Eric and Sylvia are a cute couple. He's very tall, with hair very short on the sides, and rising up Elvis-style on top. She's a stacked blond, with a sweetheart neckline bodice, and her hair in a forties-style rolled curl on top - with a red camellia, of course!
The morning session was billed as six-count lindy, and I think some folks believed that it would be easier than the other classes. It wasn't, though! It was Hollywood-style six-count, not East Coast Swing as taught in nightclubs. They concentrated on showing us the styling that helps them dance very fast and very smoothly, and on some moves (like the sugar push) that are more commonly done as part of West Coast swing.
They danced fast, talked quickly, and presented the material in a rush. I'd have been satisfied with about half the number of moves, with more chance to really get some of them down. But I wasn't as lost as some of the leads were, which was actually a problem for the follows. If the guy doesn't understand the basic concepts of leading -- and this workshop wasn't the place for learning them -- it's tough for the follow to make much headway herself! So some statements as to expected levels ahead of time would have been a good thing, I think.
We learned some good styling stuff, and I'll be trying some of these steps out.
* * * * * * * *
I walked over to the carryout Chinese place a few blocks away, and got the house special chow fun. Chris Chapman was sitting by the entrance to the ballroom, helping with registration, so I kept him company while we ate. I didn't understand at first why so many random people were walking in and looking around, until I rememberd that the fringe theater festival was still going on all over the neighborhood. (The cirque du flambe last week was a part of the fringe fest.) So I pointed the curious to the flyers that listed all the Century's events.
The afternoon session was shag, an old dance from the early thirties. I've never done it before. It's often done to fast music, and is currently popular in the swing scene in LA. Again, we covered all the basic steps of the dance in about an hour, then took a ten-minute break, then got the more advanced variations in the next hour and fifteen minutes. My head was spinning by the end! But I'd like to work on this dance more; I'm sure it will get easier. The dance itself isn't that complicated, but it's a new way of moving that I need to practice.
It's good to learn something totally new every so often. It reminds me of how tough it was to actually get going with Lindy! That's a good thing to be reminded of, so I'll stay patient with the folks that are beginners now.
* * * * * * * *
I tottered home around five o'clock, and had time to read email and take a bath before Jack arrived. He'd been working with his friend B--- on a business thing, but they'd moved their office up to Snoqualmie Falls for the day, both of them writing at a picnic table near the falls. I was glad he'd had a chance to spend some time outdoors; he really loves that. I was ready when he knocked, so he parked near my house and we walked back down the hill. We ate at Taco Del Mar (my suggestion -- good thing I like the food there almost as much as Jack does) then wandered around the neighborhood.
I'd suggested that it would be fun to go see the Cirque du Flambe a second time. Jack was all for seeing the show ("but I'd rather be in it!" he said several times) and tonight was the final performance. We almost wandered around for too long -- the crowd was bigger than on the first night. But we managed to find a place to stand, close to the front (so I could see) and on one side. We couldn't see the band (Jack was interested in the guitar playing of "Tiny Giants") but we could here them.
The show was fine! A few acts were added that I didn't see the opening night: A large dragon fire-puppet -- I'd seen this before at Trolloween; a man blowing fireballs -- not too special; and a new clown act ("Dynamite Dueling") with Luke "Baked Idaho" McGuff. This last had a few technical problems, but I liked the schtick! Two clowns decide to duel by tying fireworks to their backs, then trying to set each other off. When one gets exploded, a comic sexy nurse comes out to comfort him, so the "winner" realizes he'd have been better off losing!
Jack enjoyed the show, and only got one cinder blown into his eye. Wally Glenn as Pyro Boy was spectacular, of course. We got a chance to say hi to him afterwards, and met up with my friend Blunt and his wife. I'd suggested that Blunt come to the show, but he's been working so much, and when I saw the size of the crowd I'd given up hope of trying to find him. I was really pleased to see him and introduce Jack to the both of them.
* * * * * * * *
We decided to go for a beverage. The first coffee place we walked by was too crowded (when did Cafe Paradisio turn into Caffe Vita?) so I had the good idea that we could go to the cafe, tapas place and wine bar that's attached to the Century Ballroom. No one else had been there before, so I led the way (all of two blocks). There was a dance going on, with a band, Lily Wilde, from Portland. It seemed strange that I wasn't in there dancing, although my feet were tired enough from the dance class earlier that I really wouldn't have been up for it anyway.
We talked about our own firework adventures, the nature of black powder as opposed to other kinds of gunpowder, and what this swing scene is all about. When Blunt was done with his merlot, and the rest of us had drained our hot drinks, we walked back up the hill to our respective destinations.
I always like to make connections, so I was glad that Jack got to meet Blunt and vice versa. Now they'll each have some conception of whom I'm talking about when I mention the other!
|
