Tap Improv... Diving in the Deep End!

Ok, so its been awhile, alot has happened in the last few months. Our Heart and Sole group has performed in various venues, the PNE Exhibition in the summer where we did about 5 numbers, Chinese Days, also in the summer ( that was a hot one !) We performed in a parking lot behind a Drug Store for one of the many 125 year celebrations in Vancouver this one for Vancouver Sunrise area.. the stage was the size of a Postage stamp and a couple of times I thought I was going over !

My favorite though was in late September in the neighbourhood I live in, Strathcona. It was This Is Strathcona, another 125 year celebration of cultural history history in our area. It was a dark and stormy day, pouring rain, so windy, we had to stand against the stage tent covering to keep it from blowing over... the sound system went out several times while performing (we still kept time !) and our feet were wet, they almost shut it down because they thought we might get electrocuted ! They told us that after the fact.
All of these are great experiences for us, as it teaches us to just keep on dancing and keep smiling, and we had so much fun up there, it is a great group.

This year, a few of the "older" members of our choreography group took the leap, and decided to take Danny Nielsen's beginner Improv class. 

For those of you who aren't familiar with it, Improv is when you are given the music, and taught to keep time to rhythm and melody by knowing counts, beats, bars, all sorts of things, and make up your own steps.

We had done some improv in the past, but we were always terrified of it, especially us older dancers. You see, we have developed over the years layers of experience, good and bad, of being embarassed or even some of us have had some humiliating things happen, so taking Improv can be quite daunting in the beginning.

What has happened is, Danny has created a safe-zone. We are all there to learn, there is no "BAD" way, as long as you learn the count, timing etc. At first we were a little squeamish, especially since there were a few of the younger more experienced dancers in the class. They have been so helpful and generous in very gently helping us along, I thank them for their patience and guidance.

Now Improv is my favorite class, I find keeping it simple works better for me right now, I want to get the rhythm down, and really learn to listen to the music. 

Before it was all about just learning the steps, now, its taking the music, and breaking it down and adding your own mix, I am lovin' it, thank you Danny !!

Plateau-ing !

Well, here we are in March and still tapping my head off ! At the moment learning three numbers, I remember when just learning 1 used to be such a challenge, so things must be progressing.

I have, though, reached a bit of a plateau. Quite common I hear in the learning process. You go along and all of a sudden you think, " hey, I think I'm getting the hang of this " and then you push a little further, and you can't seem to get it all over again..(drives me crazy sometimes).

Then you go through the "Oh, I'm never going to get this" dialogue, then you hit a step you never thought you would learn, and go ah haaah!!... then, oh, I think I'm getting the hang of this..and starts all over again... Apparently it never ends.. thats the journey, thats the joy, thats why I love it.

Check out our new link created by Linda Dear for Heart and Sole called Shelleysdancers.blogspot.com. It will give you an idea of what the learning process is all about, and how Shelley brilliantly pieces everything together. 

One of the other numbers I am learning is being choreographed by Troy McLaughlin at Vancouver Tap, the number is called "St Louis Blues" and it is a tough one...bluesy vibe, great song, but man, is it full of fast steps!  If I can get through it without Troy and I cracking up, I will be very happy. We tend to turn into a couple of 8 year olds sometimes when we are dancing so it will be a challenge to keep that in check. Having a great time learning it though, when you're sides are sore from laughing after a class, you know you're having fun.

More performances coming up in the late spring and summer, dates and times to come. Stay tuned !

Pigeon-Toed and Bow-legged... Oi vay!

You'll have to excuse how I write these things, I just throw them down when they come into my head, and sometimes it is a bit A.D.D. ish !

I have found that after dancing alot, one of the benefits is, I cannot gain weight for the life of me. Most of the time I come home from tap, I usually have to peel my clothes off, I am sweating so much. So, the weight stays off no matter what I eat.

However, I have found that my body has changed slightly... Or so I think it has. Shelley, our very talented choreographer for Heart and Sole, is very good at pinpointing people's personal habits in dance, good, and... not so good.

For example, one day she kept saying, you have to turn your feet out, "Plié!" she says. My right foot tends to turn in a bit, so, it is habit for me. So, that day, she came over and said, "Stand straight... Push your feet flat to the floor." I did, and she said, " You're a bit bow-legged, aren't you?" Well, I didn't know that, you would think I would've. Then she mentioned my foot turning in again, and I said, "Well, this is great. Dance has changed my body." Little did I know that I was bow-legged AND pigeon-toed, an attractive combination in dance!!

Funny thing is, I never take it personally, its just an observation.. something happened with my body, after all the dancing, that changed my shape, so now, I am standing very straight, with my legs closed and my feet apart.

All I need now is a tutu!
Thank you Shelley! I appreciate all of your critique, and will try to apply!

Money! 2008

This was a photo taken at the Year End show in June 2008...
Cabaret was always one of my favorite musicals, and to be able to perform "Money" and do the Joel Grey part was so much fun. For the first time since I was 17, I shaved off my beard and mustache, had an ex drag queen do my make up, and away we went.

The shot above is of me and my good friend Anna Kramer in the opening part of the number. I was so pumped up by this whole thing, at this point I was just vibrating !

and... who knew false eyelashes could be so comfortable!

Chinese New Year Show coming up !

February 4th, Chinese New Year !

Our group Heart and Sole have been asked to perform at Tinseltown in Chinatown, and have we got our work cut out for us !
We will be performing a soft shoe number to Willy Nelson's "on the Sunny Side of the Street which I have been struggling with now for weeks, but its coming, and hopefully by then , the muscle memory will kick in.
We all learn differently, and, at my age, the only way I seem to get it is to do it over and over and over.
Thank god for the internet, as now we video all of our sessions so we can do "homework" on our steps and be a little more prepared
We will also be doing a few other numbers that we have performed in the past, "You Make Me Feel So Young " " Choo Choo Cha Boogie " Feeling Good " Shim Sham Shimmy " "More" to name a few.

Tap is such a rollercoaster once you decide you want to stay on for the ride.
Some days you feel like you are soaring and are on top of the world, then you plateau and don't seem to go anywhere, which can be very frustrating.
New steps and combinations come to challenge you ALL the time and it becomes quite a love hate love relationship.
But, once you get a combination you have been struggling with and it really kicks in, there is nothing like it.. YES ! I GOT IT !
I know I have been promising pics, and will definitely make that one of my New Years resolutions, that, and totally pimping out this blog for followers, 4 or 5 really doesn't cut it !
If any of you (all 5 of you at this point !) are in the neighbourhood, catch the show at Tinseltown Feb. 4th at 6 pm, you'll probably hear us before you see us !

Happy New Year

Ok, after being gently reminded that I have only two posts on this blog, I have decided to make it my New Years resolution to enter at LEAST 5 a year !
Have not been tapping now for about oh, two weeks which is quite a long time for a tap addict. With Christmas and New Years over and probably an extra 5 pounds put on with an over abundance of shortbread and sugar cookies, its time to get back to it. I feel like blob right now !

Usually there is a mid-year Christmas show put on by Van Tap, but for several reasons it was put off this year, so, we weren't practicing as much as we would have previous years.
However, Heart and Sole, the Monday night performance group I belong to was asked to perform at the Chalmers Lodge seniors center for a little Christmas entertainment. The group usually consists of about 12 of us, but, being the holiday season, only 5 were available.
The challenging thing about this gig was that, due to the small stage area, we had to dance on small circular pieces of board for our floor. Now, these weren't just any pieces of board, they were the pieces used by the tappers during the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics in Feb 2010.
These were about 5 ft in diameter, with big red maple leafs painted on them. I have to say, I was quite excited about just dancing on the same floor that these talented dancers performed on.

The show we did consisted of 4 numbers, BS Chorus danced to the tune of "More" by Bobby Darin, "You Make Me Feel So Young", Shim Sham Shimmy
at the end, and.. something I had never done before, an improv number, no music, just the 5 of us doing our "home" steps. This is done by one person starting a step they like, then the next person, jumping in with one of their steps, but keeping the rhythm, and so on with the rest of us. This was conducted by our choreographer Shelley Stewart-Hunt.

I had practiced this once before with the group, and just did a slow rhythmic cramp-roll as it is quite intimidating at first to do this. It sounded pretty good, so I thought for the show, I would get a little fancier. Well, there is something to be said for keeping it simple, as I started to do fancy, and it definitely was not a fit, Shelley very quietly leaned in and said, "keep it simple" which I did, and it turned out pretty good.

The audience was so responsive to the show, their feet were tappin' they were clapping, swaying and really seemed to be having a good time. I just loved them, I don't think you can find a more appreciative audience. The looks on their faces was all I needed to see, they were happy, engaged, curious, asked questions, present.
I would hit the seniors circuit in a minute !

In 2011 I hope Heart and Sole has many more of these small venue performances, they are such good practice and increase the comfort level of being on stage, which is always a bit nerve racking.

This year I am continuing with Troy McLaughlin's choreography class, doing a very bluesy number called St. Louis Blues by Peter Cincotti. Lovin' this number, but have to say it is the most challenging to date, very fast steps, and a real study in rhythm and beat. Its one of those numbers that if one of is off, you can really hear it, so with 12 of us dancing we all have to be spot on.
Troy has a great easy style of teaching, patient, understanding,and, with a sense of humor. Thank you Troy !

Hopefully I can get some photos posted here soon,

Have a great 2011 !!