Blog Posts - Stacy Rose, Dance Instructor

Dancing and Injuries

10/2/2016

I cancelled my summer class due to a bicep tendon injury. Big ouch. Waking up with my arm totally immobile the day after the injury was shocking. Watching my body gain range of motion and strength was magical. What a fabulous creation we are with such healing properties. The worst pain of the summer was not dancing and not teaching.

Last night I went to a contra dance. By the middle of the dance, I felt that I had been handled wrongly by many -- not that anyone was intentionally abusive towards me in their dancing. I think people just don't know how to dance with others... how to hold hands without thumb squeezing the other person's hand... how to allemande without a jack hammer throw approach... how to raise a joined arm or swing in a way that supports the other person...

Any time we are physically connecting with others while dancing, it's important to touch in a way that enhances the dance rather than causes physical or emotional hardship to others. But if you are dancing with someone and you experience discomfort, say something about it immediately. Tell the person it hurts you when you are touched a certain way. If it happens again, stop dancing and talk with the dance organizer about your experience.

With a new dance class semester starting this week, I am dedicating myself to teach not only series of steps and dance styles, but more importantly HOW we dance together with others in ways that does not cause injury. Dancing can be a fun and powerful way to connect with others when there is safety and comfort for everyone on the dance floor.

Selecting dances

4/3/2016

A lot of what I do as a dance instructor has to do with preparation. As I spend time figuring out who I'll be working with, I think about their skills, the reason for the dance/why they are there, how much time we'll have together... there are several things to think about.

My spring 2016 class got underway last week. Best compliment ever: more than one person commented on how much they liked the dances I selected this term. Yay! Without fail, I always think I've put together a great assortment of dances -- because I obsess over it, make endless changes until the plan is exactly what I think it should be. But to have a dancer - and more than one! - say that they like the selection of dances, well - music to my ears. Thank you!!

Something new

2/21/2016

Other than playing the flute in a pit orchestra, I've never been involved in a local community theater production. Imagine my surprise last summer when Becky Bell-Greenstreet, Artistic Director for the Logos Players, invited me to choreograph her spring 2016 production of Fiddler on the Roof. I love that show! The music is fabulous - the dancing is exciting!

I agreed that if the actors need to learn a traditional Israeli folk dance, I could surely help with that! Want the actors to learn Zemer Atik? I'm on it. But beyond that... I didn't feel qualified for the job. Looking back now, I don't remember exactly what Becky said to convince me that I could take on the challenge of being the choreographer for her show. Rehearsals started in December; opening night is in five short days.

When The Logos Players rented the rights to this musical production, it came with a choreographic manual. The 200+ page manual a blow-by-blow description of the original Jerome Robbins choreography. The requirement when renting the rights to perform the show is that THIS is the choreography that will be used in the production. For me, that was good news (I didn't have to create any original choreography) and bad news (who in our little, rural shtetle on the south coast of Oregon can do this level of dancing?).

In addition to the manual, I turned to YouTube to see examples of other productions. I found a delightful video of the musical number "Tradition" and excitedly showed it to the director. Becky, in her typically generous and kind way, pointed out to me that I was looking at a video of the Broadway show featuring Topol. She reminded me that while the dancers/actors/singers in the video rehearse every day, our cast has other full time jobs. She advised me to simplify.

"Simplify" became my mantra as I did this work. My first job was to find bottle dancers... people who would be able, willing, available to work on the challenge of dancing with a bottle perched on their heads. Hats off to Jeff, Kay, Pam and Anna! They have worked hard! Sure, bottles have fallen. Hopefully none will during the performances.

There are 30 people in the cast. The large all-cast numbers are exciting. It has been a challenge to teach dancing to this group of folks. I have come to admire and appreciate them over and over. They look adorable in their costumes, and I can't wait to see them perform!

And as for me, I must be doing an okay job - one of the cast members approached me to choreograph a spring 2017 production of HMS Pinafore. Simply... simplify...

The cross over is evolving...

8/4/2015

"Line up for a contra dance"... "Repair your square"... I had an opportunity to say these things when calling a contra dance for square dancers last month, and when calling a square dance for contra dancers this month.
Last month at a regularly scheduled dance of the local modern Western square dance club Saints-N-Aints (of which I am a member in good standing), I called the contra dance "Al's Safeway Produce" written by Robert Cromartie. Pictures above, I had six willing couples who braved a new experience. They did a great job, and they were good sports! I wanted their first exposure to contra dancing to be fun. For the full experience, I invited local band Cultural Ecology to play for this dance.

Imagine a band schlepping their instruments, setting up, tuning up and playing O-N-E dance! I appreciated their enthusiasm for sharing live music with the square dancers, who only infrequently dance to live music.
Interestingly, during the walk through, the top eight dancers turned themselves into a square formation after the first two calls. What?! No squares in this dance! I was fascinated to watch that transformation.
It was challenging for them to grok the contra formation, and the progression of couple #1 dancing with the next neighbors down the hall and couple #2 dancing with new neighbors up the hall. But I saw many smiles, and full effort!

This month at Contra on the Coast (a weekend contra dance event), I called the traditional southern square "Take a Little Peek". Because traditional square dances have few moves, the contra dancers caught on very easily. They had a good time, and I was encouraged enough to consider calling another square!
One similarity I noticed is that at each of these two dances, there were one or two people "on strike" who wouldn't even give it a try. Earlier in the day at one of these events, I had a woman annoyingly ask me why do squares and contras have to be together? She announced they are two very different things, and she had no intention of doing the other. Okay, but it seems like everyone else had a lot of fun.

Outstanding, indeed

8/3/2015

It never gets old. Playing for dancers - it never gets old.
Once a year, the local folk society holds a special weekend event. Any musician who wants to play in the "open band" is welcome to attend and play tunes together. It's a camp out weekend. Then on Saturday night, there is a contra dance featuring these musicians.

The Outstanding Open Band played for dancers last weekend at Sixes Grange. From the vantage point of being on stage, it's a thrill to watch people dancing -- young and old, experienced and first-timers -- all there to take hands and have fun.

Pass the Dramamine, please!

8/3/2015

Those square dancers really know how to get noticed! The organizers do a super great job of having dancers participate in lots of outreach activities. Earlier in the summer, we danced at the Clamboree. Most recently, the group danced at the Coos County Fair. And what's the July Jubilee without a parade - complete with square dancers on a float! Good thing that Bob, one of the dancers, is a log truck driver and knows how to keep the jostling to a minimum. Still, we were dancing on a moving vehicle! By the end of the route, I was a bit nauseated; and although dancing on a float was a blast, I was glad the ride was over.

Pole dancing... or Happy May Day!

5/6/2015

How many girls get to say, "I've got a Maypole!"? Well, thanks to a very nice man, I have one!
And I'm lucky to know a group of dancers who are willing to tap into their child within and enjoy dancing around it!

The world debut of the Whirling Shillelaghs!

5/6/2015

The Whirling Shillelaghs, accompanied by Sharon Rogers, performed the following dances at the South Coast Celtic Fest 2015:
An Dro Retourne - Brittany
Waves of Tory - Ireland
Clawdd Offa - Wales
Dashing White Sergeant - Scotland
Everyone did a fabulous job. I couldn't have been more proud.

Community Learning Night

5/6/2015

I recently had the distinct pleasure of participating in the Marshfield Community Learning Night. The theme of the night was The Civil War - there were various stations set up around the gymnasium. My friends Jenn and Don provided wonderful music on fiddle and guitar for our dancing station in the dance room near the gym. The purpose of the evening was to invite students and their families to attend this hands-on learning experience, having them rotate among the various stations throughout the night. We had no idea what to expect in terms of who would show up, what age range, how many people would be willing to dance.

Our first customers arrived - a middle school-aged boy and his mom.The boy repeatedly protested, "I don't know how to dance." I took that as a challenge. I remarked that I had just seen him walk into the room, and that's all the skills he would need. We circled up three, took turns allemanding and elbow swinging each other, back to circling, two making a bridge for the third to go under... Soon a couple of others joined us, and I lead them in a variation of Cumberland Reel. One dance was enough for this young man, although he did remark that it was fun.

Another small cluster of students and parents arrived. I lead them in Galopede. They left. More arrived. We did Witch's Reel. The next group learned Tunnel Contra. The music was lively and invigorating. I wondered if some of the people there had ever danced to live music before. The response was overwhelmingly positive. People danced and had fun. In the largest group, we had a family of home schooled kids, a veteran, another family with kids, and a young woman new to contra dancing who stayed around to make sure there were enough partners so everyone could dance. I'd like to see participatory dancing be more integrated into people's lives, rather than something to be exposed to at a special event. Some day, instead of hearing, "that was more fun that I thought it would be", I hope to hear more comments like, "That was so much fun -- just like it always is!"

Let the teacher do the teaching

4/26/2015

It's a message that all dancers should take to heart. If you do a quick Google search for folk dance etiquette, you'll find MANY websites with lists of pointers and tips.
Dick Oakes advises: do not try to teach your neighbor when someone else is teaching the class.
The Miami Folk Dancers exhort: there should be only one instructor at a time. Do not try to teach when someone else is teaching.
The Narodni Folk Dancers echo the sentiment: please keep quiet so that the teacher can be heard by all.

This is a great rule of thumb across various styles of dancing -- folk, contra, square dancing... anywhere there is a caller, cuer or teacher. It's disrespectful to the teacher, as well as to fellow dancers. If you already know the dance, model good listening for newer dancers. You can transfer so much knowledge through joined hands without saying a word.