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Danza Dolce 2016
BY UNNAVA VENKATA RAMANA NITIN
Let me say, just for the record, I have never ever been to a professional dance class before; so when the Holistic Development Portfolio announced that it was holding an introduction to Ballroom dancing I had no idea what to expect. The words ‘Ballroom Dancing’ triggered in me the scene from Harry Potter where Ron is wearing his ugly dress jacket and is dancing awkwardly with his peers. While I was not exactly over-enthusiastic about signing up for this programme, I thought to myself that this is a skill that may pay off in the future. I came in expecting it to be a boring affair, but never have I been so happy to be proven wrong!
The event itself took place on the 11th of October and took place in Hall 5 Function Hall. We arrived to a sumptuous buffet that gave us the energy needed to dance to our heart’s desire for the next few hours. After a few more minutes of messing around with our peers and seniors, it was finally the time for the real deal and the excitement in the room was palpable.
Our instructor, Sharon, a fun and energetic woman, was a member of the DanceSport Academy. The objective of the evening was to introduce us to the fundamentals of Ballroom Dancing. To my surprise, it was Disco and Cha Cha – two dances I would have never associated with ballroom dancing. We cleared the dancing area and spread ourselves across the room in preparation of the practice.
After leading us through the standard warm-ups, Sharon paired us off into male-female duos and began teaching us the basics, getting us into the groove of Disco. We would try these moves slowly at first, and then at a faster pace and finally in a song. Sharon made us switch partners every once in a while, allowing us to get to know lots of new people. What made my day was the constant missteps and the occasional incorrect dance move that had us bursting into laughter every now and then. Slowly but surely, we did see progress and by the end of the hour and a half introduction we were proper groovy 70’s people who could have pulled off an afro with our groovy moves. Moves taught ranged from the classics like the Travolta Pointing Dance move to moves that I did not know such as the New York.
Break time was filled with people randomly dancing across the room and just having fun in general. Having attempted a 3-man disco dance crew with my friends Weien and Darren (and having failed horribly at it), I rehydrated myself and prepared myself for Round Two.
Being a fan of the rhythm of Latin music, I was psyched to be learning the Cha Cha. We were taught in a similar manner, but this time the dance was more technical and it took a while for everyone to get used to the rhythm. Soon enough, we were shaking our hips as if we were possessed by the spirit of Shakira. The most interesting part to me was that the final mass Cha Cha involved switching of partners during the dance and it felt great to be connected to the entire group in this way.
The three hours flew by very quickly but we emerged at the end of it as professional (at least, in our heads) dancers who knew how to have a good time and hold their own in a Disco or Cha Cha club. It was an extremely enriching experience that taught me a new skill and introduced me to more of my peers. I look forward to attending many more of these events in the coming years!
