FLORIDA MASTERS 2008
Well, we had another great year at the Florida Masters. We even had a close call from a tornado!! No, I mean, really!! Joey Warren even had pictures. Of course we just kept dancing and didn’t even know it was going on. You might think when the power went out and the generator started, people might question if there was a problem. LOL. You never know what’s going to happen in Florida. There was a good crowd and, of course, lots and lots of the Florida people as well as visitors from all over. Stacy will be posting pictures on the website so you can see for yourselves. We missed our California friends this year but the air fares were just too high this year. They missed us though and we missed them!!
I really like the hotel that this event is held at (except for the air conditioning unit). There’s nice restaurants and a bar and a Starbuck’s Coffee and little gift shop on the premises and many places to shop and eat very close by. The staff is always accommodating and of course Jason and Jen and all their helpers always have things running like clockwork. There is a beautiful pool right outside the restaurant and many people enjoyed the Florida sunshine and hot weather.
The show was short and funny and we had lots and lots of open dancing. Lil Rob did a great job as MC and we enjoyed all the characters in the “Pirate Show.” Of course, you have to see the pictures to REALLY appreciate the cast and especially Guyton as a harem dancer. It wasn’t pretty. Lots of free passes to events were given away and there was a money raffle to top that off.
Jen even had time to take some of the instructors out to do Geo Caching. If you don’t know what that is, you’ll have to go online and look it up. It’s kind of like a scavenger hunt using your GPS. I can’t wait to do it and you can do this all over the world!! You can read about it here http://www.geocaching.com/
We had a GREAT time as we always do at Jason and Jen’s events. It is just a party atmosphere from the time you walk in the door and remains that way for the weekend. Everyone stayed up too late and got up too early -- well, SOME people got up early!!
There were so many good dances taught and I noticed the same thing at the Marathon. The level of choreography is just improving every year and I had a hard time taking all the classes I wanted to take. I was surprised that there weren’t more beginner-level dancers here because you would have really enjoyed it. There was a wide variety of dances taught and many that would be good for any level class or club. There were quite a few people who came to this as their first event and they loved it!! That always makes me happy. It was great to see so many young people here this year and all the kids from Roundup were there and they were having a great time. They loved taking some of the funky classes but were also in many of the other classes doing all kinds of dances and it was just fun to see how they have progressed over the last year.
I’m going to spotlight some of the dances I took the class or particularly noticed during the previews but like I always tell you -- there’s only one of me so I can’t take them all. We’ll get lots of reports, though, and you’ll hear all about it from other people, too.
You can view the entire schedule here. http://www.floridamasters.com/schedule/workshop.shtml
There were a lot of good dances at this event for every level of dancer and every level of classes. I hope you will take the time to look at some of them because there was a steady stream of very good dances coming out at the moment.
DANCES:
A THOUSAND KISSES, Paul McAdam. This was a big favorite of the weekend. It’s kind of a jazzy track and the dance fit the music perfectly.
STRONGER, Maggie Gallagher, taught by Bill McGee. I liked this dance and had been wanting to learn it. The only tricky part is the first 8 or so counts but then it’s just a straight 32 count, no tags or restarts.
BOO-TAAAY, Amy Spencer. This has been growing since Boston and continued to fill the floor more and more. It is a funky dance but it also can just be done to have fun with it and so really anyone could do this dance.
DOWNPOUR, Paul McAdam. This is an easy NC2 with beautiful music.
TOO DEEP, Scott Blevins. This was a hit at the Marathon and is continuing on it’s journey to Scott hits. It’s fairly easy to learn and fits the music perfectly and I think this one too will continue to grow in popularity. I really like the tags in this one – if I ever pay attention enough to remember when to do them. Jill will tell you I was very consistent -- in missing them.
GIRL, Craig Bennett. This one was hugely popular this weekend. I asked quite a few people what their favorite was and this was consistently the answer. It’s a little funky, easy, and just fun. I think you’ll be hearing lots about this one. I would say this was one of the top dances of the weekend in popularity.
ETERNALLY YOURS, Kathy Hunyadi and John Robinson. I think that John and Kathy really work well together on dances and this one is no exception. I really liked the music and it’s just a neat dance. I would say it’s a solid intermediate but not too difficult. It has a cha feel to the dance but it’s not really a straight cha.
MYSTERY CHA, Paul McAdam. This was another big dance this weekend. I can see this moving up the charts like Cry To Me and Crazy Foot Mambo. It’s just one of those dances that every level will enjoy doing. Everyone hopped on the floor when it was played. Of course, no one makes a dance look the way Paul makes a dance look.
JAZZ IT UP, Paul McAdam. This one has the potential to be a HUGE hit because it’s fast and fun and any class can do it. It was the first teach on Saturday morning after I didn’t go to bed until the wee hours so it definitely work me up. The music will remind you of Do Your Thing music.
SING IT BACK, Paul McAdam. This is another cute little dance and I loved the turn sequences at the beginning. Just interesting patterns and a fun dance.
AM I, Cato Larsen. This one also filled the floor. I learned it in Raleigh but it is definitely growing in popularity. It absolutely filled the floor every time it was played. In fact, it won my survey this week.
STONE COLD ROCKIN', John Robinson. This is to rock music and has all the John Robinson flair and fun. Lots of people told me that really enjoyed learning this one.
FORGIVE ME, Kathy Hunyadi. WC swing dance with a strong beat. I think this one would be good for many levels of classes and you’ll love the music.
TAKE IT TO THE HEART, Max Perry. A really nice cha from Max.
KEEP IT REAL, Scott Blevins. Another hit for Scott that was taught at the Marathon. I would suggest you learn the two parts to the dance and then worry about hearing where the restarts are. The parts are not difficult. It was one of my favs.
SKIPPIN’, Amy Spenser. This is definitely one of the challenge dances of the weekend and the young people couldn’t wait to learn it. A really cool looking FUNKY dance from Amy. I hope you get to take a class from Amy sometime. She is a great teacher and I always learn something new from her as far as hip hop technique.
WAITING, Guyton Mundy. This is Guyton’s waltz and it also is filling the floors. I love this music.
BRUCIE, Scott Blevins. This is a golden oldie that doesn’t seem old at all. I never learned this one so was happy to see it was taught and it was popular all over again!! Of course, did I go to the class? No!! I forgot it was being taught and I was probably a zombie by this point of the weekend. Four hours of sleep two nights in a row was kind of getting to me.
WILD WILD WEST, Jason Cameron and Jerry Siebe. Lots of people have been doing this dance for many years at Jen and Jason’s events (and everywhere else in the world) but they taught it again by popular demand and the floor was even more packed than normal. This is a great, fun dance that everyone should be teaching in their classes and clubs. You’ll love it. Now there is a really good video and teach of the dance that we’ll be posting in the next day or so.
BRING IT, Paul McAdam. We have been doing this dance for awhile now but I didn’t realize that everyone wasn’t doing it. I think I’ve watched Paul doing the video about 50 times just because I like watching Paul do this dance. It is also one of my very favorites and I never get tired of doing it. The only tricky part is the first 8 counts and it for SURE will be done at events for the foreseeable future so it’s worth learning the first 8 counts. The steps aren’t hard but the timing is a little tricky. The rest of the dance is pretty easy.
ROUND IN CIRCLES, by Kathy Hunyadi. This is a west coast swing type dance to sexy music. I liked it.
FAITH IN LOVE, Craig Bennett. Have I been telling you for awhile that I want to learn this dance? Did I go to the class? No. Why didn’t I go? I have no idea. This is really a lovely dance to beautiful music and I WILL learn it. It was very popular when played and lots of teachers in Florida told me it was a favorite in their classes.
HIGHER AND HIGHER, Max Perry. I told you awhile ago this was going to be a HUGE dance for Max. It is just great music, easy to do, and I wish you could have seen Maurice and John Robinson do it in the background when Max was doing the demo. You have to watch them the next time it’s played at an event.
MERCY, Kate Sala. This is great music for this dance. I didn’t take the class but I really liked the looks of this one.
HERE WE GO, Guyton Mundy. There were lots in this class and everyone was doing it pretty well when it was played. Actually the footwork on this dance isn’t too difficult. I think this one is going to be played a lot at events.
CHA CHA WITH ME, Niels Poulsen, taught by Marilyn McNeal. This was another one that people told me they really liked. The music for this will remind you of the music for Now or Never -- one of my all-time favorite dances. The music is Dance With Me by Michael Bolton.
ALL THIS TALK, Andrew Long, taught by Maurice Rowe. This is a dance done by one of the young dancers at Roundup and I love the way it moves on the floor. All levels would enjoy it.
PHENOMENON, Paul Mcadam. This one always filled the floor.
FIRE ON ICE, taught by Arline Winerman. This dance is another one that has been moving up the charts and lots of people liked this one.
TAKE A BOW, taught by Marilyn McNeal. I just love the music for this dance and since Neils is going to be coming to Tampa this year, I’m sure we’ll see more and more people doing this one. The music is Take a Bow by Rihanna.
REESE’S PIECES, Maurice Rowe. This is another good dance from Maurice. We’ve been doing it for awhile at The Roundup and we never get tired of it.
TOE JAM, Maurice Rowe. I think Maurice taught this one this weekend as a second teach in one of his classes. This is a really interesting, fun dance and another one I don’t get tired of doing.
JITTERBUG STROLL, taught by Rob Glover. What a darling dance this is. If you liked YES, YOU WON’T, DO YOUR THING, JUKEBOX and dances like that, you will love this one. It looks totally great on the floor. I wish I had taken the class but we’re going to be learning it at our little Tuesday class in the near future so I’m excited about learning it. Great music!! I really think this would have been the WOW dance of the weekend but it wasn't taught until noon on Sunday. Be sure and look for it.
FEED THE FETISH, Scott Blevins. This isn’t brand new but quite a few learned it for the first time this weekend. It was requested a lot and filled the floor.
Some dances that were requested a lot were: IRISH SPIRIT, BOO-TAAY, BRING IT, THE SMELL OF YOUR SWEET PERFUME, FEED THE FETISH and a bunch of others. Louie did a GREAT job of playing all the dances that were taught a number of times this weekend. We had the advantage of having lots of open dance time so it was great to be able to take a class and actually do the dance two or three times during the day to kind of get it in your head. There was a wide variety of dances done, both old and new, which is always my favorite part of every weekend. I was thinking while trying to remember GUILTY what a great dance that was and when doing YES, YOU WON’T what a great dance that was and then there was TAKE IT TO THE HOUSE and JUKEBOX and THE WAY and -- well, you get the picture. How lucky are we to have such a treasure trove of old dances that are still as much fun to do today as they were when we first learned them? It’s so nice to see event directors asking the instructors to bring some of them back for the people who never got a chance to learn them and so we can do them all over again. They even did HOT POTATO and HOLD YOUR HORSES and, of course, BREAK FREE CHA which I never could get. I don't know why I can't do that dance but I love the music and I just never could get that dance and just when I thought Scott would keep teaching it JUST A LITTLE WHILE LONGER, he stopped teaching it so I think it was his fault that I can't do it. LOL.
If you’re interested in ordering the DVDs of all the dances taught (with a quick walk through of each), you can go to this link on our site and make contact with CJ. I think the DVDs will be sent out very quickly. He was doing the editing over the weekend and sent the info today. Here’s the link. We always do a page for CJ because I think he’s just a great videographer so I have no problem in saying you will be happy with the DVDs.
Here’s the link with the list of all the dances on the DVDs. http://www.worldlinedancenewsletter.com/CJsVideos.html
I was sad to see the weekend come to a close but we’ll do it all over again next year and we’ll do the LINE DANCE SHOWDOWN before then. I try to always go to these two events because I always have a great time. Thanks so much, Jen and Jason, for hosting such a wonderful dance weekend. And wait until you see Jaden -- the kid is definitely going to be a dancer!! I always do the family portrait picture at each event since Jaden has been born and it’s fun to see the whole family at the events. He just is fascinated with everything going on and of course everyone wants to spoil him. Be sure and look at the pictures. I took lots of them!!! If you are on Facebook, more people have posted their pictures there from the weekend. See you somewhere on the dance floor soon, I hope and, if not, I'll see you at THE FLORIDA MASTERS next year!! Carol
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