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Wheelchair Workshop and Weekend
What We Were Doing
Groovability, led by JoAnne Fluke, invited me to present a 2-day workshop for their dancers and dance teachers. I told them the best way to get the most out of this workshop would be to have a "team" present the material, so they funded both me and Aubree Marchione, wheelchair dance expert and assistant extraordinaire, to attend. Nick Scott, Aubree's wheelchair dancing partner, and internationally known wheelchair bodybuilder, also participated. We arranged the workshop to coincide with the recording of a documentary about JoAnne, her disabilty, her life, her relationships, her dancing and her dreams for dancing and for Groovability.
Preparation
In preparation for the weekend, I spent quite a bit of time doing the 3rd edition of Wheel Ease, the teaching manual I wrote several years ago. Teacher training on February 17 was cancelled so I could spend a couple of hours going line by line through the material and details of all the figures, all the chart notations. Pretty much everything worked as intended, but I found alot of spacing errors and had to spend many hours trying to corrrect them. Andy printed out the manuals and I took six with me for the teachers. They plan to have two manuals in each of their three Groovability schools.
JoAnne wanted to have some time with pasodoble choreography. Aubree and I spent a lot of time creating the choreography that would need to fill these criteria:
1-doable for JoAnne (estimated on the basis of one youtube video of her dancing with her former teacher);
2-showcase the wheelchair dancer;
3-use some recognizable pasodoble elements;
4-keep a balance of connected versus shadow or open position material;
5-keep a flow of progression around the room;
6-emphasize rhythm and synchronization of the wheelchair dancer and her partner through very specific, timed wheelwork;
7-push the dancers to produce speed and control.
In JoAnne's Immediate Future
The plan was to teach the same routine to three of the male dance instructors who are part of Groovability, and then record their auditions to be JoAnne's permanent partner. JoAnne selected her partner as part of the documentary subjects. JoAnne and he will prepare to participate in wheelchair competitions nationally and internationally. For international competitions there will be plenty of challenges related to travelling and being the "new couple" on the floor. For national competitions, the challenge is getting competitions organized.
There will be plenty of other challenges along the way, but the ones that have to do with support, emotional and financial, are set up already through Groovability, their teachers, dancers, board members and friends and family of those who are part of their group. Equipment always presents issues. Nick suggested adjustments to her wheelchair to improve Joannes' appearance and connection. I'm suggesting that they change their basics. JoAnne knows that she will have to limit socializing during practice time and that she will have to focus daily on fitness and health. All these changes are challenges.
The Main Points of the Workshop
First, a short trip back a few years: I took a DVD of some of the wheelchair dancers I was working with and DVD player to a big competition one year, intending to show it to as many dance teachers, judges, dance competitors as possible. Most were anxious and curious to see it. One very accomplished dancer, Alain Doucet, former World Ten Dance Champion, gave this comment: "For me, it is not rhythmic enough." It was funny that he said that, since producing better rhythm was the first thing I tried to do with my first wheelchair dance couple. I realized I needed to be even more accurate and adamant about timing and wheelwork.
Timing, connection and wheelwork were the top topics for the workshop. Aubree and I worked as a team to present the Wheel Ease system. When we demonstrated some of the figures the Groovability dancers were already dancing, but used the Wheel Ease technique, there were plenty of "Whoahs!" and "Wows!" Part of that is because the connections don't always show, but the result is eye-catching. The main driving factor in the technique and system I am using for wheelchair dancing at an elementary level is that the wheelchair dancer has a responsibility to know and understand his or her role in producing the movement that identifies the figures and choreography being danced. He or she must understand what to do, when and how to do it so that his or her position relates to the music, the partner and the space.
The Participants
There were some pretty good dancers attending the classes. Some were professional dancers, some were new dancers. Most of the dancers and teachers brought their families and friends with them to watch. All were enthusiastic, dedicated, devoted to one another, creative, attentive and all of the positive things one must be to be part of Groovability. One of the wheelchair dancers said, "I knew there was more I could do to be a better dancer, now I know what was missing." I told her, "Nothing was missing, you're just ready to add some more to what is already good, and it will be easier because you already have developed a feeling for what it's all about." One wheelchair dancer, who is deaf, brought several interpreters to help her follow all the instructions. Aubree admitted that she forgot that dancer was deaf since she stayed in time with the music. I told our deaf dancer a little about Daniel Radler and how he handles being deaf even though he has been a professional standard finalist in USA Nationals, a champion of many professional and pro/am competitions, and is considered to be one of the top ballroom teachers in North America. The moral is, everyone can and should dance, no matter what "disability" they deal with. The only thing is, most people need lessons to learn how to dance.
The male dance teachers are very capable dancers. JoAnne's first teacher, Chris, attended the workshops with his fiance, participated in JoAnne's decision process to select a new partner. He was pretty busy visiting with everyone from Groovability during breaks and it was obvious that they all had missed each other since Chris's work took him to another state, where he is planning to start another chapter of Groovability.
The TV Crew
It was wonderful to see how impressed the TV crew was with JoAnne and the dancers of Groovability. They revealed an appreciation of her spirit, her motivation, her accomplishments and her potential as the head of Groovability. They asked me alot of questions about wheelchair dancing, how I got started, why I do it, how it benefits the participants, etc. I have way too much to say and they suggested I edit my responses for the camera. I can't do that, I am way too excited about the activity and the opportunity to tell people about it.
What We Worked On
We did some drills with the teachers, partners and wheelchair dancers for direction, timing and musical phrasing. We went through all four roles of the curriculum material, we did open choreogrpahy, we went over use of the charts in the manual, we did some "show and tell," with different couples performing their dances.
When the workshop was over, JoAnne arranged for Nick and Aubree to have lesson and practice time in the Bella Studios where the workshop was held. We completed their cha cha, put an introduction on it, toyed with options for highlights in the music, worked on details of focus, connection, timing, arms. Aubree and I stayed an extra day in Kansas to work with Nick on their dance. It turned out great. Aubree and Nick are a phenomenal dance team. Their dancing is extremely athletic. That combined with their physiques, their motivation, their dedication and their unique style for wheelchair dancing will make them sensations on the competition floor.
Wheelchair Competition
JoAnne and her partner will be preparing their dances for international competition. Aubree and Nick are doing the same. An interesting thing is that both Nick and Aubree went out of their way to help their future competitors. Aubree spent hours helping JoAnne learn her timing and wheelwork. That's how it is with the people who are into wheelchair dancing. Everyone wishes each other the very best and everyone does everything possible to give support and encouragement.
Why Do I Do This?
I asked an old friend, a very important and famous ballroom championship organizer to have one of my wheelchair couples perform during the height of the Saturday night events at her competition. She did this on my say so that the audience would love it. I know she had big doubts, but I was right and the wheelchair dance performance hit just the right note with the huge audience. Several years later she invited the World Champion Wheelchair Latin dance team, Piotr and Dorota, to demonstrate at the same competition. I asked this organizer if she saw a future in wheelchair dancing; would she consider offering a competition event for them and could she see it developing in her city? No. Absolutely not, because .....She had a good reason, though I don't want to repeat and promote it. Maybe she is right. I hope not. She looked at the wheelchair dancing as being an oddity, a separate specialty. Like many people, her appreciation of it is not the ultimate benefits that it provides the participants and viewers, but rather the curiosity that it is for people who have never seen it. I like wheelchair dancing because it is creative, it affords a set of rules about movement that can be taken advantage of, it gives me a chance to dance with some very interesting and inspiring people. I need that in my life. Do you? If so, get into the role as a wheelchair dance partner or teacher. Contact me at Universal Dance Center, Inc, and learn how to create beauty and experience a special way to dance.
Groovability, led by JoAnne Fluke, invited me to present a 2-day workshop for their dancers and dance teachers. I told them the best way to get the most out of this workshop would be to have a "team" present the material, so they funded both me and Aubree Marchione, wheelchair dance expert and assistant extraordinaire, to attend. Nick Scott, Aubree's wheelchair dancing partner, and internationally known wheelchair bodybuilder, also participated. We arranged the workshop to coincide with the recording of a documentary about JoAnne, her disabilty, her life, her relationships, her dancing and her dreams for dancing and for Groovability.
Preparation
In preparation for the weekend, I spent quite a bit of time doing the 3rd edition of Wheel Ease, the teaching manual I wrote several years ago. Teacher training on February 17 was cancelled so I could spend a couple of hours going line by line through the material and details of all the figures, all the chart notations. Pretty much everything worked as intended, but I found alot of spacing errors and had to spend many hours trying to corrrect them. Andy printed out the manuals and I took six with me for the teachers. They plan to have two manuals in each of their three Groovability schools.
JoAnne wanted to have some time with pasodoble choreography. Aubree and I spent a lot of time creating the choreography that would need to fill these criteria:
1-doable for JoAnne (estimated on the basis of one youtube video of her dancing with her former teacher);
2-showcase the wheelchair dancer;
3-use some recognizable pasodoble elements;
4-keep a balance of connected versus shadow or open position material;
5-keep a flow of progression around the room;
6-emphasize rhythm and synchronization of the wheelchair dancer and her partner through very specific, timed wheelwork;
7-push the dancers to produce speed and control.
In JoAnne's Immediate Future
The plan was to teach the same routine to three of the male dance instructors who are part of Groovability, and then record their auditions to be JoAnne's permanent partner. JoAnne selected her partner as part of the documentary subjects. JoAnne and he will prepare to participate in wheelchair competitions nationally and internationally. For international competitions there will be plenty of challenges related to travelling and being the "new couple" on the floor. For national competitions, the challenge is getting competitions organized.
There will be plenty of other challenges along the way, but the ones that have to do with support, emotional and financial, are set up already through Groovability, their teachers, dancers, board members and friends and family of those who are part of their group. Equipment always presents issues. Nick suggested adjustments to her wheelchair to improve Joannes' appearance and connection. I'm suggesting that they change their basics. JoAnne knows that she will have to limit socializing during practice time and that she will have to focus daily on fitness and health. All these changes are challenges.
The Main Points of the Workshop
First, a short trip back a few years: I took a DVD of some of the wheelchair dancers I was working with and DVD player to a big competition one year, intending to show it to as many dance teachers, judges, dance competitors as possible. Most were anxious and curious to see it. One very accomplished dancer, Alain Doucet, former World Ten Dance Champion, gave this comment: "For me, it is not rhythmic enough." It was funny that he said that, since producing better rhythm was the first thing I tried to do with my first wheelchair dance couple. I realized I needed to be even more accurate and adamant about timing and wheelwork.
Timing, connection and wheelwork were the top topics for the workshop. Aubree and I worked as a team to present the Wheel Ease system. When we demonstrated some of the figures the Groovability dancers were already dancing, but used the Wheel Ease technique, there were plenty of "Whoahs!" and "Wows!" Part of that is because the connections don't always show, but the result is eye-catching. The main driving factor in the technique and system I am using for wheelchair dancing at an elementary level is that the wheelchair dancer has a responsibility to know and understand his or her role in producing the movement that identifies the figures and choreography being danced. He or she must understand what to do, when and how to do it so that his or her position relates to the music, the partner and the space.
The Participants
There were some pretty good dancers attending the classes. Some were professional dancers, some were new dancers. Most of the dancers and teachers brought their families and friends with them to watch. All were enthusiastic, dedicated, devoted to one another, creative, attentive and all of the positive things one must be to be part of Groovability. One of the wheelchair dancers said, "I knew there was more I could do to be a better dancer, now I know what was missing." I told her, "Nothing was missing, you're just ready to add some more to what is already good, and it will be easier because you already have developed a feeling for what it's all about." One wheelchair dancer, who is deaf, brought several interpreters to help her follow all the instructions. Aubree admitted that she forgot that dancer was deaf since she stayed in time with the music. I told our deaf dancer a little about Daniel Radler and how he handles being deaf even though he has been a professional standard finalist in USA Nationals, a champion of many professional and pro/am competitions, and is considered to be one of the top ballroom teachers in North America. The moral is, everyone can and should dance, no matter what "disability" they deal with. The only thing is, most people need lessons to learn how to dance.
The male dance teachers are very capable dancers. JoAnne's first teacher, Chris, attended the workshops with his fiance, participated in JoAnne's decision process to select a new partner. He was pretty busy visiting with everyone from Groovability during breaks and it was obvious that they all had missed each other since Chris's work took him to another state, where he is planning to start another chapter of Groovability.
The TV Crew
It was wonderful to see how impressed the TV crew was with JoAnne and the dancers of Groovability. They revealed an appreciation of her spirit, her motivation, her accomplishments and her potential as the head of Groovability. They asked me alot of questions about wheelchair dancing, how I got started, why I do it, how it benefits the participants, etc. I have way too much to say and they suggested I edit my responses for the camera. I can't do that, I am way too excited about the activity and the opportunity to tell people about it.
What We Worked On
We did some drills with the teachers, partners and wheelchair dancers for direction, timing and musical phrasing. We went through all four roles of the curriculum material, we did open choreogrpahy, we went over use of the charts in the manual, we did some "show and tell," with different couples performing their dances.
When the workshop was over, JoAnne arranged for Nick and Aubree to have lesson and practice time in the Bella Studios where the workshop was held. We completed their cha cha, put an introduction on it, toyed with options for highlights in the music, worked on details of focus, connection, timing, arms. Aubree and I stayed an extra day in Kansas to work with Nick on their dance. It turned out great. Aubree and Nick are a phenomenal dance team. Their dancing is extremely athletic. That combined with their physiques, their motivation, their dedication and their unique style for wheelchair dancing will make them sensations on the competition floor.
Wheelchair Competition
JoAnne and her partner will be preparing their dances for international competition. Aubree and Nick are doing the same. An interesting thing is that both Nick and Aubree went out of their way to help their future competitors. Aubree spent hours helping JoAnne learn her timing and wheelwork. That's how it is with the people who are into wheelchair dancing. Everyone wishes each other the very best and everyone does everything possible to give support and encouragement.
Why Do I Do This?
I asked an old friend, a very important and famous ballroom championship organizer to have one of my wheelchair couples perform during the height of the Saturday night events at her competition. She did this on my say so that the audience would love it. I know she had big doubts, but I was right and the wheelchair dance performance hit just the right note with the huge audience. Several years later she invited the World Champion Wheelchair Latin dance team, Piotr and Dorota, to demonstrate at the same competition. I asked this organizer if she saw a future in wheelchair dancing; would she consider offering a competition event for them and could she see it developing in her city? No. Absolutely not, because .....She had a good reason, though I don't want to repeat and promote it. Maybe she is right. I hope not. She looked at the wheelchair dancing as being an oddity, a separate specialty. Like many people, her appreciation of it is not the ultimate benefits that it provides the participants and viewers, but rather the curiosity that it is for people who have never seen it. I like wheelchair dancing because it is creative, it affords a set of rules about movement that can be taken advantage of, it gives me a chance to dance with some very interesting and inspiring people. I need that in my life. Do you? If so, get into the role as a wheelchair dance partner or teacher. Contact me at Universal Dance Center, Inc, and learn how to create beauty and experience a special way to dance.
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