Whether you want to jump jive and wail, or country two-step around the room, the Golden Dance Academy is trying to help you out.
A three-week program of adult dancing, focusing primarily on jive and country two-step, started on Friday Nov. 9. And the Golden Dance Academy is hoping to garner even more interest, because they plan on bringing in a full eight-week session in the new year.
“You need absolutely no dance skills to participate. As long as you know left from right you’ll be fine, and we can teach you that too,” said dance instructor Deborah Foley.
Foley, who now resides in Canmore, has been teaching adult social dancing (latin, ballroom and swing) in the Vancouver area for about 10 years. She has been in Golden for the past several weeks teaching Belly Fit, and was approached by the Golden Dance Academy about the possibility of teaching dance.
“Just last week I was asked to teach an adult group in country, and maybe some other styles. So we’re doing a three-week session right now,” she said. “Tonight and next week is country two-step and jive, because they have the same rhythm pattern. So that’s the program.”
Even though the first class has passed, people are still welcome to join in for the second session on Friday Nov. 16. Both couples and singles are welcome. Throughout the evening Foley tends to mix up the couples because she finds people learn better that way.
“It’s typically the females that say, ‘come on honey, come out, there’s no hockey game.’ But it is definitely not gender specific, and it is always a pleasant surprise for a lot of males who didn’t know they could dance that well,” said Foley.
There were roughly eight couples out for the first class, and they were able to pick up some of the basic steps fairly quickly.
“It’s all about your musicality, being able to hear the beat. Everything else can be learned,” said Foley. “I think that everybody want’s to dance, but they don’t know what to do when they get out there.”
The next session of adult classes will be in January 2013.
“We’re doing this again in January for sure, we have a couple different teachers we’re talking to. Hopefully Deb can do it again, but we’ll be able to do it again either way,” said Shauna Robinson with the Golden Dance Academy.
“We’re going to offer an eight-week class, and it will have some ballroom, zumba and salsa. We’re going to stay with the all adult theme. I think it’s a little more fun, it’s nice for couples to get out and have fun together. It’s not competitive, it’s just for fun.”
If this is something you are interested in, check the Golden Dance Academy Facebook page for updates. Information is also available at Top Notch in downtown Golden.
