This page contains information of general interest to line dancers and past "editorial" comments which appeared under the announcements and news heading.

FOR A DANCER  (written by Jackson Browne, as sung by James Dupre)

Keep a fire burning in your eye
Pay attention to the open sky
You never know what will be coming down.
I don't remember losing track of you
You were always dancing in and out of view
I must've thought you'd always be around.
Always keeping things real by playing the clown
Now you're nowhere to be found.

I don't know what happens when people die
Can't seem to grasp it as hard as I try
It's like a song I can hear playing right in my ear
That I can't sing I can't help listening.

I can't help feeling stupid standing 'round
Crying as they ease you down
'Cause I know that you'd rather we were dancing,
Dancing our sorrow away. Right on dancing
There's nothing you can do about it anyway.

Just do the steps that you've been shown
By everyone you've ever known
Until the dance becomes your very own.
No matter how close to yours another's steps have grown
In the end there is one dance you'll do alone.

Keep a fire for the human race
Let your prayers go drifting into space
You never know will be coming down.

Perhaps a better world is drawing near
Just as easily, it could all disappear
Along with whatever meaning you might have found.
Don't let the uncertainty turn you around
Go on and make a joyful sound.

Into a dancer you have grown
From a seed somebody else has thrown.
Go on ahead and throw some seeds of your own
And somewhere between the time you arrive and the time you go
May lie the reason you were alive but you'll never know.

For a Dancer lyrics © Jackson Browne/Swallow Turn Music/Night Kitchen Music/Open Window Music

ONCE UPON A TIME

There was a man who was—let's say, a bank manager. He was favored by the bank directors because he had some of his own money invested in the bank, and he was happy to work late. One of his duties was to consider loan applications. He took great pleasure in wielding his power and turned down many, MANY requests, often belittling and ridiculing the loan applicants just for his amusement. In this way he inflated his sense of self worth.

Then one day the Wheel Of Fate clicked forward, and the bank manager found himself in need. He had to ask the very people he'd  humiliated for their help. They treated him as he had treated them. He went away, never to be seen again.

And everybody lived happily ever after.

Here are some 2017 numbers Peter compiled.

• 136 = Classes taught, from AB through advanced
• 3 = extra classes taught
• 5 = classes "missed" (rec centers closed after the hurricane or holidays)
• 1 = class Peter subbed after my eye surgery
• 84 = videos posted to YouTube
• 43 = videos posted in the new instructional series
• 11 = new dances choreographed
• 142 = new dances taught in various classes
• 40 = oldies/favorites taught
• 8 = themed socials at Eisenhower and Rohan
• 1 = workshop with internationally-known instructor John Robinson
• 0 = vacation days taken
• $249.15 = candy for class
• $758.01 = snacks, gifts, and prizes for socials and parties
• $139.88 = music on iTunes and Amazon

Still to come are my license fees to BMI, SEASAC, and ASCAP which allow me to play music legally in class. This will be between $350 and $450 for calendar year 2018.

I am only one of about 20 VOLUNTEER line dance instructors here in The Villages, and all of us are happy to spend our time preparing for class and dancing with you. 

WHAT IS A "STARTING WALL"?

This is a term I use often in class. Let's assume that we begin a dance facing the front wall, or 12:00. This is where I stand when I teach, with my back to the class and all of us facing forward. When we complete the dance pattern we are facing a different wall, and we begin the pattern again.

Although the new wall (and subsequent walls) are, in effect, "12:00" as we dance the pattern, it would be too confusing for me to call that new wall either "12:00" or the "front wall," because those terms are so strongly associated with the ACTUAL front of the room.

So for clarity, when we start the pattern from the beginning on all subsequent repetitions of the pattern, I refer to each of those as the "starting wall." Think of it as VIRTUAL 12:00 (still with me?).

Here's an example. Cupid Shuffle is a 4 wall dance. When we finish the 32 count pattern we are facing 9:00, where we repeat the pattern. That makes 9:00 our "starting wall" FOR THAT REPETITION OF THE DANCE. In effect, you DANCE as though you're facing 12:00, and I think everybody understands that.

Quiz: in this example still using Cupid Shuffle, where's your next "starting wall"?

Recently I received this extremely complimentary email from another instructor about a specific dance. 

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I am deeply distraught to learn that yet ANOTHER class has started opposite one of my existing classes. This is especially devastating because I recently changed the format of that class to accommodate what I understood were the preferences of the majority of students.

When I moved to The Villages, instructors were careful not to tread on each other's classes because we respected each other. We also were careful about limiting socials to 1 per quarter each, and scheduling them so they didn't conflict with those of others. It's sad that this no longer is true.

I hope that some students value what I have to offer that they do not get in any other class:

I have a million things to do today but had to write to you.  Not sure if your ears were burning last night but I was sitting outside with [friends] singing your praises, explaining the difference between instructors (because I get frustrated sometimes) - trying to explain that Lisa “dances” and doesn’t just do steps.



WALTZ OR ROLLING 8--HOW TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE

This is a very thorough explanation by Norm Gifford of "rolling rhythm." You know Norm's name because (as of this writing) Norm has choreographed more than 170 dances over 20 years, including A Love Worth Waiting 4 and A Little Love Worth Waiting 4, Hello Jo, Sway Me Now, Burlesque, and A Country High. His dance Burlesque was nominated for a Crystal Boot Award. In addition to being a choreographer and instructor, Norm is a musician, and has a degree in music education. He has performed with several semi-professional symphony orchestras, has taught instrumental music privately, and has over 65 years of trained musical background. Here's Norm:

By definition, waltzes are written in ¾ time and are counted 1-2-3, 1-2-3 with one beat per quarter note. They come in two types: fast waltzes and slow waltzes. The term "Viennese waltz" is taken from the world of ballroom dancing and defines a style, NOT a tempo. Therefore, it is incorrect to label any LINE DANCE as a "Viennese waltz."

Music in 4/4 meter can include triplet rhythms, where 3 eighth notes occupy one beat. When written as four groups of triplets in a measure, this can sound like a waltz to the untrained ear.

The same can be said for 12/8 meter where every group of three 1/8th notes receives an accent on the first eighth note, and the phrasing of the music or lyrics is felt in patterns of four. That constitutes many cases of what has been termed "rolling rhythm." 

The line dance "Rolling Rhythm" choreographed by Michele Burton and danced to Girl Crush is a perfect example of the correct interpretation of the music style, and is correctly labeled.

To more easily identify a slow waltz, listen for the heavy beat on count 1 of the first measure and a lesser accented beat on count 1 of the second measure (as we would count in line dancing, the heavy accent is on beat 1 and the lighter accent on beat 4.) That corresponds to the stepwork of country couples waltzes, with the heaviest accent on the man's left foot. 

Remember: tempo does not determine the style of a dance. A Viennese Waltz is a ballroom style, and does not apply to line dance. Unfortunately, many line dance choreographers do not understand this.

A good site to check for dance speeds is: Tempo Recommendations for Dance Music - Hollywood Ballroom Dance Center, LLC  You will note the source references are reputable organizations.

Thank you, Norman!  As most of you know, I discuss the difference between waltzes and rolling 8 rhythms when I teach. I play music of both meters, and we listen to the timing, rhythm, and how the lyrics coincide with the counts. Here's an oversimplified method that line dancers of any level can use.

While listening to a song that you think may be a waltz, do some familiar waltz steps: forward and back basics, twinkles, etc. If you feel graceful and the dance steps flow, the song is a waltz. If your dancing feels frenetic and rushed, and you find you need to add holds or sweeps for 2 counts to MAKE it feel "waltzy," then chances are good that the meter is a rolling 8.

Happy dancing! (And THAT'S why this website is called LEARN with Lisa.)

For those of you who are new to The Villages and don't know the background, I began teaching here by splitting the year with Carol Simmons, who started the Monday (Hibiscus) and Wednesday (Pimlico) evening classes many years ago. My "term" is roughly May-October, and Carol's is roughly November-April, with a little overlap at each end due to her travel schedule.

Although amenities fees allow residents to attend any free class any time with no obligation, regular participants in various activities often choose to show their appreciation of their volunteer instructors by contributing to a group purse. Usually this occurs during the holidays.

Because Carol teaches during "the season," any gifts from the Monday students are presented to her in December, even though we split the year.

A couple of years ago, some of my students came up with the idea of celebrating my September birthday, which occurs during my "term" at Hibiscus. These friends put out a card for my students to sign, and collected any contributions for ME in recognition of the time and effort I put into those two classes for six months. 

I only celebrate my September birthday in the Monday class because I am not there during the holidays.  

DOES ANYBODY ELSE FIND THIS TROUBLING? (addendum)

There was a discussion thread about dance floor etiquette in Carol Craven's newsletter, but some of it relates to my comments about how we look when we dance. This is what John Robinson had to say:



Here's the original thread from Talk Of The Villages.

I associate line dancing more with an aerobic exercise class or a Zombie apocalypse than dancing.
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As a non line dancer, but an avid observer, if the zombies would only smile, laugh, or even pretend they enjoy line dancing, one could tolerate the music that line dancing is done to.
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I see nothing wrong with line dancing: good exercise, promotes mental acuteness, etc. But nobody looks happy. No interaction between participants. No smiles.
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It's actually pretty boring watching it, and the look on the faces of the individuals Line Dancing they all look like they lost their best friend or worse yet about to face 20yrs to life.
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they all look like they have had Facelift sort of like a combination of Barry Manilow and Joan Rivers, afraid to show any emotion perhaps for fear of their facelift coming apart...

Is this the impression we want to give? Granted, for the most part these comments refer to people dancing on the squares, where dancers have to concentrate to keep their footing on uneven surfaces and also avoid the "happy hour" dancers, kids, and dogs underfoot. If you dance on the squares, I hope you'll keep these comments in mind, and try to convey the enjoyment you derive from line dancing.

Yes, we concentrate or count when we try to remember the steps. But we don't have to LOOK like we're in pain, right? When (not if) we make mistakes, it's not the end of the world. Nobody's going to throw us out of class or ban us from the square. Remember what I say in class--the mistakes don't show in your feet, they show in your FACE.  If you're smiling, anybody watching thinks either you're perfect or that the mistakes don't bother you, which should be true!

Whether you're in class or on the squares, don't worry so much about the steps that you forget to smile and have fun.

Be like Snoopy--make every dance a happy dance!

MEETING NEW PEOPLE

I'm sure that all of my students have heard me talk about the benefits of line dancing, which is great physical and mental exercise: what could be better than moving to music in a relaxed and happy environment among friends? I also remind my beginners especially to smile and get to know the people dancing next to you--wearing a name tag is a big help.

Once you've been going to classes for a while, you are familiar with the faces of the other dancers on the floor, and it's obvious when a new person joins the class. Be friendly and helpful if you can, and make a point to smile and say hello. Recently in an intermediate class, I noticed a couple who came in late. He sat and watched, but she found a spot in one of the front lines and gave it a go. She didn't know the dances, but she picked up most of the steps and did as well as the rest of us when a new dance was taught.

After class I introduced myself and asked if they were new to The Villages. Their names are Tania and Frank, they live in Belgium, and they were renting a house near Spanish Springs for a month. We chatted for quite a while after class and I gave them my card so they could email me. I was pleased that they did, and I told them about other classes and activities. They tried to do a lot in their time here, and had a busy schedule which also included trips to Orlando and St. Pete, and hosting visitors of their own.

While they were here, we went out to breakfast and lunch, and after class we and two other students went to World Of Beer at Brownwood. Frank encouraged me to try a Belgian brew, which was delicious.

When we go to classes, often we stand in the same place and speak to the same people--it's our routine and we enjoy it. But I hope everyone also will keep an eye out for newcomers and make them feel welcome. You really DO meet the nicest people that way!

TYRANNY ON KICKIT

Kickit is a step sheet archive website.  I have used it for many years, and have been a longstanding subscribing member. When choreographers submit their step sheets for publication on Kickit and click "agree" to the terms and conditions, they authorize Peter Blaskowski, who runs the site, to make any changes he deems necessary.  In 2012, Peter decided that all step sheets posted on his site would be correct--according to HIS idea of correctness.

In the case of my step sheet, he made several changes, including redesignating (erroneously) the RHYTHM of the music I used. In protesting, I compared the rhythm to the music for two other dances which he did not change, and after telling me that he "didn't listen" to the songs I mentioned, he made this reply, printed in its entirety (the underscores are mine):

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