Two Step and the Art of Turning....and Turning.....And Turning

In order to compete in July I will need to master 5 routines to 5 different dances including Waltz, Night Club, Two Step, West Coast Swing, and Cha Cha. Thankfully I already knew how to dance West Coast and Two Step when I decided to enter the competition.  On the first day of dance prep I met with my instructor, Brian, and we reviewed my plan of attack to make the July deadline.  He decided that in order to boost my self esteem and simultaneously tackle a dance we would start learning the routine for Two Step first.  

Thanks to having already attended workshops and group lessons in Two Step, this dance was not new to me.  Two Step is a fast, unrelenting dance and there is practically no recovery time.  Unlike in West Coast Swing where you can hold an anchor or count yourself back in, Two Step pounds on with no room for error.  I am the first one to admit that I can cheat in West Coast by skipping the anchor if I miss a beat or my partner is off music. ( I know Brian, I am only cheating myself!) But this is a blog of honesty if nothing else.  These shenanigans do not fly too well in Two Step.  If the lady or the man gets off beat the only way to fix the issue is typically to stop dancing completely and start again.  

The beat is only the first issue. The other part that is tricky is the constant turning.  Gentleman have to turn quite a bit in this dance but ladies you will really be turning! And you must turn with confidence and without hesitation! I am going to alter a wonderful quote from Julia Child (about flipping pancakes) and say that you "Must turn with the courage of your convictions!"  It is incredibly hard to focus on turning and new patterns in Two Step simultaneously.  Therefore I began conducting my own turning practice at home.  Just 10 minutes of turn practice a day keeps the line of dance in play!  One helpful turn technique is the chaine turn. The chaine turn involves a series of quick turns that travel down the line of dance.  It is something you can do on your own without a partner and it really really helps with Two Step.  Pivot turns (where you literally pivot in the opposite direction) are also helpful but the chaine turns really sealed the deal with me. After doing these turns for about a month on my own  my instructor really noticed a difference and so did I!!!

Learning the Two Step dance routine after learning the basic Two Step patterns like the weave, and couples turn was actually quite fun.  And bolstered by my new turning skills I was starting to feel like I might really be prepared to tackle this dance competition.   That was, until I tried to start learn Cha Cha....