Today I had another lesson with Tracy, but this time Corey (my boyfriend) came with me! After dancing at Mad Frog back in Cincinnati, he became actually interested in salsa and said he wanted to learn. It's kind of like in the movie Take the Lead, where Antonio Banderas brings in his star pupil and does a demonstration for the class to get some enthusiasm going. All it takes is a picture of what you COULD be to make you want to practice.

At the lesson Tracy first went over the basic foward and backward for Corey. Corey picks up very quickly on steps, his only problem is the form. Like a lot of men, he tends to simply tap his foot rather than put is full weight on it. He also tends to forget to keep his hand under my left shoulder blade and keep his elbows up. A solid frame is hard to remember, especially when you're not a dancer. Corey also learned a simple under-arm turn and cross-overs into a turn. The cross-overs he did both in closed position and open position. He also learned cross-overs into a toss-away turn. I can't wait to practice with him! Hopefully this will make him more confident when we got to salsa cabana.

For the last five minutes Tracy and I danced. Some things he pointed out for me to remember were keeping my chest lifted while still sending my weight foward, keeping my body at one level while doing swivels, letting my arms be relaxed, and putting all my weight into my partner's hands. While dancing he threw in a sort of rumba step (a 6 step box) as well as a fifth position in which your partner turns the opposite way.

Now my job is to make Corey practice so we can dance the night away at clubs! I think the best way to teach him how to move his body while carrying out moves is to video tape him so he can see the difference himself.