Friday, April 23, 2010
I totally forgot about some of the coolest experiences I had in San Jose...performances at the National Theatre!
The National Theatre was built in the late 1800's and is modeled after the theatre of Europe. It is considered the finest historical buildings in the capital and is filled with intricate embellishments, statues, art, and chandeliers.
Every tuesday the theatre has a short performance at 12:00 PM for only $1. This is to encourage everyone to get some cultural exposure. It takes place during the lunch hour and is extremely cheap, so there is no excuse not to attend. It is a great arts program in Costa Rica, and I think the rest of the world should follow CR's lead and install this program all over.
My first performance was a Spanish Flamenco performance. On stage were 5 chairs on a platform. The musicians walked out and played a passionate Spanish song with guitar, drums, and singing. It was breath-taking. After that, a beautiful woman came out and did a traditional flamenco dance. Her arm movements were so graceful yet precise. Following the female solo was a male solo. This man had the most energy and passion I have ever seen on stage. Most of his moves were fairly simple, yet he was mesmerizing. The entire crowd gave them a standing ovation. It was wonderful.
My second performance was a contemporary improv dance performed by a traveling troup. Earlier in the month I had gone to Promenade, the local big dance studio. I watched a rehearsal one day and was fascinated with the dance style. It incorporated a lot of touch-response, similiar to that used in Suzuki movement training for theatre, as well as vocals. This class had a lot of interesting ground work and each combination was done with partners. The partners took turns completing the combination, which was usual a series of leaps, turns and complex ground moves, but the partner "waiting" was always connected and a part of the other dancer's moves. All the dancers were extremely talented.
Going back to my trip to the national theatre, how surprised and delighted was I to see these same dancers on stage! They did a large group piece (probably about 50 people on stage) that was primarily touch-response movement. I thought it was incredibly interesting, but a lot of the audience got up and left halfway through. A couple friends of mine were in the audience and said it was just too over their heads. I think they would have done a little better if they had had a few synchronized snippets throughout in order to appease the masses.
The group was especially cool because they were from all over the world! Spain, Norway, USA, Peru, Africa...everywhere! The director mentioned it was more an exploration of movement, which seemed entirely appropriate.
The National Theatre was built in the late 1800's and is modeled after the theatre of Europe. It is considered the finest historical buildings in the capital and is filled with intricate embellishments, statues, art, and chandeliers.
Every tuesday the theatre has a short performance at 12:00 PM for only $1. This is to encourage everyone to get some cultural exposure. It takes place during the lunch hour and is extremely cheap, so there is no excuse not to attend. It is a great arts program in Costa Rica, and I think the rest of the world should follow CR's lead and install this program all over.
My first performance was a Spanish Flamenco performance. On stage were 5 chairs on a platform. The musicians walked out and played a passionate Spanish song with guitar, drums, and singing. It was breath-taking. After that, a beautiful woman came out and did a traditional flamenco dance. Her arm movements were so graceful yet precise. Following the female solo was a male solo. This man had the most energy and passion I have ever seen on stage. Most of his moves were fairly simple, yet he was mesmerizing. The entire crowd gave them a standing ovation. It was wonderful.
My second performance was a contemporary improv dance performed by a traveling troup. Earlier in the month I had gone to Promenade, the local big dance studio. I watched a rehearsal one day and was fascinated with the dance style. It incorporated a lot of touch-response, similiar to that used in Suzuki movement training for theatre, as well as vocals. This class had a lot of interesting ground work and each combination was done with partners. The partners took turns completing the combination, which was usual a series of leaps, turns and complex ground moves, but the partner "waiting" was always connected and a part of the other dancer's moves. All the dancers were extremely talented.
Going back to my trip to the national theatre, how surprised and delighted was I to see these same dancers on stage! They did a large group piece (probably about 50 people on stage) that was primarily touch-response movement. I thought it was incredibly interesting, but a lot of the audience got up and left halfway through. A couple friends of mine were in the audience and said it was just too over their heads. I think they would have done a little better if they had had a few synchronized snippets throughout in order to appease the masses.
The group was especially cool because they were from all over the world! Spain, Norway, USA, Peru, Africa...everywhere! The director mentioned it was more an exploration of movement, which seemed entirely appropriate.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
I can't believe I almost forgot this! It seems like so long ago...
Below is a great picture from the Crash Party at Veritas. Every semester the university sponsors a big party in which all the international students and the Tico students are invited. It's held about a week after classes start so that everyone can have a good time and get to know eachother. It's held in the big courtyard and has drinks, food, music, and even a great show by the traditional Tico dancers! The dancers wear boots, shiny two pieces outfits, and HUGE head dresses. A group of drummers plays loudly and energetically as all the dancers step touch and shake. The even brought some of the students into the dance line and had us play the limbo! Such a blast.
During the party there was a dance contest. I grabbed Luis, a student from our program, to be my partner. Luis is full-blooded Mexican, fluent in Spanish, and a natural at Latino dancing. Every song change, which was about every 1-2 minutes, they would make cuts. Luis and I danced like I've never danced before. He twirled me all around the floor, dipped me, put my leg up on his shoulder and dragged me across the floor, and even flipped me upside down! It was a close call, but we ended up coming in second. The other couple were two people from the states that both teach Latino dance back home. We won two free zip-lining trips and respect from the locals! I danced so hard I thought I might be sick, but it was worth it!
Below is a great picture from the Crash Party at Veritas. Every semester the university sponsors a big party in which all the international students and the Tico students are invited. It's held about a week after classes start so that everyone can have a good time and get to know eachother. It's held in the big courtyard and has drinks, food, music, and even a great show by the traditional Tico dancers! The dancers wear boots, shiny two pieces outfits, and HUGE head dresses. A group of drummers plays loudly and energetically as all the dancers step touch and shake. The even brought some of the students into the dance line and had us play the limbo! Such a blast.
During the party there was a dance contest. I grabbed Luis, a student from our program, to be my partner. Luis is full-blooded Mexican, fluent in Spanish, and a natural at Latino dancing. Every song change, which was about every 1-2 minutes, they would make cuts. Luis and I danced like I've never danced before. He twirled me all around the floor, dipped me, put my leg up on his shoulder and dragged me across the floor, and even flipped me upside down! It was a close call, but we ended up coming in second. The other couple were two people from the states that both teach Latino dance back home. We won two free zip-lining trips and respect from the locals! I danced so hard I thought I might be sick, but it was worth it!
I am now in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua. My boyfriend, Billy, lives her and volunteers teaching English and doing arts and sports with the local students after school. We surf during the day, hang out at the local coffee shop, lay out on the beach, volunteer in the afternoons, take yoga, and of course, salsa dance! Billy gave me 10 salsa lessons here in San Juan for Christmas. The teacher's name is Dennis and he's great. My first lesson was several weeks ago and Billy came with me. Dennis doesn't speak any English, so there's a slight language barrier, especially for someone like Billy who's never take a dance class before. I've taught Billy a little bit here and there and he picks up fast. However, he does usually need a drink or two as liquid courage, which he did not have this time. Dennis went a little too quickly, and I think he forgot how to teach a male gringo who isn't a natural born dancer. Billy would get a little frustrated and then Dennis would move on to something different, which further frustrated Billy. However, overall it was a good lesson and I had a lot of fun dancing with Billy and getting to know Dennis.
Two days ago I had my second lesson. This time i went alone. Dennis and I just danced for almost the whole hour. If I messed up a step, he would go through it slowly until I got it. We did a lot of salsa, cha cha and merengue. Towards the end we got really comfortable and just started free styling! It was so fun just goofing off. I'd make up a move, he'd mirror me, and then we'd switch. One piece of advice he gave me is to stay on the balls of my feet. He said I was "muy bueno" and that I needed to teach Billy ha ha. My next lesson is tomorrow, Monday April 12th, at 4 PM. Hopefully I will help out with one of Dennis's lessons to the little kids. He has class with them at 9, 2 and 4. I can't wait!
Two days ago I had my second lesson. This time i went alone. Dennis and I just danced for almost the whole hour. If I messed up a step, he would go through it slowly until I got it. We did a lot of salsa, cha cha and merengue. Towards the end we got really comfortable and just started free styling! It was so fun just goofing off. I'd make up a move, he'd mirror me, and then we'd switch. One piece of advice he gave me is to stay on the balls of my feet. He said I was "muy bueno" and that I needed to teach Billy ha ha. My next lesson is tomorrow, Monday April 12th, at 4 PM. Hopefully I will help out with one of Dennis's lessons to the little kids. He has class with them at 9, 2 and 4. I can't wait!
One of our travels involved going to Puerto Viejo in Costa Rica. This quaint Rasta town is located in the South of Costa Rica on the Carribean side. It is right on the beach, has wonderful snorkeling, and is home to the famous hammock hotel "Rocking J's." While in Puerto Viejo (for my second time!) a bunch of the girls and I went to salsa night at a local bar. The bar is run by Liam, a singer and entrepreneur from the UK, and has salsa night every Sunday. The band was a great mix of classic salsa music and Carribean. Jocelyn and I danced with this tall Tico named Elvis several times. Elvis was a great dancer, and VERY energetic. I have no idea how he moved his hips so much and so fast! We danced so much that by the end of the song we were too sweaty to keep holding hands. It had been awhile since I'd danced at a bar or club, so I had a blast. Jocelyn looked great as well. She's had a lot of dance experience in her past and is a natural. I think we would have made people from the States proud!
I also took one group class at the dance studio called Promenade. It's about a 15 minute walk from my apartment in San Jose and its a wonderful studio. It's made up of 2 buildings, each is fairly new with high ceilings, air conditioning, and immaculate floors (all of which are hard to find in San Jose). I stopped by the studio one day after a run, and went up to the front desk to ask about ballet classes. As I watched the advanced ballet class in the hall, a Tico who introduced himself as Billy started talking to me. He told me about his salsa lessons offered throughout the week and invited me to attend one later that night. He would be traveling, but his assistant would be there to teach the class. I showed up at 7:30 fairly nervous but excited. About 14 people were in the class, half women and half men. The teacher was Billy's partner, a gorgeous girl with excellent technique and control of the classroom. She was an amazing teacher. The first 20 minutes were improv. I didn't do so well at first because I was nervous, but I got warmed up and danced with several of the guys. After that, we all learned a complex sequence involving passes, complicated turns, and improv arms. It was so fun! It was so nice to be in a group class that was A) challenging and B) had enough guys for everyone!
I left the class feeling exhilarated and excited. The teacher, Mariela, drove me home and explained how her and Billy met. She was a student in one of his classes. His class was different than most in Costa Rica - he does salsa on beat 1 of the music. He was trying to start a movement called "Salsa on 1" and succeeded. Mariela picked up very quickly and had a lot of talent, so he asked her to be his partner. She accepted and now they teach class at the popular studio Promenade. She even offered to give a free lesson to everyone in our program! She just wants to spread the word and get people into dancing.
I left the class feeling exhilarated and excited. The teacher, Mariela, drove me home and explained how her and Billy met. She was a student in one of his classes. His class was different than most in Costa Rica - he does salsa on beat 1 of the music. He was trying to start a movement called "Salsa on 1" and succeeded. Mariela picked up very quickly and had a lot of talent, so he asked her to be his partner. She accepted and now they teach class at the popular studio Promenade. She even offered to give a free lesson to everyone in our program! She just wants to spread the word and get people into dancing.
In Costa Rica I learned another type of Latino dance: the cumbia. I was told that cumbia is a peasant dance of Costa Rica. It has a very distinct musical style and consists of a lot of jumping to the beat.
Wikipedia defines cumbia as:
Cumbia is a Colombian musical style and folk dance that is considered to be representative of Colombia, along with Vallenato. Cumbia originated from the Caribbean coast of eastern Colombia, with folkloric variants in Panama. Cumbia began as a courtship dance practiced among the African slave population that was later mixed with European instruments and musical characteristics. It was also used during the Colombian struggle for independence as an expression of resistance against Spain, therefore, most of its songs' messages were related to freedom or slavery.
Wikipedia defines cumbia as:
Cumbia is a Colombian musical style and folk dance that is considered to be representative of Colombia, along with Vallenato. Cumbia originated from the Caribbean coast of eastern Colombia, with folkloric variants in Panama. Cumbia began as a courtship dance practiced among the African slave population that was later mixed with European instruments and musical characteristics. It was also used during the Colombian struggle for independence as an expression of resistance against Spain, therefore, most of its songs' messages were related to freedom or slavery.
My first couple of weeks in Costa Rica were FULL of social dancing. The very first night in Costa Rica a bunch of us from my program (Cultural Experiences Abroad) went to the festival in San Jose. The festival has tons of fried chicken booths, beer stands, bull running, and a huge discotecas complete with scantily clad dancers at the front. It's located in a huge tent and is two stories tall. I taught some of our slightly drunken boys how to turn the girls and although no one else danced, we took over the floor.
Later that week once classes got going, a large group of us took the free salsa lessons offered by our university, Veritas Universidad. The teacher was a spunky and spritely woman who spoke excellent English and was enthusiastic about teaching. We moved the tables to the sides of a very large and open air classroom and she turned on the music. She taught the basic steps of salsa and merengue, which was a little slow for me but so much fun because I was with all my new friends. The class was held every Tuesday and Thursday and went about 5 times and continued to learn new turns and patterns. I learned a couple of new patterns that are quite complicated.
Thursdays, usually after dance class, we headed off to Castro's, a bar/club in San Jose. Castro's in known for its dancing on Thursday nights. We grabbed a table and as soon as I sat down a Tico (Costa Rican boy) asked me to dance. His name is Luis and he does tourism in San Jose. He was an amazing partner! He was very patient if I didn't know a step and for some reason very easy to follow. Halfway through the night we had a group surrounding us and cheering. He spun me all over the dance floor! It was one of my favorite nights in San Jose. Although he repeated several moves fairly often, he would always vary them slightly so they were still interesting. My favorite move was one where he would place my hand on his shoulder, do a head roll under the arm, and then I would push him backwards into a back ball change.
I danced with Luis one more time at Castro's a few weeks later and it was just as fun. However, he never seemed to get tired! He would only let me leave the dance floor for a few minutes at a time to get water, which was exhausting but so fun and such good practice. I did dance with his cousin Randall a few times, who was equally good, and a couple of other partners who had obviously never danced before.
Later that week once classes got going, a large group of us took the free salsa lessons offered by our university, Veritas Universidad. The teacher was a spunky and spritely woman who spoke excellent English and was enthusiastic about teaching. We moved the tables to the sides of a very large and open air classroom and she turned on the music. She taught the basic steps of salsa and merengue, which was a little slow for me but so much fun because I was with all my new friends. The class was held every Tuesday and Thursday and went about 5 times and continued to learn new turns and patterns. I learned a couple of new patterns that are quite complicated.
Thursdays, usually after dance class, we headed off to Castro's, a bar/club in San Jose. Castro's in known for its dancing on Thursday nights. We grabbed a table and as soon as I sat down a Tico (Costa Rican boy) asked me to dance. His name is Luis and he does tourism in San Jose. He was an amazing partner! He was very patient if I didn't know a step and for some reason very easy to follow. Halfway through the night we had a group surrounding us and cheering. He spun me all over the dance floor! It was one of my favorite nights in San Jose. Although he repeated several moves fairly often, he would always vary them slightly so they were still interesting. My favorite move was one where he would place my hand on his shoulder, do a head roll under the arm, and then I would push him backwards into a back ball change.
I danced with Luis one more time at Castro's a few weeks later and it was just as fun. However, he never seemed to get tired! He would only let me leave the dance floor for a few minutes at a time to get water, which was exhausting but so fun and such good practice. I did dance with his cousin Randall a few times, who was equally good, and a couple of other partners who had obviously never danced before.
Wow it's been a long time! After working on my project for awhile I decided to take a break so that I can be a part of Cyrano directed by Robert Richmond at USC. Then I traveled to Costa Rica for a study abroad semester. It was so amazing! I've done a lot of social salsa dancing and lessons, as well as working on my bachata, merengue, and learning the Costa Rican cumbia. It'll take some time, but I'm planning on telling all about it!
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