Is Zumba Considered Dance

Hey guys!! I've decided to writie a blog on zumba because it has become so popular and people have  been asking me about it.

I do take Zumba classes at Maingate nightclub in Allentown on Wednesday nights from 7:00-9:30.  I go with my sister and my sister's friend who she works with.  My sister found these classes and thought I should come along to show them how to do it since I am a dancer.  Honestly, I have never tried zumba since this past summer, and I love it. 

So the question comes up... is zumba considered dance? I would say absolutely but you do not need dance experience to participate in zumba. Having dance experience would help a lot, but there are so many different levels of zumba that anyone can do it. In my class, everyone is at different levels. You just follow the instructor at your own pace.  Everyone is not that good at it, so you do not really feel embarassed doing it because everyone around you is messing up.

In my zumba class, there are people all ages and sizes who participate and people who go at all speeds.  At first my sister thought she would not be able to keep up, but after a couple of classes she caught on.  It is quite easy as long you follow the instructor. 

I would consider zumba to be a dance class but also an intense exercise and aerobics class because you combine dance and regular aerobics.  Zumba is an excellent source of exercise, you will literally use every muscle in your body and you will wake up feeling it the next day. =)
To actually define zumba, I would say it is exotic Spanish exercising and dancing.  It's that type of dance with that Spanish "twist." There is a lot of fast Spanish/hip-hop type music and you are constantly moving. 

I recorded how many calories I burn in one class session and it was 1,200 calories.  I must say that I only burn half of that in regular ballet and contemporary.  This is a great work out for  you and even someone like your grandmother or your 5- year- old sister. 

I suggest everyone trying zumba because I tried it and I love it now and I can at least say that I have experience in doing it.  You do not only have to be a girl to join zumba, so bring your brother, dad, boyfriend, or husband and go join a class. =)
      

How to Relax before a Dance Performance

Hey guys, I thought I'd post on ways to keep calm and relaxed before a big dance competition or dance performance.  My friend had a big competition the other day and she was  freaking out and I helped her relax. She did a whole lot better in the competition than I think she would have  if she wasn't calm.

For myself, before I get on stage to perform, I get very anxious and nervous and many times just flat out feel sick to my stomach.  The more I feel this feeling, the worse I do in my competitions, and the lower my score is.  I came up with some ways to  relax, and I go through them before I go on stage.

• Take deep breaths. Just slowly breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth.
• Slowly drink sips of water. For me, I have found drinking water helps my nerves calm down/
• Calmly start stretching. I find that if you stretch quietly on your own, you won't have to hear everyone talking about the competition and it won't get you more nervous.  Plus, you will be extra stretched before the competition.  
• Listening to music.  I normally just listen to my ipod to block out other noises and people talking.

Many times, I start getting butterflies in my stomach days before the competition or performance even starts.  What I started to do was only practice for a little at a time. For example, instead of rehearsing my dance for nine hours a day like I am supposed to, I only rehearse for three and then I go to the mall or movies, or just do something else that is fun.  This helps me get my mind off of the competition.  The more I dance the routine, the more I think about it and it gets me nervous, and then I start to mess up the routine which gets me mad and frusturated.  It is better to just walk away and come back.

The day of the actual performance, while everyone is flipping out and having anxiety attacks, I am quietly in the corner breathing in deep breaths and slowly letting it out.  I am drinking little sips of water and calmly stretching.  I have my ipod in and blocking out everything around me.
When my dance mates see this, they know that I am in my relaxation mode, and they know not to bother me  because if they did, I will only get more nervous and frustrated.

I believe that these strategies can help anyone calm down, but I usually use them before getting on stage because that is when I find myself the most nervous. 
All of this seemed to help me a lot when calming down before a performance. Hopefully it will help you too. =)

 

The Dancer Life of Chrissy Rocco

 Hey guys, this week for my blog, I did an interview with my RA who is on the Moravian Dance Company team. Here is what she has to say about dancing and the dance company.
How old are you?
I am 21 years old

Where are you from?
  I am from Hackettstown, New Jersey

How old were you when you started dancing and why did you start dancing?
  I was three years old when I started because my mom put me in one of those tiny toes baby classes and I guess I liked it because I never stopped ever since that.

What inspires you to dance?
I'm always inspired to dance because it's a way to express yourself without saying anything.  I personally am someone who never talks about my problems and I tend to hold things inside that upset me or are hard for me to deal with, rather than talking about it.  I feel like dance is the one way where I can express myself and let my emotions out without completely letting go- it's like my therapy.

Where did you originally start to dance?
  I originally started dancing at North Jersey School of Dance Arts and I've danced there until I left for college except for my freshman year of high school when I went to The Harid Conservatory in Boca Raton, FL- a ballet boarding school. When senior year of high school came I decided that I didn't want to be a professional dancer anymore because I knew I wouldn't be able to deal with the unstable lifestyle.

What made you decide to dance for moco?
I decided to come to Moravian and dance for the company because it was very laid back, but I knew I could still have some good classes from some great teachers.

What is your favorite part about dancing for Moco?
I love dancing for the company because there are only about 20 of us so especially around performance time, we all get really close and have kind of a special bond.

What is your favorite type of dance and why? My favorite type of dance is ballet because I think it's the most beautiful, to be honest.  I feel like there's nothing fake about it- it's just raw talent and the fact that it is performed so it looks effortless makes it even more amazing. My favorite part about dancing for Moravian is definitely being with the other girls who dance.

Will you still be dancing for the company next year? I will definitely be dancing for them next year.

Do you think you will still be dancing when you graduate from college? I would love to dance after college- nothing too serious but something because it has been such a big part of my life so far that I really can't imagine my life without it.

What is Irish Step Dancing?

Many people keep asking me all these questions about Irish Step Dancing.  I do not really know why... perhaps it is is because I am a dancer and they think I know a lot about this weird typed of dance.  Irish step dancing is not really known anymore except in Irish Step Dancing only dance studios, which are not really around anymore.

I personally, do not enjoy Irish step dancing.  This is because it remimds me a lot of regular tap dancing, and to be bluntly honest, I HATE tap dancing since I was really little.  I hated the shoes and the noise that tap dancing makes. 

I have a hard time understanding Irish step dancing.  I do not understand the poofy dresses and the weird fake curly wigs.

To me, Irish step dancing is the same exact thing as tap dancing but with a twist made by the Irish. 

I have found, by talking to lots of younger dancers, that they do enjoy Irish step dancing because it does remind them of tap dancing, and statistics show that younger dancers find that tap is one of their favorite type of dances.

Even though I am not fond of Irish step dancing, I suggest trying it because it will be another type of dance that you will have under your knowledge.  I regret not attempting to try it even though I dislike it so much because now I have become an experienced dancer, but Irish step dancing is one type of dancing I have not tried.  I feel as if it is too late to try it becuase it is something you try when you are younger. 

My Experience with Ballroom Dancing

Many people have asked me as a dance teacher, what exactly is ballroom dancing, and where can I take good lessons?  Unfortunately where I take dance, they do not offer ballroom dancing, but I normally tell people to google ballroom dancing, and a place locally near them should be listed.  I do not know any off hand that offers this type of dance.

Ballroom dancing, I have found, has been mostly for adults.  This is because ballroom dancing is an older type of dance and is more recognized during their time.  Younger people find that ballroom dancing is extremely boring and do not care for it.

When I was 12 years old, my dad wanted to try ballroom dancing and since I was the dancer in the family, he choose me to go with him.  We took lessons at our local gym twice a week, and at first I thought it was so boring because it was not the "typical" dancing that I was used to.  After I kept going to the classes with my dad, I really began to enjoy it because it got more interesting each time I went.  It was also a type of dance that my dad didn't even mind doing. 

Also I enjoyed ballroom dancing because I had so much dance experience behind me I was so good at ballroom dancing.  Everyone was watching my dad and I and the teacher would always use me as a model.  At twelve, that made me feel special, I guess.

I also liked what was worn during ballroom dancing.  I get to wear these pretty flowing dresses just like they used back in Europe where ballroom dancing was discovered.  I love to wear dresses, so it was really cool that I got to wear what I liked and I got to dance, which I always loved doing. 

Even if you do not think ballroom dancing is for you, I think that everyone should give it a try.  At first I hated it, but I really enjoyed it because I actually tried it. =)

What is contemporary Dance?

I wanted to enlighten everyone on what contemporary dance becuase I have written so much on ballet, which is great, but contemporary is very similar to ballet and I want to educate everyone on how that is.  I also specialize in contemporary dance, and it is my favorite type.  I want to show people how fun it is so that everyone will give it a try.
Contemporary dance was first developed in the 20th century.  It was developed by Martha Graham and Isadora Duncan. They believed by designing contemporary, it would give dancers the freedom of movement. They also thought contemporary was meant for a dancer to express their "innermost feelings."  Contemporary was developed as a reaction against ballet techniques. Contemeporary dance is a type of dance that uses the body's natural lines and energy, allowing a greater range of fluidity of movement than conventional dance techniques.  It also allows a wider range of flexibility.  Dancers of contemporary strive to connect the mind and body through dance.
Contemeporary  also includes several dance generes such as modern, jazz, and lyrical.  Contemporary is differs from ballet in that it is not nearly as strict.  Contemporary is meant for your body to flow to the beat of the music.  It is considered to be less structural, as ballet is structual and strict. 
Contemporary dance can be characterized by its versatility, and it can by danced to almost any style of music.  It is safe and accesible for beginners.
The four main techniques that are used in contemporary dance are:

1. Cunningham-uses body's line of energy
2. Graham- characterized by floorwork
3. Limon-Uses the feeling of weight and heavy energy
4. Release-Release through joints and muscles to create ease of movements, releasing the breath to aid the release of the body

There are also 3 other techniques that are used but are not as common. These are:

• Improvisation-Development of individual movement material is facilitated through a variety of creative explorations
• Contact Improvisations- Duet dance form characterized by weight exchange, fluid movement and touch . Partners improvises using the natural movement of the body.
• Choreography-Designed to encourage personal investigation into the ideas suitable for choreography

Contemeporary dance does not use any shoes and while they dance.  Their costumes are very tight and fit to their bodies for easy movement. 
some information from: blackfishacademy.com and about/contemporarydance.com