Hartford Ballroom Blog

Dances Covered:

Level 1: Swing and Foxtrot
Level 2: East Coast Swing
Level 3: Cha Cha
Level 4: Slow Waltz
Level 5: Bolero

Level 1: Swing and Foxtrot

Swing-

Basic (single step)
Follower's underarm turn
Leader's underarm turn

Foxtrot-

Basic
Hesitation

Level 2: East Coast Swing

Tuck Turn
- with a "stop sign" hand
- with followers' free spin
- with both leaders and followers turn (apart turn)
Charleston with tuck turn ending
Peekaboo
- original (inside turn)
- with leaders' hands on follower's back
- with leaders' right hand only on followers' back (the cool way)

Level 3: Cha Cha

Crossover, back breaks, outside breaks (review)
Big box from outside breaks
Alternating underarm turn with man's loop to cross body lead and shadow crossover
Shadow crossover, turn and loop to shadow back breaks
Half moon (shadow crossover + cross body lead)
Triple progressive cha cha

Level 4: Slow Waltz

Twinkle with promenade chasse ("one, two-and-three")
Grapevine with apart turn (starts with a twinkle and check)
Chasse (the in-and-out move that starts with a twinkle with leader's turn)
Twinkle with inside turn to left turn
Zigzag with develope to inside turn ending
Butterfly, with leader's going across

Level 5: Bolero

Rope spin
Back spot turn with Rudolph Ronde
Half moon with quick turn
Right hand loop, with optional Cuban walk
Crossover with quick turn ("quick, quick, and-slow") to fencing line and right hand loop)
Three Threes (J-hook lead, followers' full spot turn to the left, back break and half spot turn to right, then "forward-and-forward-and side")

Berkshire Hall Step Lists For September 2017

10/6/2017

1 Comment

Dances Covered:

Beginner: Cha Cha
Intermediate: Slow Waltz

1 Comment

Dances Covered

Level 1: Salsa and Cha Cha
Level 2: Cha Cha
Level 3: Slow Waltz
Level 4: Bolero
Level 5: Argentine Tango

Berkshire Hall Step List For August 2017

9/1/2017

Dances Covered:

Beginner: Slow Waltz
Intermediate: Bolero

Dances Covered

Level 1: Bachata and Merengue
Level 2: Slow Waltz
Level 3: Bolero
Level 4: Argentine Tango
Level 5: West Coast Swing

Dances Covered:

Level 1: Rumba and Waltz
Level 2: Bolero
Level 3: Argentine Tango
Level 4: West Coast Swing
Level 5: Viennese Waltz

Level 1: Rumba and Waltz

Waltz:

box
progressive/travelling step
underarm turn

Rumba:

box step
chasse
underarm turn

Level 2: Bolero

Basic
Crossover
Back Break
Open Break
- to underarm turn
- to backwrap
- to copa

Level 3: Argentine Tango

Milonga:

Baldosa Box
Traspie (rock step)
- best done on either step 3 and/or 4
Repeat 5+6
Repeat 3,4,5,+6

Argentine Tango

Crusada
Calisita (keeping follower in one spot while leader circles around)
Forward Ochos
Back Ochos
Parada and Pasada

Level 4: West Coast Swing

Styling
- music break ("freeze")
Right Side Pass with hand change behind back
Tick tock
- with ladies' free spin
- with right handshake
  - shoulder check
  - underarm turn (with optional man's loop at the end)
Twinkle

Level 5: Viennese Waltz

Cross body lead with turn into chasse
- optional backwards chasse
Cross body lead with turn into explosion and braid, ending with a runaround

2 Comments

Dances Covered:

Level 1: Rumba and Waltz
Level 2: Fast Waltz
Level 3: Salsa/Bachata
Level 4: Foxtrot
Level 5: Hustle

Level 1: Rumba and Waltz

Rumba

Box
Side-together-side
Ladies' underarm turn (aka "turn with Cuban Walk")

Waltz

Box
Travel
Box with underarm turn

Balance step

Level 2: Fast Waltz

Progressive (travel) step
forward and back
1/4 turns to the left
1/4 turns to the right
Side crosses
- with ladies' outside turn
- with ladies' inside turn
Promenade
- with ladies' outside turn

Level 3: Salsa and Bachata

Bachata

Basic to the side
Forward and back
Cuddle
Pickpocket, using leader's right hand
Ladies' inside turn
Leader's inside turn
Back wrap
Hand change behind back
Rock step

Salsa

cross body lead
canopy, cross body lead, man's loop, cross body lead
out of the way
shoulder check
out of the way to shoulder check
hand flick to right handshake

Level 4: Foxtrot

Left 3/8 turn
Simple twinkle (aims down the line)
Turning twinkle (aims across the line)
Promenade Chasse (slow, quick-and-quick)
Twinkle with guy's turn to chasse
Butterfly
Twinkle to grapevine (mirror image)
Fallaway twinkle
Twinkle with guy's turn to chasse with inside turn ending
Grapevine with apart turn
Finishing twirl

Level 5: Hustle

The New Yorker (like a left side pass in West Coast Swing)
The Las Vegas (involves syncopated rhythm for the ladies)
Cool hand slide to 1/2 a sweetheart and inside turn ("cool hand slide...with a twist")
Triple right side pass
Outside turn to 1-1/2 ampersand
- switch sides to back wrap with other hand and then roll-in from backwrap to cuddle (leader needs to simultaneously change hands to accomplish this)
  - optional: guy turns at the same time
Switch sides to ampersand (a double turn)

Dances Covered

Level 1: Waltz and Rumba
Level 2: Samba
Level 3: Rumba and Bolero
Level 4: Cha Cha
Level 5: Slow Waltz

Level 1: Waltz and Rumba

Waltz:

basic traveling step (aka "progressive step")
box step
side hesitation

Rumba:

box step
chasse ("side-together-side")
underarm turn

Level 2: Samba

basic forward and back
side crosses
side crosses with ladies turn
promenade
box step
samba line dance

Level 3: Rumba and Bolero

Rumba:

crossover
back breaks
outside breaks
cross body lead
open break
open break to backwrap and walkaround
underarm turn with Cuban walks

Bolero:

crossover
back breaks
open break
open break to backwrap and walkaround
copa

Level 4: Cha Cha

Cross body lead to crossover, back breaks, and outside breaks
Cross body lead with right handshake to shadow crossover, shadow back breaks, and outside breaks
Cross body lead with ladies' turn
Shadow crossover (with right handshake), underarm turn with double hands crossed, men's loop into shadow back breaks
Crossover with Cuban breaks
Shoulder check from crossover
Paseo
Turkish Towel
Big Box step from outside breaks
Half moon

Level 5: Slow Waltz

*Note: all of these steps can be done either with feet coming together (Bronze styling), or with feet brushing past (Silver continuity styling). Keep in mind that hover and impetus patterns always involve feet brushing.*

Left turn
Right turn with impetus
Hover and impetus
4-way underarm turn
Waterfall

Step List For October 2015

10/31/2015

Level 4: Slow Waltz

box step (both to the left and to the right)
left 3/8 turn
right 3/8 turn
left turn, travel step, right turn, travel step
double twinkle (aka "triple twinkle")
zigzag to shadow twinkles

Step List For September 2015

9/30/2015

Dances Covered

Level 1: Foxtrot
Level 2: Cha Cha
Level 3: Slow Waltz
Level 4: East Coast Swing
Level 5: Salsa

Level 1: Foxtrot

Foxtrot

basic
hesitation (also called "trouble step")
promenade
routine: 2 basics, 3 promenades, 1 hesitation

Level 2: Cha Cha

Basic (with the cha-cha-cha going either to the side, or forward and back)
Full turn
Crossover with underarm turn
Back breaks with underarm turn
Butterfly
Double crossover

Level 3: Slow Waltz

Routine 1 (a review): 4 travel, 4 box
Routine 2 (a review): 6 zigzag, 1 box, box with underarm turn
Chasse with a box beginning and ending
Chasse with twinkle beginning and ending (where the guy goes under)
Balance Step
Hesitation

Level 4: East Coast Swing

Charleston crossovers
Over-the-head and twist choreography
Windmill
Lindy rhythm
Double inside turn with Lindy rhythm
Chasse (from an inside turn)

Level 5: Salsa

4 different shoulder checks:
Right handshake (the original)
Hands crossed, right on top (right hand loop)
Hands crossed, left on top (Titanic)
Both hands uncrossed (cuddle to backwrap)
Copa
Turkish Towel
"The Illusionist"
Lady's backwrap with hand flicks
Opposition with stop-and-go

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