Fundamentals For The Experienced Dancer Volume 1

I’d have to agree with the Danceflix summary:

“Their style is timeless and has influenced many of today’s young champions.”

Wayne and Sharlot Bott, “classic WCS dancers,” present the usual elements of WCS, such as the Side Pass, and then discuss how they (thoughtfully) go about doing something like a Side Pass – from the leader’s and then the follower’s perspective.

It’s a low key presentation and can seem a bit lifeless, at first, but gradually you come to appreciate they’re not just describing “steps” or “patterns” but the “feel” of the dance as you (Yes, you!) employ steps and patterns to express the music – “dancing.”

Their approach is in contrast to many exasperated teachers who say, “It’s West Coast Swing… DANCING!” when it seems clear the students are just dancing “robotically.”

West Coast Swing requires more “musicality” than just “Bopping to the beat” and it’s also more a case of “It ain’t what you do - it’s the way what you do it” than many dances… We see a lot of bad WCS dancing, for example, where people just “do” patterns with no heed to the music being played. They don’t even look like they’re enjoying it.

These DVDs are titled, “for the experienced dancer” because it’s very likely many people have taken classes but still don’t feel like they “get” what the dance is about. Wayne and Sharlot can help with that by saying things, “Right here is where you can…” and you see more clearly the opportunity to use what you “know” to better express what you feel.

We found it best just to watch these all the way through without worrying about chapters or particular bits. It’s not so much a “how to” presentation as it is a “why to” presentation and the moves and the ideas flow from lesser to greater easily enough without fussing with the particular move or pattern – which you presumably already know anyway.

Well worth watching a few times.