Yes certainly you can. Be sure you are coming along during a term
though as we stop all classes in school holidays
Please be aware too though that beginners are not particularly comfortable
with people watching, so do try to be discreet. You may want to
think about doing a trial lesson instead - you will get a far more
accurate picture of what the classes are like and what you could
manage.
Salsa classes are best if you're coming with a partner and would like to learn the art of lead and follow, which is the true art of improvised salsa and many other dances as well. You can come to that one on your own, but we cannot guarantee a partner, because we really can't tell who will register until they do! We do try to keep an eye on the gender ratio and will generally close out bookings to either men or women depending on what comes through and how workable the ratio is. It is however worth noting that this area (Hornsby/Hills) is primarily a family area and the vast majority of people registering are in couples and often prefer not to rotate, and we can't force them even though it is our preference for everyone to rotate in class. If you were to register for that class and it was not feasible with the numbers, we would contact you a couple days before the class starts and suggest either a transfer to Latin Jam or put the credit towards private lessons, or simply offer a full refund if neither alternative was suitable.
Latin Jam classes have been created especially for all those ladies in the area who would like to learn salsa or latin dance who have no partner or whose partners prefer not to come along. In this class we teach all of the lady's part as solo work, so no partner is required. It works out, as a result to be somewhat like a 'Zumba' class in nature, but let's just say it is directed a little more conservatively. There are no gyrations or suggestive movements that might embarrass our ladies. We cover salsa mostly, which is an extensive genre on its own, and also touch on some other latin rhythms for a bit of fun and variety. Many of the ladies who do this class go on to dance salsa very quickly and easily by simply learning the lead/follow aspect with an instructor in a private lesson. It's worked out to be a great alternative as it's much easier to learn follow from someone who can already lead!
This is always a complicated question which is quite challenging
to answer when we're not actually on the dance floor with you, but
here is a guide.
If you've done Salsa before
it is unlikely that you will have done New York style which is the
newest most up to date style of salsa, so there will be a period
of adjustment. If you come with a partner, simply start at level
2 but don't rotate partners for a couple weeks until you get used
to it. If you are coming on your own, you might like to think about
doing 1 private lesson first to help you transfer your information
from what you already know to what we do. If you're unable to do
so, simply come on in and see how you go - we can work out the next
step from there.
If you've never danced salsa before,
start at level 1
If you've danced before but not salsa
- the fundamentals of any dance are crucial to the style. You will
need that information in order to progress, but you may not want
to learn it as slowly as we teach it in level 1, so consider a private
lesson or 2 to catch you up to where the level 2's would be at that
point.
There are 3 levels of the Latin Jam classes. Level 1 is aimed ant
the complete novice. Level 2 is great for continuing beginners or
those with a little bit of dance experience or quick learners. Level
3 is best for those with a fair bit of dance experince or if you
have completed both level 1 and 2.
If you're doing Salsa, it is
of course a partner dance, so it is always far better to bring someone
along with you, but you are welcome to come on your own. We will
try to partner you up in class, however we are unable to guarantee
you a partner as we cannot know in advance how many other partnerless
people will register for the course.
Whereas it is impossible to wind up at exactly 50/50 ratio every
week due to absences and no shows, for the most part it is fairly
even, and the partner rotation helps.
We generally have more women than men in our salsa classes but occassionally
the reverse occurs too! There's really no telling until you get
there.
We rotate partners so that everyone can have a go, but do not force
those who wish to stay together to rotate
We don't recommend the girls learn to lead at an early stage, as
it will then make it awkward for them to follow when trying to dance
socially; it is really too challenging for a beginner to learn both
lead and follow simultaneously.
You don't have to be fit to get started.
At first it's no more energetic than a walk, but as you progress
and you learn more, gradually you will become more active and gently
increase your capacity. The good thing about it is that you will
have so many things to think about you won't have time to notice
your activity output increasing until the end of a class when you
find yourself a little flushed and smiling!
Age is not something we ask our
clients on registration, so we can't be accurate there. Also each
term brings new people and they're always different, so the best
we can do is hazard a guesimate. Our students tend to range quite
widely between late teens to approximately 50 something, with the
vast majority falling between 20's to 40's
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