Sally meets Stu

Danielle Agami, choreographer

 

 I had a great Friday. I took myself out on a date. Don't get me wrong, I can get a date, I just wanted to make sure it would go very well. Me, myself and I had a wonderful time. I went to see a dance performance choreographed by a new Seattle sensation Danielle Agami, who is actually very talented and deserves to be called amazing for her work.

  Today choreographers use little music if any which makes it so much more complicated for dancers to be syncronized. A dance looks like an organized chaos, just like life. "Sally meets Stu" describes one of life stories that looks like a total chaos but makes total sense. It's about love, sex, trust, relationships and being afraid of getting old alone. The plot reminds of  a German movie "Run, Lola, Run" where a main character keeps changing her route and according to those changes the rest of her day and eventually life changes.

  Who do you marry? The one you love or the one who you kind of like? The one who makes your heart race or the one who looks safe? many question this show have raised. Everybody can watch this show and get something out of it. It's easy to understand and it's very pleasing to an eye. At the same time I wouldn't recommend bringing young children. It's not your PG-13 show, it's more realistic than that.

 After the show I walked down the streets of cold, young and noisy Capitol Hill. Finally, when I got to my car that I magically was able to parallel park earlier it was time to go for sushi. If I was on a date there would be a chance he'd say, "I don't eat raw fish". Not tonight. Tonight I'm just wandering the streets of Seattle with no direction...

 

Dance will save us

 Some of you know that I have been working for www.alyfun.com this year. It's a website that sells LED lights used as home decor and accessories. Have we been successful? I'll be honest, it's been a rocky year but I've learnt so much!

  I am happy to inform that the website will be rebuilt by January 2013 and will concentrate only on accessories for performers, I'd say dance performers mostly. We do not offer LED lighted pillows and shoe lace on the website anymore but you can purchase them through our store on amazon.com

   All these changes are exciting and awesome. Hopefully, in a few years this small company with an elephant as a symbol of kindness, honesty and generosity will be helping more and more people. Today we want to help our dear friend Camilla Kuhns who suffers from eating disorder. By purchasing a gift for your loved ones you donate $2.00 to help Camilla pay for the treatment. For more information, please, visit her blog: http://millathenightbaker.blogspot.com/ and www.alyfun.com

Happy Holidays,
Aly G.

Dance to dance

  
  For a long time I was thinking that since I'm not the best dancer and I wouldn't want to devote my life only to dancing I shouldn't even invest much time and money in this passion of mine. At the same time whenever hard times come I pray and dance - this is how I find relief. Today I'm 25 and I wish I danced more. Even though I'm not one of the So You Think You Can Dance contestants it doesn't mean I don't dance.

   A few weeks ago I watched an episode of Abba's Ultimate Dance Competition (Features a dozen promising girl and boy dancers, ages 6 through 13, competing for a $100,000 cash prize and a scholarship to the Young Dancer Program at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York.) Those little girls fight and cry, they act like grown ups and the competition is very rough. Somebody will say, "Wow! What a great show! This is how you train and raise a star!" I agree, it's a great experience for a professional dancer especially of that young age. But what people like me who like to dance but decide to view it as a hobby? Do I call myself a dancer or am I not worthy of such a title?

   According to Wikipedia a dancer is one who performs a dance. "Dance is a type of art that generally involves movement of the body, often rhythmic and to music."
   I remember my dance professor (who had a PhD) told us that walking is dancing and yoga is another way of dance too. She is right. People are dancers, we dance through life. We breath in and out. We often follow the rhythm of our heartbeats. Have you noticed that when you hold somebody in your arms your breathing adjusts, your heartbeat becomes synchronized?

   Why do I dance? Because when I dance I can let my emotions go, because my moves will speak louder than words. This is the most comfortable way of expressing my emotions.
Now, can you call yourself a dancer even if you don't practice at least three times a week in a fancy dance studio?
  So, yes, I am a dancer. And so are you :)
https://vimeo.com/51976299

I feel Wicked tonight

   I have the best friends. One of them took me to see the most fantabulous musical "Wicked" yesterday. I used the word "fantabulous" because it should be in dictionaries by now, it's so popular.
By the way, about Popular, what a wonderful song! Even though it's probably one of the most famous songs from the musical yet the whole production bursts out with incredible music and lyrics throughout all two and a half hours of performance. Time flies by when you watch this show.  It's that good!

   Elphaba (Dee Roscioli), the Wicked witch has this amazing voice (I can still hear her singing "Defying Gravity" in my head). Glinda is a character too. I don't want to ruin it for you so I won't say much about the story line. All I can say is that I could definitely relate and trust me, I'm no witch nor do I have any magical powers.
Winnie Holzman, the author of the book, has touched and tied complicated situations together. The story has so much depth to it that I would love to watch the show again... and again.

 

  Now that I expressed my gratitude it's time to get to the dance portion of the musical. Wonderful job. The nice mix of swing and contemporary pieces was blending so well! How did they do it? James Lynn Abbott (choreographer), my personal thanks to your work. Dancers did tremendous work by dancing so graciously and making it look so easy. I wouldn't call this choreography the most complicated but it was very pleasing to my eye. It looked flawless. It brough joy.

 

                                 
      

 


 

Seattle:New Crew

 As some of you know I enjoy dancing. I was cheerleading with Red Foxes  back in Ukraine in 2005 untill I fell off a cliff in 2006... literally. Here's me after the casting: http://www.red-foxes.net/archive/ru/n_050307-1.htm

                                                          Spring 2005. Such a kid!
 
   Then later after I was able to walk straight I started thinking that I could probably start dancing again (even though my doctor said I should never dance again). As my sister says, I always do what I want to do. I am starting to think she might be right.
 
  While living in Kyiv I took classes at different dance studios but I loved Street Classic and MyWay the most.You may want to youtube those guys. They are amazing at hiphop and jazz-funk. I also took dance classes at Utah Valley University (latin ballroom, hiphop, jazz, etc.) and a part of me wishes I could have stayed and done minor in dance. Anyway, I nailed basics of modern, latin ballroom, hiphop. I wouldn't call myself advanced in any of them but I could easily pass an intermediate level (I better pass, haha).

                                                        Utah Valley University (HipHop)          

   I sometimes go to Velocity Dance Center located on Capitol Hill in Seattle and I recommend it to every dancer who lives in Seattle. Even though I am not a professional dancer and I am not planning to devote all my time to dance I'd still want to keep progressing and improving my skills.

  I have been looking for a crew in Seattle that I could join and dance with but I haven't found one that would work personally for me. I instead ended up wondering what is it that I am searching for. I realized I should find dancers from Seattle area who want the same things that I do. I dance because I enjoy the process. When I dance I don't want to pray for the end of a rehearsal so that I can go home. I want to concentrate on each single moment of stretching my muscles, twisting my bones, jumping and leaping, hearing my heavy breath.

                                                  

  I am looking for professional semi-professional dancers who would want to share their knowledge and have an input in each choreo piece they perform. The ideal number of dancers would be six. Hiphop, jazz, modern and contemporary are the primary types of dance I am interested in. I'd say if you have some dance experience and want to keep practicing and maybe performing too, if you live in Seattle area (Eastside especially but not nesecarilly) and would be able to dedicate 2-3 hours to dance every week you should contact me. You may leave your comments and information here or email me: georgiu.alyona@gmail.com
  I will be happy to share my ideas with you and maybe you'll get as excited about it as I am.
Finally, I would like to share this wonderful quote with you:

“Those who dance are considered insane by those who cannot hear the music.”
― George Carlin


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When did House music start?

  Last week I had a craving for club dancing. So I called my girlfriends, picked a club and we were soon ready to go. It started fun and strange half drunk guys didn't scare me. Why would I? I had my four girls with me. Yes, it was a girls' night out and it was great. It is always fun to go in large groups just because there are people to back you up and get out of an unwanted situation. I do admit, I missed my sister that night. Nobody else can party quit like she does.

  So we went to Trinity, downtown Seattle. It's a night club that has three floors so everybody can enjoy music they like. Since I don't drink alcohol and have a wonderful boyfriend the only two things I could do were chat in the restroom and dance. I did both.

I saw a local Trinity guy Roman who always gets drinks for girls. Just saying, if you ladies are interested he's always there It's fascinating how everything has its own life, own story to tell.

 After a few hours of dancing to house music and a little bit of hiphop we finally decided to go home.
When leaving I thought of those two dance styles. I remember this phrase from one of the dance books, "While you control your body during hip-hop in house dancing the music controls you".
 real disco started with Club 54. Night clubs were masters of night since 19th century I'd say.

  The oldest DJ I remember is Billy Carroll. He was a house DJ four nights a week for the popular club called Down Under back in 1976, where straight black people danced. Friday and Saturday nights, admittance was for members. Whites and Latinos went to the nearby Copacabana except on Sunday night, which was for black people. They shared the same owner and managed to avoid competing for particular patrons. That's when house music started.

 If you want to experience real house music, go to Europe and go to Kazantip. It's a festival of parties that lasts for four weeks on Crimean island. All the best house DJs attend this festival. I'd have to write about Kazantip sometime soon. May House Music live!

Best Dance Studio in Seattle

  As much as I love Seattle I am not sure if dance life is as rich here as in New York, LA or even Salt Lake City. Obviously, New York and Los Angeles are the best places for performers but why include Salt Lake? Well, being interested in modern dance I found that there is a bigger crowd of modern dancers in Utah than in Washington. Perhaps, the reason is that there are more affordable universities and colleges with very good dance programs in Utah. Unfortunately, there are not too many opportunities for dancers in Mormon state. Maybe, I am completely wrong but it's my opinion.

  In Seattle there are a few options for modern, contemporary dancers who are 18 and older and who don't intend to recieve education in dance. Three studios are worth your attention.
 First and my favorite would be Velocity Dance Center http://velocitydancecenter.org/ It's located on Capitol Hill and has a variety of classes (modern, jazz, contemporary, yoga, jazz funk, hiphop, Gaga) from beginner to advanced levels. Most of instructors also teach at UW (University of Washington).

  Second best would be Westlake Dance Center that is located in U District, north of downtown Seattle. http://westlakedance.com/ The classes are great there as well. Beginner levels in both Velocity and Westlake are super easy. Westlake has more classes scheduled than Velocity. Also, both studios don't charge much. Usually they charge about $10-$15/lesson. There is no registration fee because you don't have to register for a semester or a quarter. It's very convenient for our busy schedules.

I would rank Spectrum Dance Theatre third. It actually may be the best studio to go to in Seattle if you are serious about dance. It is way more expencive than the other two and you have to register. It is more of a school, not just a hobby. Even though the instructors are great Byrd himself doesn't teach much. He has enjoyed a long and varied career as a dancer and choreographer, with exposure to many different techniques, training styles, and performance venues. He has danced with Twyla Tharp, Karole Armitage, and Gus Solomons jr. He has choreographed close to 100 works.
 He travels a lot and writes about it in his blog. His name makes brings the studio new students. Most of the students are under 18. http://spectrumdance.org/

New beginnings

  Have you had times when you thought that since you don't spend all your time and concentration on dance you can't be a great dancer? It does happen to many talented people. Now, sit down and think where you are at with dancing and where you would want to be. Then answer yourself how much time realistically you could make every week for dance classes and practicing.

Finally, there is this point where your dreams meet reality. That's when you decide that you dance for pleasure, because dancing makes you happy and it's okay that you may not be A. Barishnikov, you are still a great dancer. Dance is not just about technique. When a real dancer moves, even if the dance routine is very simple the audience reacts to the dance. It's hard to fake emotions if one doesn't have any or can't show them.

 Expressing feelings through dance is not new. Isadora Duncan supported this idea. Her dance wasn't that technically challenging for dancers today. In fact, her dance technique would be easy for any performer from So You think You Can Dance. She loved dance and she had her own view and that started a new era in dance history.

Another dancer Ruth St. Denis also followed the path of creativity and innovation in the dance world. She was more into spiritual dances which was the beginning of contemporary dance. If modern dance started with Isadora, contemporary started with Ruth St. Denis.
It is dancers like them who came up with new moves and new styles. You can also create your moves, just listen to your heart and follow the beat because new beginnings make history.
www.alyfun.com

Take Care

    About two weeks ago I was participating at a talent show. I didn't really have much time to prepare anything special but in two practices which took me maybe two hours total I put this short piece together. the song I picked first was "The Sky is Over" by Serj Tankyan, but the whole routine turned out to be more complicated even in my head. That's when I decided to chop off song "Take Care" by Drake and Rihanna.

    I wanted to wear LED hair extensions so I wore only one during my practice video.
Unfortunately, in the video I forgot a few moves. I'm not ashamed of it though :)
 I am planning to finish the routine or at least come up with a combo for hip-hop part. "In the meantime, keep it real babe" as Howard Wolowitz suggests (The Big Bang Theory).
  Have fun and enjoy summer.
www.alyfun.com

Cats

  Last week I went to see this very famous musical called "Cats".
Two weeks prior to the event my friend gave me two tickets for free so it felt like a sin not to go. So finally we went. Yes, I dragged my other friend along. Since I love dance it was exciting to watch great performers do arabescs and show their flexibility. Let's not forget, while dancing they had to sing as well. Their costumes were pretty impressive. They used lights and smoke effects. They could probably use led lights to leave even bigger impression. In fact, alyfun.com distributes costumes and led accessories that are fabulous and can be used at parties or special events.
  Being occupied by the performance I was still trying to like the plot of the musical. Unfortunately, it never happened. It is just my personal opinion but the story line did not keep me interested. In fact, after the intermission we rushed outside and we had no desire to go back inside. Needless to say I was very very happy that I did not pay for those tickets. Even though the tickets were free for me the play wasn't worth my time. I would thank the dancers and the whole crew for their great job but not the writers of the play.

One may only wonder how Cats even made it to the list of Classic musicals.

Preparing for Hot Yoga

Now, when it is time to get fit, I have decided to take yoga classes. Luckily, I've done this before. If you have not and planning to, here is a list of things you should prepare:
1. Water, a bottle of water. Plain, simple, old fashioned water.
2. Two towels at least. One will be covering the mat (that you may rent if you don't have one), and another will be used after a shower.
3. Yoga mat. As I mentioned earlier, you can rent it out at a yoga studio.
4. Minimum amount of clothes. No g-strings, ladies. Do not wear a long bag t-shirt either. Clothes should fit you well, but not be too tight or too baggy.
5. Pony tale, pins or hair band. Just make sure if you use hair band it doesn't fall off when your head is upside down (some positions require your head to be somewhere between your legs).
6. Breathe. Relax. Do not worry and if by the end of 90 min session you feel like you are absolutely done, lay down and breathe. Also when you feel deezie, lay down and wait till your body stabilizes.
Trust me, you will leave the class exhausted but so proud of yourself. The best feeling ever!

www.alyfun.com

Exercising on a low budget

Finally, I got done with Fall semester and I have more time for dance classes and exercises.
The problem is my job or its inconsistency. So I have to find classes that are cheap or free.

First, I can start with bodyrock where a nice lady with a Slavic accent explains and demonstrates the routine. She is really good, very helpful site.

Second, even though my goldsgym membership has expired, since I moved to another state I got a free pass for one week. this way I can at least wake up my body and prepare it for future challenges ahead.

Third, use livingsocial, where you can get good deals for dance and yoga classes as well.
Fourth, run! I don't really like running. I just get bored too fast but I can start walking in the mornings.

Fifth, find my class. When you do find a class that you really enjoy, only then you can open your wallet for a membership. Always try to avoid contracts because if you are like me, you need variety.
Enjoy 2012~, Aly